I read the first trilogy and started reading Ship of Magic but didn’t finish it. I think that was because it didn’t capture my interest in the same way and I was in the middle of reading The Dresden Files. I put Ship of Magic on hold at Libby, but it says that I have a 17 weeks wait. I think I will have to go to the library.
I think it can be a really unexpected change of pace, especially after one becomes so invested in the Farseer political drama. If you're not mentally prepared for a gradual reveal of a larger story, you might be like, "Wait, what? Where's... [insert a few dozen things you love about the first trilogy]...?" I mean, the Farseer political drama is huge in and of itself. Who would expect the story to have an even bigger meta story brewing in it?
In theory, you could just read the three Farseer trilogies and get a unified narrative, or maybe even just read the Liveship Traders as a standalone trilogy. I almost didn't read The Rain Wild Chronicles, for example, because especially after Tawny Man, I wanted to know what happened to the characters so badly. But ultimately I just couldn't make myself skip something, and I'm so glad I didn't, because RWC is where I felt that all the pieces of the meta narrative started coming together really coherently.
I read the first trilogy and started reading Ship of Magic but didn’t finish it. I think that was because it didn’t capture my interest in the same way and I was in the middle of reading The Dresden Files. I put Ship of Magic on hold at Libby, but it says that I have a 17 weeks wait. I think I will have to go to the library.
I think it can be a really unexpected change of pace, especially after one becomes so invested in the Farseer political drama. If you're not mentally prepared for a gradual reveal of a larger story, you might be like, "Wait, what? Where's... [insert a few dozen things you love about the first trilogy]...?" I mean, the Farseer political drama is huge in and of itself. Who would expect the story to have an even bigger meta story brewing in it?
In theory, you could just read the three Farseer trilogies and get a unified narrative, or maybe even just read the Liveship Traders as a standalone trilogy. I almost didn't read The Rain Wild Chronicles, for example, because especially after Tawny Man, I wanted to know what happened to the characters so badly. But ultimately I just couldn't make myself skip something, and I'm so glad I didn't, because RWC is where I felt that all the pieces of the meta narrative started coming together really coherently.
Best wishes on your next reading adventure!
Thank-you for this.
Now I have to reread the entire thing - though I think when I read it the first time there were only 12 books. C'est la vie...
The burning question, @NicholasKotar, is whether or not I've convinced you to read "The Rain Wild Chronicles" the next times you read the series...?