I'd only recommend this book--and this trilogy--to people who already really like Robin Hobb. It's definitely a testament to her gifts as a writer that she can pull off this story at all. This follow up to Shaman's Crossing is really, really dark, considerably darker even than that book. The world-building is competent but not very interesting in this book, and the single point of view is wearing. More than BHobb's other protagonists, this one often seems to be buffeted by stronger forces around him rather than someone driving events; also like many of her characters, he makes misguided decisions that can be frustrating to the reader even as it humanizes the character. I like Hobb enough to see this through but this is not as much fun as the Farseer books.

Oh, it also doesn't help that the reader on the audio book isn't very good and often misplaces the emphasis on words.