Golden Fool

In this second book in the Tawny Man trilogy, Fitz is back at Buckkeep, posing as Lord Golden's servingman in order to resume his duties as spy and skillmaster to the Farseers. But the threats from the previous book -- the Piebald radicals -- are still close at hand, and new problems are growing as Prince Dutiful's betrothal to the Outislander Narcheska is finalized and the Bingtown traders show up demanding help with their war with Chalced. Meanwhile, Fitz and the Fool are not getting along quite as well as they used to, Fitz's foster son Hap is hopelessly in love, and Chade is scheming away to find the prince a Skill coterie...

Hobb is so good at the slow burn character writing and I enjoyed this reread immensely, if a little bit less show more than Fool's Errand because I hate when Fitzy and the Fool are fighting :( If you're looking for action, this is not the book for you; if you're looking for court intrigue, complex characters, and complicated relationships, read on. 4.5 stars. show less

Rescued from his would-be Piebald kidnappers, Prince Dutiful has returned home and life at Buckkeep has resumed its normal pace. The price of the rescue was high: Nighteyes is dead. With a heavy heart Fitz finds himself again living at Buckkeep. Maintaining his pose as Tomb Badgerlock, Lord Golden's manservant and bodyguard, Fitz secretly resumes his old duties as spy for the Farseers. With his old mentor visibly failing, Fitz must take up more and more duties to help keep the kingdom stable. The problems are many. Prince Dutiful's betrothal to the Narcheska of the Outislands is fraught with tension as many of the Buck nobles disagree with the decision and the Narcheska herself is keeping many secrets. Piebald threats and persecution of show more the Witted have increased, both of which could topple Farseer throne and heir if the Prince's secret was to be revealed. Even Fitz's relationship with the Fool is shattered when secret's from the Fool's past are revealed. Court intrigues swirl. On top of that Fitz has been tasked to teach the Prince the Skill, the hereditary magic of the Farseers. With little support Fitz finds himself struggling just to survive.

Golden Fool is the second in Robin Hobb's Tawny Man trilogy. The story picks up from the exact same scene where the first book leaves off. Fitz has more or less resigned himself to life again at Buckkeep, posing as a bodyguard/servant for Lord Golden while resuming his old duties under Chade. Chade, realizing that Fitz has progressed far beyond a mere apprentice, names Fitz as his journeyman and first in line to inherit the old spymaster's job. Fitz is having a hard time of it. He has lost half of his soul with Nighteye's death and must relearn how to live without the extra senses and companionship of his wit-bond. Resuming his old life is a much needed distraction from the loss and also lets Fitz keep his oath to serve the Farseers. Initially against the idea Fitz becomes the (unwilling) Skillmaster for Prince Dutiful and Chade has set him the impossible task of finding and creating a Skill Coterie for the Prince. All while keeping a secret eye on the Narcheska and her Outislanders, doing his best to stay fatherly to Hap, maintaining a friendship with Jinna, keep up appearances with "Lord Golden" and a number of other things going on in court. I'm exhausted just thinking of all the balls he's juggling! With everything else going on Fitz finds the only way to keep his sanity is in his friendship with the Fool. Then this one comfort is taken away when visitors from Bingtown accidentally reveal secrets from the Fool's past making Fitz doubt if he ever knew his friend at all.

Both character and plot development move at a glacial pace. Pages fly by with little progress but there in lies the secret to Hobb's style. She takes her time, allowing the tensions to mount until events erupt in a dramatic manner. While it did not bother me in the first book, the second book felt more drawn out. Characters lamented over their pasts and I found it somewhat frustrating after it was repeated several times. Yet it was never boring. It is exactly what real people do, belabor in our minds over some error and beat ourselves up over if only we could go back in time and do things differently then maybe... This is just one of the things that help make Hobb's characters so believable.

Poor, poor Fitz. Just when he seems to have things in his personal life going well, he manages to screw it up pretty badly. There were so many times I wanted to shake him to make him think before speaking or acting in the heat of the moment. He screws up his relationships with pretty much everyone in this book and only begins to repair some of them towards the end of the novel. The Fool, I'm sad to say, is more of a secondary character in this book. He disappears from the story almost entirely for a while. I missed his presence as much as Fitz did. Introduced in this book is Thick, a dull-witted servant of Chade's that also happens to be extremely strong in the Skill. I loved how Fitz's relationship with Thick progressed. Fitz had to think outside the box to gain Thick's trust.

Many plots are set into motion with little resolution. Instead we have most of the players on the board ready to to move on to the finale. I have no idea how Hobb will wrap this all up in just one more book. show less

In a lot of ways, this was better than the first book of the Tawny Man Trilogy. And, one of the best second-in-trilogy books. So often it seems that the author is just fitting in a middle section that they need to get to the third book. Rather, in this book, we learn about the characters (FitzChivalry, The Fool, Prince Dutiful, Hap, Chade, etc.) all in a deeper way than in the previous book.

Golden Fool picks up right where Fool's Errand left off. Tom Badgerlock is at a crossroads of sorts. He hasn't fully committed to life indefinitely as a servant to Lord Golden - a necessary role he has taken on so as to conceal his real identity as FitzChivalry. He has agreed to train Prince Dutiful, but not completely come to terms with what that show more means. The Six Duchees is facing challenges on multiple fronts - a war between Chalced and Bingtown threatens outside the southern boarder, the prince's upcoming engagement to the Outislander Narchesca, and strife with those of "Old Blood" (both with the non-magical people of the realm and between themselves and the militant Piebalds threaten all.)

This book has plenty of adventure and intrigue. It also has rich characters that reveal the best and the worst of themselves in a very satisfying fashion. I can't wait to read Book 3. show less

In a lot of ways it was superior to the book directly preceding it. It had a lot of great elements, including emotional conflict between the two main characters, the rebuilding of a new coterie, dragon intrigue, marriage intrigue, and some better witted developments. What can I say? I like Fitz and the Fool. I love the world surrounding it. I love the different kinds of magic coming out of the woodwork.
And even if I feel a little meh about the whole witted conflicts that seem a bit trumped up, everything else is so enjoyable that I can't stop reading it.

After finishing Robin Hobb’s Golden Fool, my general reaction was that, in the best way possible, I’d been here before.

The second book in Hobb’s Tawny Man trilogy bears more than a passing resemblance to Royal Assassin, the second book in her Farseer trilogy. In each, Fitz juggles multiple responsibilities while trying to face down a variety of potential threats. (In Golden Fool, the threats take the form of Piebald radicals from the previous book, Outislanders who preyed upon the Six Duchies in the first series, and emissaries from Bingtown, which played a key role in an intervening series.) As a result, there’s no clear goal for Fitz to strive for, and no definitive ending—Golden Fool isn’t any more self-contained than show more Royal Assassin. Both feel like bridge books to the next installments in the series.

The parallels don’t end there. When you step back and compare the larger Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies, you can see similar arcs. In the first books, Fitz enters court life and saves the heir to the throne. In the second books, it’s his turn to be saved, and a grand quest is announced. In the third books (and here I’m making an educated guess based on clues in Golden Fool), that quest is undertaken, and it involves dragons. Even the titles mirror: the Farseer trilogy consists of Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, and Assassin’s Quest (with “Assassin” in first, second, and first position); the Tawny Man trilogy consists of Fool’s Errand, Golden Fool, and Fool’s Fate (with the position of “Fool” following the same pattern).

These echoes are probably intentional. In the epilogue to Golden Fool, Fitz says, “I think we are born into our circuits. Like a colt on the end of a training line, we trot in the circular path ordained for us. We go faster, we slow down, we halt on command, and we begin again. And each time we think the circle is something new.” By this point in the story, Fitz is trotting the second lap on a number of circuits. He’s reprised his role as spy and assassin for the Farseer monarchy. He’s taken on the title of Skillmaster and started teaching the magic to gifted students (much as Galen once taught him). He’s raised an adopted son (much as he was raised by Burrich). And he’s sacrificed everything for the good of the realm (much as Verity did during the days of the Red Ship Raiders).

Those are mostly fantastical events. But the theme—that history repeats itself, even within a lifetime—is very real. And it’s one of the things I appreciate most about this meandering, captivating series. I can’t wait to see where it goes next.

Even, and maybe especially, if it feels familiar.

(For more reviews like this one, see www.nickwisseman.com) show less

No one writes character-driven fantasy as well as this author. Absolutely no one!

In this episode of the Ederling saga, Fitz has come full circle and is back residing in Bucktown. Playing servant to the Fool's Lord Golden and wallowing in the heartaches of his past, Fitz questions everything that has come before and wonders "what if". All the battles fought in this book are purely of the heart AND Hobb breaks your heart, over and over, and you continue to turn the pages for more. Exceptional, brilliant! A million other adjectives still would not do this author justice.

4.5 out of 5 stars! The end of Fool's Errand left me hollow and depressed. Fitz is likewise in the same situation throughout this book, and he speaks of the pains in such a clear and concise manner. The growing pains involving Fitz, Fool, and various others are vivid and haunting. Hobb does a fantastic job making real issues like prejudices, love, and parenting extremely relatable in her fantasy world. There were heavy moments that required me to put the book down for a few cooling moment. Golden Fool remains a fantastic bridge in her Tawny Man Trilogy.