Which RotE character is your favourite? (spoilers all RotE books)

[kollkolen]

I read The Farseer Trilogy last year, and read The Liveship Traders few days ago. A friend recommended all of the books to me.I think Robin Hobb is the best writer of fantasy I have come across.I think the absolute best thing about her writing though is her characters. She creates wonderfully complete characters that you really care about.I quite like Fitz (main character), and in certain ways, I can relate to his struggles.

[BlackRat]

Burrich, because of his strength of character and his courage
The Fool, especially as 'the fool', i love who he is, how hes a mystery and how he can be so clever and so fragile all at the same time
Nighteyes, his philosophy, the way he can simplify fitz's words - "I am the same about porcupines"
Althea, Fire and courage!
Paragon, i was just drawn to him, wondering at who he had been, i like his personality
Patience, Verity, Ophelia, Leftrin.... if i kept going i could mention nearly every character
Greft i didn't like at all
I didn't mind Molly but i didn't feel any real attachment to her - would have liked it much better if the fool got to stay with fitz

I love the way Robin can make her people such a mixture of good and bad, how i can identify with them and still sometimes hate them. The way she won't let them see the obvious is so infuriating though! She just strings them along while you're reading faster to try and get them to realise whats going on.

[Nuytsia]

Hi BlackRat
Geee I really just agree with absolutely everything you said!!
I can now just be lazy and say re my favourite character/s .... ditto !

[Farseer]

It is SO INTERESTING to see how we differ in our opinions!

Particularly Liked
Fitz, Nighteyes and Beloved - they had, after all, "always been one"!
Verity - he was as true as his name.
Patience - I adored her and agree she provided some wonderful comic relief, as well as a true example of acceptance and love.
Jonqui - though a minor character, she was an astute woman.
Thick - a little man with a big heart.
Althea - I saw myself in her...not always but enough that I feel I must fiercely protect and support her!
Brashen - I saw a life partner in him and also valued his loyalty to A, A, and P.
Paragon - such a complex character...he had instant appeal but made more so with his physical and inner journey.
Leftrin - as for Brashen and also his devotion to T and A.
Lady Carillion Carrock, née Waljin – like Patience, she had courage, vision and an inner strength that couldn’t be denied, no matter how others may have seen her.

Fence-Sitting
Etta - I think she irritated me because she was so blinded by Kennit (though who of us isn’t a little blinded by love and/or need sometimes?) but her spirit and ability to grow beyond, and in spite of, her previous life experiences is admirable.
Chivalry – I still can’t decide if I agree with his choice or not. His absence was meant to be honourable but, as a parent, it makes me a little nuts!

Particularly Disliked
Kennit - at no stage could I either connect or sympathise with him, despite whatever he endured. His self-centred and cyclical reactions to his life were reprehensible to me on all levels. I found I had to make myself slog through the parts with him in them in my many re-reads of all RotE books. By every LST ending, I felt as murderous as Althea...! I hated him!
Malta - possibly for much the same reason as Kennit initially bugged me...the whole good guy comes last thing!
Wintrow – except for his loyalty to Etta, I couldn't relate at all to Wintrow and found myself often wondering how such a weak character (not Robin’s creativity but his actual personality) could end up as he did. Possibly I am being a bit harsh...I must admit here that a fair bit of my negativity toward the end could possibly be attributed to my jealousy over the fact that he and Fitz’s fates had turned out to be a reversal of each other’s most likely roles (as was highlighted by Paragon and Amber).
Bolt/Vivacia, Serene , Kyle, Keffria, Regal, Molly, Starling, Haff, Hest, Greft – all for a variety of reasons but there’s not enough room to continue elaborating...they all just aggravated me!

[kelvincrispy]

I had recently finished The Tawny Man Trilogy book which concludes Robin Hobb's writings in the world of the Six Duchies. I would like to say It has been very useful to have read both The Farseer Trilogy and The Liveship Traders Trilogy but it's not necessary for an understanding of the story. Due to the complex nature of the Farseer family, it is very complicated to understand.

Spoiler

Shrewd- He is the half brother of Chade Fallstar, he has two wifes, by first he has Chivalry and Verity , Queen Constance, and Regal to his second, Queen Desire. In the beginning of the Farseer trilogy he is a proud man who, partially thanks to Chade's work, is well seated in his throne with Verity to succeed him. The men pat is when he is killed shortly after by Justin and Serene.

Mervi hid the spoilers for Farseer trilogy just in case. Oh, and in case anyone is wondering - this account was banned for spamming and flooding with copied texts.

[Albertosaurus Rex]

I'm a little late to this thread, so I haven't read all that has gone before. But I have to say that among my favorite characters are:

The Fool, for being so very mysterious. It especially intrigued me when he stated that Amber and Lord Golden were not just disguises, but real aspects of his personality. It really makes you wonder what is up with guy / girl.

Malta. I really disliked her at first, but I liked how she matured in Ship of Destiny.

And Wintrow. I liked how he changed throughout the story into a more confident person. Would have liked more exploration of his faith, though.

[redchild]

Wintrow I must admit here that a fair bit of my negativity toward the end could possibly be attributed to my jealousy over the fact that he and Fitz’s fates had turned out to be a reversal of each other’s most likely roles (as was highlighted by Paragon and Amber).

Could you elaborate more on this?

[Farseer]

Wintrow I must admit here that a fair bit of my negativity toward the end could possibly be attributed to my jealousy over the fact that he and Fitz’s fates had turned out to be a reversal of each other’s most likely roles (as was highlighted by Paragon and Amber).

Could you elaborate more on this?

I would be happy to, redchild. Seems to be spoilers all over the place in this thread but just to be sure...

WARNING! CONTAINS HIGH LEVELS OF ELFBARK

Let's see ...The discussion I am speaking of comes from the chapter prior to the epilogue where Paragon and Amber are having a conversation after Paragon has guessed that Amber would be leaving and heading north again (not long before this part, Amber had asked Paragon if she could have the Rooster Crown, if that helps).

Amber used Wintrow as an example of someone who may have taken a wrong path due to a lack of guidance (especially as she continues wondering if she should have been with Wintrow all along instead of guiding Althea). She said "What if he was meant to lead a different life? What if, because of something I failed to do or say, he became King of the Pirate Isles when he was meant to be a man leading a life of scholarly contemplation? A man whose destiny was to experience a cloistered, contemplative life becomes a king instead. His deep spiritual meditations never occur and are never shared with the world."

Paragon goes on to say, "You worry too much...Humans live such short lives. I believe they have little impact on the world. So Wintrow will not be a priest. It is probably no more significant than if a man who was meant to be a king became a philosophical recluse instead."

From my interpretation, this passage speaks of Wintrow - the cloistered, scholarly boy priest who instead became a king (not to mention he also got the girl in Etta, to a certain degree) and, on the opposite end of the scale (pardon the pun!), we have Fitz - a boy who could have been king but instead became a recluse, committing to paper the history of the Six Duchies (and losing the girl, Molly) etc. In this way, there is a reversal of their roles and so, when I completed the LST books, I felt rather put out for Fitz that he sort of ended up with the short straw and Wintrow didn't!

That Wintrow also went on to release She Who Remembers from Others Island, only to have Fitz then follow the same path up the beach later on in The Golden Fool and SWR had already been saved...well!! Fitz was my hero and that just shouldn't have been so! I plain and simple wanted Fitz to "be the one"...he IS Changer after all!!

Still, I am glad that it all didn't turn out as I wanted it to and it adds to the whole question, I think it was Fitz who asked something like it, "How far back do I have to unravel to change where I am now?" I could easily ask myself, "What if Fitz had become King of the Six Duchies?", "What if it had been Fitz who had released SWR?" "What if...?" but THEN, a) Fitz becoming a king would have changed so many other fantastic outcomes and, after all, he was happy that it was just he and Nighteyes for a time, and had promised that very life to Nighteyes on a number of occasions and b) Would releasing SWR mean that he'd never have picked up the rooster feathers instead and then went on to save Beloved...what then?

When I say I don't like a certain character or a particular outcome, I mean I really don't like them BUT it all makes for such a terrific story BECAUSE it's not predictable and NOT how I would like it to be eg sometimes the not-so-good people turn out ok in the end and the people who I expected to get the reward don't and, to me, this is so true to life. People do learn, do change and end up in a far different place than expected.

It also points out something that Beloved often said at different stages about all men (people) having the ability to change the course of the world...in this, Wintrow had as much right, for example, as Fitz...but it doesn't mean I have to like it!

---

Oops, sorry, where I had Golden Fool, I should have put Fool's Errand !

[redchild]

Thanks for the insightful post! It's been too long since I've read the series and incidentally I had read the Tawny man before Liveships; so I never caught onto this connection.

I can relate to what Amber says about how one person's actions can influence someone else's so profoundly. A decision of action or inaction at critical moments can change people's lives. However, it always seems that in hindsight you would wonder what could have happened had something else taken place. While I do not agree with Paragon's comment that human lives are too short to make an impact on the world (was he not paying attention when Wintrow freed SWR, and allowed the sea serpents to find their way back to the cocooning grounds to one day become dragons? I think that's pretty damned important,) I do agree that our lives go by too quickly to spend too much time wondering what could have happened. Because human lives are so brief, they must be full of action in order to achieve goals. Of course, you could debate that not spending enough time on reflection would only beget a cycle of self-destruction.

Also the idea of how people feel as if they must fulfill a role that was meant for them, or were born into, is also a perpetual dilemma in real life. Amber's perspective was much more introspective and personal compared to Paragon's long-term, more detached view of the world. A person may feel compelled or even be forced to take on a role other than was ordained or chosen (by themselves or by others.) Whether they can find happiness and contentment because, or in spite of it, is the big question. In Paragon's view, however, whether an individual is happy or not does not enter into the discussion of whether it makes a difference in the big picture. Two very different views, but both valid.

[Farseer]

Also the idea of how people feel as if they must fulfill a role that was meant for them, or were born into, is also a perpetual dilemma in real life.

I so agree redchild! With regards to Paragon's viewpoint, it is worthy to note that,

Spoiler

after he had helped take away Althea's pain, he did change his mind and advised Amber to "...go north again" because "It feels good to set people on the right path."

I also agree with Albertosaurus Rex in that it would have been good to get more of a fix on Wintrow's faith but I guess that will be answered at some stage not too far away. We did get a number of interesting hints and connections but that's for another thread !