Fantasy

Ship of Magic

Ship of Magic

  • Downloads：8380
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-05 14:57:16
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Robin Hobb
  • ISBN：0008117454
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

From the author of the classic Farseer trilogy， Ship of Magic is the first part of the Liveship Traders。 Set in a land bordering the Six Duchies， Robin Hobb begins her epic of pirates， talking ships， magic， sea serpents， slave revolts， dashing heroes and bloody battles。

Wizardwood， the most precious commodity in the world， comes only from the Rain Wilds。 But only a liveship can negotiate the perilous waters of the Rain Wild River， and liveships are hard to come by。 They quicken only when three family members from successive generations have died upon their deck。

The liveship Vivacia is about to undergo her quickening: Althea Vestrit waits for the ship that she loves more than anything in the world to awaken。 But her dream of taking her father’s place at Vivacia’s helm is not to be， for her family have other plans。 。 。

And the dark， charming pirate Kennit also lusts after such a ship: he well knows the power of wizardwood and has plans of his own 。 。 。

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Reviews

brit ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Me: there’s no way live ships is going to be a well executed concept but I trust Hobb to at least entertain me Amber: gives Paragon a necklace of carved beads Me: why am I crying

Patrick Soares ，

There's a lot to like here but unfortunately the book puts at full display Hobb's weaknesses。The book drags a lot， the pacing is very poor with 300 or so pages of setup followed by another 400 of random things happening with no plot。 Yes it's a character driven book but it goes for too long。Another thing I noticed is how redundant Robin Hobb is。 She just has to state the same thing more than one time to make herself clear。 A lot of times I was reading and thinking " Why is this sentence here if There's a lot to like here but unfortunately the book puts at full display Hobb's weaknesses。The book drags a lot， the pacing is very poor with 300 or so pages of setup followed by another 400 of random things happening with no plot。 Yes it's a character driven book but it goes for too long。Another thing I noticed is how redundant Robin Hobb is。 She just has to state the same thing more than one time to make herself clear。 A lot of times I was reading and thinking " Why is this sentence here if I already read the same thing just before？"。 It just gets tiresome when reading an almost 900 pages book poorly paced。Another thing: She said tersely， she said angrily， she said dismissively。。。 really Mrs Hobb？ Using and abusing adverbs in dialogue tags？ It's not a matter of style it's just bad writing and a perfect example of someone who doesn't understand the concept of "Show， don't tell"Despite the negatives I still enjoyed the book and will continue the series。 。。。more

Óli Sóleyjarson ，

Ekki jafn góð og fyrstu Fitz bækurnar en mjög góð samt

Gallus ，

For an eight hundred page book not a whole lot happens in this one。 That said， for a book where not a lot happens， quite a bit happens。 Doubling down on the oxymoron， the second trilogy in Robin Hobb’s realm of the elderlings seems to take place on both a larger and smaller scale than the first。 For one， it takes place in a much more global part of the world; Bingtown is a trading hub with connections to multiple nations and independent settlements。 The focus on sailing places the action across For an eight hundred page book not a whole lot happens in this one。 That said， for a book where not a lot happens， quite a bit happens。 Doubling down on the oxymoron， the second trilogy in Robin Hobb’s realm of the elderlings seems to take place on both a larger and smaller scale than the first。 For one， it takes place in a much more global part of the world; Bingtown is a trading hub with connections to multiple nations and independent settlements。 The focus on sailing places the action across a great number of locations in contrast to the Farseer Trilogy which takes place primarily in Buck and Jhaampe。 On the other hand it feels smaller in the scale of the story itself; there certainly appear to be broader political conflicts brewing， but all seem like subplots， or events in which our protagonists would only be moderately influential， if at all。 The primary conflict follows the liveship Vivacia and the Vestrit family as they attempt to stop themselves falling into shambles。 By contrast， Fitz actions throughout the farseer trilogy very clearly have far-reaching consequences across all of Six Duchies and beyond。Now the smaller scale is not grounds for criticism， I like the Godfather more than the Avengers and Pride and Prejudice more than A Song of Ice and Fire。 Magnitude and stakes do not determine the quality or even the excitement factor of a story。 I make these distinctions only to establish the differences between this and the Farseer trilogy for those with expectations about Hobb’s writing。 As far as the writing itself goes， however， it’s not surprising with a second trilogy but Hobb’s prose is， if anything， even more beautiful， augmented by the tragedies several characters face。 Her mastery of character is also among the best I’ve ever read。 Farseer showed what she’s capable of in first person and this series seems poised to show that she’s equally capable in the third person。 Each character felt， if not likeable， at least relatable and certainly real。 I think Hobb does moral grey better than anyone。 Kyle and Kennit are exceptions and can both go straight to hell but the majority of the cast falls into this area where I look at what they’re doing and say ‘yeah， this is bad but could I honestly say that I would do things differently in their shoes？’ It’s an uncomfortable question to have to ask yourself but some of the best reading experiences come from being forced to ask it。 As far as the fully bad characters go， Kyle is mostly interesting as a plot device but I find myself actually rooting for Kennit。 （view spoiler）[ Obviously after he starts freeing slaves I root for him regardless of his personal morals but even before that （hide spoiler）] I found myself pulling for him in the same way I rooted for Michael Corleone through the Godfather Part II。 The only real criticism I could come up with is that the plot feels like it’s just left adrift for the first six hundred or so pages。 It’s clear what it’s building towards but it’s unclear what the full significance of that event is going to be and honestly it’s still not entirely clear at the book’s end。 What holds interest together for me is the question of the liveships and the serpents and how the apparent magic of the liveships connects to the magic of the farseer trilogy。 I’ve come up with about twenty hypotheses， all of which are probably wrong and I find that is one of the other great joys of reading Hobb’s writing。 Trying to piece together what exactly is going on without the complete picture。 Again this isn’t unique to Hobb’s work but I think she is among the best at it。 She gives the reader so much information but leaves so much blank。 Hell， I still have questions from Assassin’s Apprentice。 Overall I’d recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t mind spending more time away from what you might call action。 There’s a much heavier focus on characters going about their lives and dealing with the consequences of interpersonal moments。 Also， if you haven’t read Hobb’s work before you can absolutely start here。 I mention the Farseer trilogy as a point of comparison but my understanding is that Farseer and Liveship Traders are both valid starting points for Realm of the Elderlings and you only need to start worrying about spoilers and continuity in subsequent trilogies。 tl;dr I didn't like it as much as the farseer books but it's still really good if you don't mind a less action packed adventure。 Hobb's characters are second to none。 。。。more

Esther ，

לספר עצמו מגיעים 5 כוכבים， אבל הטעויות המביכות בתרגום ובדקדוק בסיסי הורידו כוכב。

Jaeden Palanog ，

I like how the main characters met each other， I love the plot and everything about this book。 Good job writer！ If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on NovelStar， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top

Caralynne M。 Gill ，

Liveships， Serpents and TradersWhat other author weaves a story of Ships that live & talk， Serpents who remember past greatness and families of Traders， both honorable & greedy？ Travel in your imagination during the COVID shutdown

sidney ，

she really said ✨men are worms✨ with this one。 brilliant in so many ways， i’m very scared for the next book， wish me luck

LolliMolly ⫷fiction addiction⫸ ，

Dang it。 I love me a good single POV book， which is part of what I loved so much about the Farseer trilogy。 This is a multi POV。 It was still good， but I'm just a sucker for the in depth characterization of the main character and the angst and mystery of not knowing the real thoughts and motivations of side characters that I get with single POV books。 Dang it。 I love me a good single POV book， which is part of what I loved so much about the Farseer trilogy。 This is a multi POV。 It was still good， but I'm just a sucker for the in depth characterization of the main character and the angst and mystery of not knowing the real thoughts and motivations of side characters that I get with single POV books。 。。。more

James ，

4。5， will review on my channel！

Maddy ，

Returning to one of my favorite series after so long can be daunting， but I'm loving every second rereading this series。 Returning to one of my favorite series after so long can be daunting， but I'm loving every second rereading this series。 。。。more

Megan ，

You can check out my spoiler free review here！ https://youtu。be/-KvY47_QFqE You can check out my spoiler free review here！ https://youtu。be/-KvY47_QFqE 。。。more

Mallory Everhart ，

4。5 - a really entertaining and unique start to a fantasy trilogy。 Well-written and well-rounded characters， even （especially？） the ones that make you want to throw the book in frustration。 No one is completely a hero or a villain in a way I find really rewarding。 Will definitely be reading the next books。

Meagan Robinson ，

The first book of a trilogy introduces you to many characters， some of those you aren't sure are good or bad。 Moves along faster than the farseer trilogy。 The first book of a trilogy introduces you to many characters， some of those you aren't sure are good or bad。 Moves along faster than the farseer trilogy。 。。。more

Stephanie ，

A page Turner from the first word。 Had me hooked and unable to put this book down！ I could not wait to read the next book ！

Thomas ，

As always robin Hobbs writing is great but imho we don’t spend enough time with each character and switch between them too fast。

ryan copeland ，

Hobb continues to prove that's she's one of the best character and relationship writers in the game。 Rich in themes as well as being a brilliantly written family drama。 Hobb continues to prove that's she's one of the best character and relationship writers in the game。 Rich in themes as well as being a brilliantly written family drama。 。。。more

Beenish Jahan ，

4。5* stars

Leah ，

Amazing。 Wonderful。 I LOVE these characters。 None of them are perfect and I understand their actions and motives。 They feel real， the setting feels real， I can empathize with their emotions。 The world is so rich and the stakes are so high。 I finished this book in 2 days and lost precious sleep in order to finish it。

Chris ，

Different perspectives， characters and locales than the previous Farseer Trilogy but an excellent entry。 Hobb's character work is so good， it's amazing。 Looking forward to the rest of this trilogy。 Different perspectives， characters and locales than the previous Farseer Trilogy but an excellent entry。 Hobb's character work is so good， it's amazing。 Looking forward to the rest of this trilogy。 。。。more

Lynn Kan ，

I would give this book a six out of five if I could。 Absolutely smashing and riveting。 Characters who you can absolutely relate to， love and hate。 Hobb has a real gift in immersing the reader so deeply in the character's perspective that gets you empathizing even with the most annoying and terrible characters。 It was extremely plotty， with many threads left to pull on to sustain a second or third book and which I shall start on soon。  I would give this book a six out of five if I could。 Absolutely smashing and riveting。 Characters who you can absolutely relate to， love and hate。 Hobb has a real gift in immersing the reader so deeply in the character's perspective that gets you empathizing even with the most annoying and terrible characters。 It was extremely plotty， with many threads left to pull on to sustain a second or third book and which I shall start on soon。  。。。more

H。E。 Scott ，

I read this series quite awhile ago and decided to reread。 There is so much in this world that I'm glad I did。 Loved the story just as much as I did the first time around。 I read this series quite awhile ago and decided to reread。 There is so much in this world that I'm glad I did。 Loved the story just as much as I did the first time around。 。。。more

Appox7 ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Good book， hard to say if I enjoyed it more than the Farseer trilogy。 Although objectively looking at it I can say it is a lot more flawed than the Farseer trilogy。 I hope the characters get the development they deserve in the next installements， since characterisation is one of my main gripes with the book so far even though in the Farseer trilogy that was my main reason for liking the series。One thing I certainly did not like as much was how annoying the characters in this one are。 Minor spoil Good book， hard to say if I enjoyed it more than the Farseer trilogy。 Although objectively looking at it I can say it is a lot more flawed than the Farseer trilogy。 I hope the characters get the development they deserve in the next installements， since characterisation is one of my main gripes with the book so far even though in the Farseer trilogy that was my main reason for liking the series。One thing I certainly did not like as much was how annoying the characters in this one are。 Minor spoilers below。 All the Vestrit young people， Wintrow， Malta， Althea and her sister to a lesser extent are just so annoying。 Wintrow and Malta are the worst children one can have as a parent， I mean it is clear the parenting they got wasn't great but damn， Malta is a little female demon who I was hoping would finally get punished as she deserves but the book on that score did not provide。 Althea was similarly to a lesser extent entitled and immature like Malta。 Malta PoV was literally painful to read， its like she is a little sociopath。 Althea similarly did not care about her family at all just kept crying 'ughh my ship' the entire time while their family was on the verge of bankrupcy。 I actually sympathised and agreed with Kyle Haven and his way of doing things for most of the book， I felt he was better choice for captain of the Vivacia。 Though the author really did not want people to cheer him on， 3/4 in the book he just starts doing a lot of bad things 'because reasons' to make the reader turn clearly against him。 Most of the book aside from his anger issues he is a reasonable， competent man。 Well I liked him but the author kinda character-assassinated him。 Wintrow was annoying because he never gave sailing and helping his family a chance。 Instead of waiting a few months until he was of age and could be free to rejoin the monastery he just endangers everyone to be free。 He screws up everything and acts like an autist。 His actions directly lead to the death of most of the crew of the Vivacia， because he wanted to be nice to a dying slave。 Thats all fine but he barely even feels guilty about it。 So I ain't sympathetic towards him at all。The character and the storyline I enjoyed by far the most was Kennit and his sub-plot。 I really loved his luck and attempts at being a heartless pirate while actually doing a lot of good things。 I loved Sorkol， I loved his quest to become king of the Pirate Isles。 I can say this storyline carried the book for me。 I probably would have stopped reading the book after one of the boring Veronica， Althea or annoying Malta chapters if not for Kennit and his plot。 The only thing I disliked was how few chapters he and his woman had。 I also liked Brashen。 But damn the Vestrit family does not know how to parent at all。 。。。more

Laura ，

*3，75/5⭐️

Rishendra Chauhan ，

4。4/5 Stars

Claudia ，

I expected the book to have more of an ending after almost 700 pages。 Will be reading the others too， just to find out what happened。 Not a very exciting read but alright。

Abi Pettican ，

Slow burner but desperate for the next book now

Jami Zahemski ，

*chefs kiss*It’s been a few years since I read the Farseer Trilogy but I remember that as soon as I was done， I went out and bought all of the series in the Realm of the Elderings thinking I would just read them all back to back。 Shit happens。 I made it my 2021 goal to read the rest of the Realm of the Elderings if nothing else （might need a palate cleanser here and there）。 I started back up with this series because it’s next in the recommended reading order and holy cow did I enjoy it。 I forgot *chefs kiss*It’s been a few years since I read the Farseer Trilogy but I remember that as soon as I was done， I went out and bought all of the series in the Realm of the Elderings thinking I would just read them all back to back。 Shit happens。 I made it my 2021 goal to read the rest of the Realm of the Elderings if nothing else （might need a palate cleanser here and there）。 I started back up with this series because it’s next in the recommended reading order and holy cow did I enjoy it。 I forgot how comforting Hobbs writing is。 This is a chunky book but every page was used perfectly。 When it comes to books that are told from multiple perspectives， I naturally enjoy some narratives better than others and that was true for this book as well。 The perspectives I didn’t care much about are the ones that I see now are the least explored; Captain Kennit and the Sea Serpents。 I thought those chapters were the least interesting but know they will play a bigger roll going forward。I know a book is good when I’m just saturated the intense emotions。 I HATE Malta， Kyle， and Etta with a passion。 Can’t stand to read about them but I know I have to！ So excited that I’ve gotten the reading bug back。 。。。more

Amy ，

4。5

Michael Killen ，

Honestly， I did not finish。 I made it 3/4 the way through this book and realized I just didn’t care what was going on。 Nothing that was happening seemed to affect more than small groups of people and I wanted something a bit more engaging and “heavy” from this series。 I’m glad I got some info that relates to the Farseer Trilogy and I ended up starting that series again。 In the end though， I’m just going to read the summary on Wikipedia for this trilogy and get some spoilers elsewhere for those t Honestly， I did not finish。 I made it 3/4 the way through this book and realized I just didn’t care what was going on。 Nothing that was happening seemed to affect more than small groups of people and I wanted something a bit more engaging and “heavy” from this series。 I’m glad I got some info that relates to the Farseer Trilogy and I ended up starting that series again。 In the end though， I’m just going to read the summary on Wikipedia for this trilogy and get some spoilers elsewhere for those tidbits that will make the larger series more complete。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Ship of Magic

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Ship of Magic&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Ship of Magic&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0