This book didn't only meet my expectations, it surpassed them. I've wanted to read this book since I first came across the series in my local bookstore back in my teens, but it was always too expensive to buy and my library didn't have it. As the years passed, the "want to read" faded with all the other, newer books that kept coming, but finally an opportunity arose and here we are.
I loved the narration. There are some amazing turns of phrases that totally did it for me. The story flows so well and is very believable as an account of the life of this bastard son of a crown prince who became disgraced when the existence of his son came to light. The magic is also really unusual and well portrayed. I love how the boy figures out his skills long before any teacher comes along and the fiasco of the teaching was unique and very well portrayed. I'm not going to go into details because I don't want to leave any spoilers.
The worldbuilding is excellent and I totally love the different cultures. I also thoroughly enjoyed this cast of characters. They were so real in so many ways. Their wants and hopes and fears totally came alive for me and I was invested in all of them, not least poor, naive Fitz who had to navigate it all.
The story spans his experiences from the age of six to fourteen and I particularly liked how the author portrayed the first few years. It definitely felt like getting into the head of six year old and it was so immersive.
I can definitely recommend this for all lovers of fantasy and especially for stories with court intrigue, assassins and anyone who loves young adult fantasy. It's fabulous.
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