Assassin's Apprentice I #1

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It's impossible to fit all the detail from the book into an adaptation but all the main plot points and events are here which means we get a much faster moving adventure and yet somehow is still feels like a story being told at a leisurely pace. The novel is a slow burn and very descriptive (but absolutely wonderful) so I wondered how it would be possible to fit the adaptation into a six issue miniseries. The answer is that it isn't and Dark Horse comics haven't attempted that. The six issues are collected as volume 1 of Assassin's Apprentice which roughly covers about half of the novel. The incredibly influential fantasy novel comes to comics in this first installment of best-selling author Robin Hobbs’ Assassin's Apprentice! The series is written by Jody Houser with interior art by Ryan Kelly, colors by Jordie Bellaire, and letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, with cover art provided by Anna Steinbauer.

A man awakens a boy in the middle of the night. His face is a map of wrinkles. He offers to teach him if the boy wishes to be a loyal servant to the king. The boy agrees without knowing what the man will teach him. What happens next? Let’s delve into Assassin’s Apprentice #4 and find out! I would highly recommend Assassin’s Apprentice and the Farseer Trilogy. As you read you become ever more immersed in the story and it just seems to get better and better.”— Fantasy Book ReviewUntil recently, Fitz was only known as “boy.” The illegitimate son of a powerful noble, Fitz is taken in by his uncle, Prince Verity, who prepares the boy for a journey to the capital to meet his royal grandfather. But Fitz is not a normal child. An ancient power stirs inside him, something that will change the destiny of the Six Duchies forever! The cover art is not the style in the comics. The story is illustrated by Ryan Kelly with colours by Jordie Bellaire. The art suits the fantasy setting and all the characters are easily distinguishable from one another. The colour palette is sombre showing the medieval setting with flashes of colour cleverly used to portray uses of the magical abilities of The Skill and The Wit. Writer Jody Houser states, “I’m excited to continue telling Fitz’s story in comics form. An epic fantasy classic and a dream art team… what’s not to love?” This adaptation is a wholly different production and not to be confused with the earlier French graphic novel adaptation of the Farseer trilogy called L'Assassin Royal.

The graphic novel covers a part of the first novel, the early childhood of Fitz Chivaldry, a royal bastard brought to the court around age six and as the machinations take place is trained in a number of disciplines - but most importantly, and secretly trained as the King's Assassin. The core plot is a variant of 'farmboy to hero' trope but an interesting one. For me, politics play a major part of the appeal.Hobb is the author whose books Martin described as ‘like diamonds in a sea of zircons,’ the writer to press on those who turn up their noses at fantasy. Her writing is superb, her world-building irresistible, her storylines both hell-for-leather exciting and deeply introspective.”— The Guardian In addition to writing, her interests include gardening, mushrooming, and beachcombing. She and her husband Fred have three grown children and one teenager, and three grand-children.