Soldier Son Books

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The Soldier Son Series is a fantasy novel series authored by Robin Hobb. It’s set in a new world that is not related to her earlier trilogies. The Soldier Son series shadows the life of Nevare Burvelle, who is the 2nd son of the prominent Lord of the Kingdom of Gernia.

The career of an individual who lives in Gernia is greatly influenced by his parentage. Sons that are born to common parentage follow the careers of their fathers. Nevertheless, for the sons of the noble, things are very different. The first-born son takes over his father’s title, the 2nd son serves in the army as an officer, the 3rd son enters priesthood, whereas the 4th one an artist. This distribution continues up to the lastborn. Daughters are consigned to submissive roles thus used primarily to forge social links with organized marriages.

The first book which is known as Shaman’s Crossing, concerns the education of Nevare. He is a young boy on the huge plains and he is the second son therefore the Soldier Son. From a young age, Nevare is taught the mounted cavalla (also known as Cavalry) techniques, survival, tactics, riding. He is also taught all the other aspects of life as an officer in the King’s Cavalla. As a teen, he encounters the Specks’ magic which inspires his life. His education at the King’s Cavalla School begins later when he is a young man. When the struggle among the Old Nobles and the New Nobles in Gernia court affects the school which is supposed to be independent Nevare faces the consequences of being the son of a new noble.

BEST SOLDIER SON BOOKS:

Here is a complete description of two of the best books that are found in the Soldier Son Series by Robin Hobb:

Shaman’s Crossing: This is the 1st book in the Soldier Son trilogy. The author draws a fantasy world which is closer to the 18th or 19th century. Gernia sees itself as the standard-bearer of civilization, a generation that lost its naval dominance regardless of its coastal provinces. As a result, the old the Cavalla becomes a leading cavalry and rises to fame in battles against the barbaric plainsmen who are tribal and have primitive magic. Besides standing against magic using technology, Gernia is also a rigidly structured society where familial roles are proscribed.

Shaman’s Crossing and the other Soldier Son novels are the first-person books of Nevare Burvelle who is the 2nd son of a recently -elevated noble who was also a second son but was brought up to the Lordship by the King as an acknowledgment of his outstanding service. Shaman’s Crossing accounts Nevare’s childhood and also the better part of his 1st year at the King’s Cavalla Academy.

The Plainsmen are defeated and designated into the Gernian culture. The next impediments to the enlargement of Gernian civilization are the Specks who are also known as the forest-dwelling people. The war between the Gernians and the Specks is in the background of the main plotline although the Gernians do not quite know that they are at war as the Specks are inflicting plaques on them. Nevare is drawn into the core of the conflict. It is very interesting to read about the struggle between the scientific, technological and hierarchical Gernians and the magical, tribal, hunter-gatherer, Specks. It is equally interesting to read this novel and the second one in which Nevare grows up with an understanding of his culture conditions. Though Nevare remains devoted, he becomes aware of the way he is been molded by forces outside him.

If The Farseer Trilogy, The Liveship Traders, and The Tawny Man which are authored by Robin Hobb have been excellent to you , then you will still be impressed with shaman’s crossing. Is she is mostly impressive with her world-building. The plot in each book is decent, but it is her characters that standout mostly in her writing. Robin Hobb is an excellent writer .

Forest Mage: In Shaman’s Crossing, Nevare Burvelle finds his world to be upside down. After surviving a plague that killed most of the students and instructors at the king’s army academy, he goes back home for to attend his brother’s wedding, only to know that he has been discharged from the school due to medical reasons as The plague usually leaves the survivors skeletally thin. Nevare ,however , begins to gain considerable amounts of weight. his family start to believe that he’s a glutton and he is rejected by his father and he eventually starts to work as a lowly cemetery guard in a town that is near the border with the Specks who belong to a race of dapple-skinned people who stay in forests and who possess a powerful natural magic. Can the Specks last in a world where technology is always advancing,? And how does the bloated Nevare help them with their struggle for survival?

The book is set in a sprawling, colorfully described kingdom that is as majestic as it is threatening. It is also powered by some exceptionally topical themes which include environmentalism, human rights, religious persecution, cultural, homogenization among others. The Soldier Son series is easily the author’s most significant work up to date. Including elements of military fantasy, political allegory, New Age spirituality, and Forest Mage can only be faulted for suffering from a severe case of middle-volume syndrome: As the 2nd book in the series it does not have a true beginning and a suitable ending. However, All will be forgotten when you get to read the concluding volume that is entitled Renegade Magic.

OTHER BOOK SERIES THAT YOU MAY LIKE:

If you love Soldier Son Series that is authored by Robin Hobb, you will certainly develop an interest in the “War of the Moonstone” series written by Jack Conner. It is a classic fantasy story that is set in a medieval-type world. In the book honorable humans and elves try to hold back the creatures that belong to the Dark Lord. You might also enjoy Jordan Rivet’s “Steel and Fire” series. In the series Dara Ruminor who is the main character is a serious young fighter in the mountain top kingdom of Vertigon which is a land with misty peaks and dramatic cliffs in which mysterious Fire magic runs through the stones just like blood.

What Is The Next Book in The Soldier Son Trilogy?

There doesn't seem to be an upcoming book in The Soldier Son Trilogy. The newest book is Renegade's Magic and was released on January, 1st 2007.

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