Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21598 in Books
• Published on: 1999-03-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 896 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Robin Hobb, author of the Farseer trilogy, has returned to that world for a new series. Ship of Magic is a sea tale, reminiscent of Moby Dick and Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin series in its details of shipboard life. It is also a fantasy adventure with sea serpents, pirates and all sorts of magic. The "liveships" have distinct personalities and partner with specific people, somewhat like Anne McCaffrey's Brain ships and their Brawns, though these are trading ships and have full crews.

Hobb has peopled the book with many wonderfully developed characters. Most of the primary ones are members of the Vestritts, an Old Trader family which owns the liveship Vivacia. Their stories are intercut with those of Kennit, the ambitious pirate Brashen, the disinherited scion of another family who served on the Vestritt's ship, and Paragon, an abandoned old liveship believed to be insane. The sentient sea serpents have their own story which is hinted at as well.

Though Ship of Magic is full of action, none of the plot lines is resolved in this book. Readers who resent being left with many questions and few answers after almost 700 pages should think twice before starting, or wait until the rest of the series is out so that their suspense won't be too prolonged. But Hobb's writing draws you in and makes you care desperately about what will happen next, the mark of a terrific storyteller. --Nona Vero

Synopsis
Gripping first instalment of a new series from the author of The Farseer Trilogy. Wizardwood -- a sentient wood. The most precious commodity in the world. Like many other legendary wares, it comes only from the Rain River Wilds. But how can one trade with the Rain River Traders when only a liveship, fashioned from wizardwood, can negotiate the perilous waters of the Rain River? A liveship is a difficult ship to come by. Rare and valuable, it will quicken only when three family members, from succesive generations, have died on board. The liveship Vivacia is about to undergo her quickening, as Althea Vestrit's father is carried to her deck in his death-throes. Althea waits with awe and anticipation for the ship that she loves more than anything in the world to awaken. Only to find that her family has other plans for her...And dark, charming Kennit, aspiring pirate king, also lusts after such a ship: he well knows the power of wizardwood, and has plans of his own...

Customer Reviews

Flawless Fantasy
Robin Hobb has managed to achieve the impossible with her Liveship Traders trilogy.In a genre that so often uses the same themes and ideas, Ms Hobb has produced an original work.
The Liveships of the title are very expensive and rare ships built from the mysterious wizardwood only found in the Rain River Wilds. After 3 generations of the owners family have died on board, the wizardwood 'quickens' and the ships become living, sentient beings.
Throughout the book, the author interweaves the story of the liveship traders, the story of the sea serpents who are driven by an instinct to search for their 'beginnings' and the tale of Kennick, a ruthless man determined to be King of the Pirates.
Ms Hobbs shows an extraordinary talent for characterisation. There are no totally black or white characters in her stories but realistic characters who have their good sides and their faults in abundance. At times the reader will feel antipathy toward the heroine and at others empathy for the 'bad guy'.
This is a book that you will find difficult to put down. Highly recommended

Never has a book evoked such reactions in me.
Like many others who have reviewed the work of Ms. Hobb, I could not put this work of art down. For me, the mark of a really good book include: The feeling of extreme disappointment when you have been reading for three hours solid and suddenly realise you have nearly finished; characters which make you love, hate, admire and empathise with all at once; a storyline which is so fresh and original with new theories presented in an artful and subtle way; a story which catches you up and doesnt drop you until the very last word of the very last page. This trilogy and this book in particular fulfill all this and more.

The first book of hers I read was the Assassin's Apprentice and I bought it, not realising it was in first person view. So I left it and came back to it a few months later. I only regret not discovering this lady's immense talent earlier. To my mind, no other fantasy author who has been published can come near her for style, strength of her characters, technical ability, plot and originality. She packs more into one book than some authors pack into three or more. A real inspiration to an aspiring authoress and a truly epic book.

hooked, line and sinker
I started reading Robin Hobb last week in hospital, and now I feel I've become a morphine addict. These are the fantasy novels I've been waiting for all my life - real novels, with characters who grow, shrink, waver and become real in your imagination. I'm desperate for my next fix in the Farseer trilogy, and book 2 of Liveships, but for those who want excellent plot summaries, look at other reviews below. What I want to point up is just how original Hobb is. The sea-serpents are out of Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and CS Lewis's Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but as with her other books she's taken a good fairy-tale idea and given it richness and depth. (That said, I believe that starting with the thoughts of sea-serpents on page 1 was a mistake...it's the pirate who searches for treasure and prophecy in chapter 2 who gets you shivering with pleasure.) You believe in her strange world of ships that come alive and bond with their human families because every detail is so convincing and complete. Robb is the wife of a marine engineer, and has obviously sailed herself. But then you also believe she could talk to wolves. The idea of a ship's figure-head which can move, feel, respond and even go mad is brilliantly realised. This is a really remarkable writer, working in a genre which the literary world still despises. You need time to chomp through 880 pages, but the compelling nature of her intricate plots and the vivid, vigorous style make this effortless. What I want to know is why they haven't been filmed...