Screaming. Crying. Throwing up.
***Spoilers for The Tawny Man Trilogy through the end of Fool’s Errand . References to the events of Farseer Trilogy and Liveship Traders***
I am going to need someone to explain to me how Robin Hobb spent an entire book preparing us for what was coming, only for me to be completely blindsided by Nighteyes’ death. A mere two posts ago, I was over here preaching “Constant Vigilance,” reminding myself that we were back in the Six Duchies, which means certain disaster and heartbreak. And yet, I still managed to let my guard down. After the intensity of the Piebald battle, I let myself be lulled into a moment of comfort, only to have the emotional rug viciously pulled out from under me.
Honestly, I am not ok.
Reading Nighteyes’ death felt like watching a slow-motion horror film. It began so beautifully- wolf and man reunited, curled together, slipping into the shared dreamspace. As the hunting dream progressed, there was a slow, dawning realization of what was occurring. At first, it was just an inkling that something was off. By the time we get to Fitz waking up and confirming that these final dream moments were, in fact, Nighteyes saying goodbye, I felt like I wanted to start moving backward and undo what I had just read. No, no, no… But it was too late.
(Blogger’s disclosure: My eyes are full of tears as I write this.)
Predictably, I reached the end of this chapter – “I clutched him to me, and my grip sighed his last stilled breath out of his lungs. But Nighteyes was gone. Cold rain was cascading down the past of the mouth of the cave” – exactly two minutes before I’d planned to go to sleep. I actually had to read a few pages into the next chapter just to confirm we weren’t going to get some sort of magical resurrection. I got to the point of Fitz burning his body, then had to put down the book and go through mental exercises to dissociate from what I had just read.
Despite the (immense) pain Robin Hobb has once again inflicted, I loved the ending of Fool’s Errand and the story as a whole. Fitz is at his Fitziest throughout; we’re reunited with old friends, introduced to intriguing new characters; there’s mystery and action; and our heart’s get ripped out and destroyed. What more could we ask for?
I’m excited for what this book sets in motion. Things in play moving forward:
Papa Fitz and all the shenanigans the new crop of youths are sure to get into.
Kebal Rawbread and the Pale Woman keep getting passing mentions and seem primed to re-enter the fray.
While we see many of our old friends from Farseer, notably absent were Molly, Burrich, Nettle, and Patience- Robin’s really dangling those carrots.
Buckkeep court nonsense. We get minimal Kettricken in this book, and I am ready for more. Add in the upstart foreign Queen-to-be/Narcheska and the drama is sure to be better than Bravo.
The potential for new bonds. We leave Fitz fairly unattached (cue twinge of pain). He has a moment of reflection:
“So who was I, when I stood alone, stripped of all others? It was a difficult question.”
He’s single and (as much as Fitz can be) ready to mingle. I am not emotionally ready to seriously consider Fitz having another bond animal, but theoretically I could see that being a possibility I am interested in in future books. For now, I am here for him getting his flirt on with a hedge witch and being relatively unencumbered with responsibility for even a second. Let’s have a Hot Fitz Summer!
And of course… our friends from Liveship Traders showing up! ShipFitz is but a sail away!
More musings on the Fool’s Errand finale:
I’m going to group my thoughts on Starling and Chade, both of whom locked in their positions on my shit list this book.
Starling
Not much to add to my earlier Starling assessments. I enjoyed seeing her, if only to watch Fitz shoot her down once again while she sulks around. She makes a move on Fitz when he is extremely vulnerable post-losing Nighteyes, but he stays strong and resists temptation.
Chade
Chade stays pissing me off. Every time there is a mention of him living his best life at court while Fitz is fucking sleeping in a windowless closet, scurrying around in the walls, and generally getting treated like absolute crap, I grind my teeth. The absolute audacity of this Merlin-y old fuck. After Fitz rescues the prince – saving Chade’s ass once again – he just leaves him out in the pouring rain like, “cool thanks, I will take the important person with me and catch you sometime later after I’ve feasted with the royalty.” Do you know what this man has been through for you??
With that said, I found it satisfying when Fitz chooses loyalty to Dutiful over Chade (even if that’s ultimately what Chade wants too). And when Dutiful tells Fitz he sounds like Chade, Fitz gives us:
“An unkinder, more untrue thing had never been said of me, I was sure.”
Clock him, sis!
(I will admit that I enjoyed Chade passing out speedballs to keep the party going.)
I was very into the introduction of Dutiful’s Narcheska child-bride. She bursts into the story with a lot of energy: storm raging, litter windows flung open, just soaking it all in. We also get an interesting moment of her locking eyes with a bedraggled Fitz, and him later mentioning feeling a strange sense of familiarity. Call Mel Kiper Jr., we’ve got a high-value draft prospect on the board!
The seedlings of the Fitz-Prince Dutiful relationship was like a balm to my soul after the raw grief of Nighteyes’ death. Their budding connection provided the needed hope for us all to start moving forward. I loved the tender moment of Dutiful watching Fitz shave with fascination, having never had a father figure (he’s sort of the anti-Fitz in this). They continue to make a very compelling pairing.
Okay, I have avoided it long enough. Back to Nighteyes.
I need to fully honor how Robin Hobb handles this loss. Her depiction of Nighteyes’ death, and the grief that follows, is a masterpiece. Her examination of life and loss in this section is among the most powerful I have ever read. There is no way I could express it better than she did, so here are a few lines that made it so affecting:
“The death of my wolf was an isolating and numbing thing. The loss of Nighteyes’ companionship was cutting enough, but with him had gone my access to his keener senses. Sound seemed muted, and night darker, scent and taste dulled. It was as if the world had been robbed of its brightness. He had left me behind to dwell along in a dimmed and stale place.”
“If a man does not die of a wound, then it heals in some fashion, and so it is with loss.”
“But I could not find sufficient love of life to be scared of death.”
“But most of all, the crashing silence in my heart where for so long Nighteyes’ awareness had been a steady beacon in my darkness, a warmth in my winter, a guide star in my night.”
Bonus grief musing from the Old Blood healer to Dutiful:
“Keep within you the cat tracks she left on your soul.”
*Looks over at my elderly cat and sobs*
For all the pain Robin inflicts, I was deeply grateful for the cozy ending she gifted us. Fitz feeling welcome and wanted in Jinna’s warm, homey cottage. (“Hold the cat. You’ll feel better.” 🥹) Fitz deciding to let Hap be a boy- to make and indulge in the mistakes of youth without carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, as Fitz himself never got to do. I loved it all. I keep begging for Fitz to get a moment’s peace, and here it was. (Jinna probably gets forged in the opening chapter of Golden Fool. FUCK.)
Nighteyes gave us so many incredible quips throughout his relationship with Fitz. He brought much-needed humor and often served as a reader proxy with his commentary. He is truly irreplaceable, and I will miss him dearly.
I will leave with us with one last Nighteyes-Fitz gem for the road:
“Cats. Worse than porcupines.”
“Much worse.“
This has been heartbreaking traumatizing fun! Up next: Golden Fool!
wizardwordship 