Ship of Magic

The Liveship Traders, Book 1

By: Robin Hobb

Narrated by: Anne Flosnik

Length: 35 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Bingtown is a hub of exotic trade and home to a merchant nobility famed for its liveships---rare vessels carved from wizardwood, which ripens magically into sentient awareness. The fortunes of one of Bingtown's oldest families rest on the newly awakened liveship Vivacia. For Althea Vestrit, the ship is her rightful legacy unjustly denied her---a legacy she will risk anything to reclaim.

For Althea's young nephew Wintrow, wrenched from his religious studies and forced to serve aboard ship, Vivacia is a life sentence. But the fate of the Vestrit family---and the ship---may ultimately lie in the hands of an outsider. The ruthless pirate Kennit seeks a way to seize power over all the denizens of the Pirate Isles...and the first step of his plan requires him to capture his own liveship and bend it to his will.

©1999 Robin Hobb (P)2010 Tantor

Critic reviews

“The characterizations are consistently superb.... Kudos to the author and encore!” ( Booklist, Starred Review)

Something altogether new

I have read a lot of fantasy in my time and it is rare to come across a story that is truly original. The world Robin Hobb has created in this series is unlike any I've seen, the magic is subtle and the characters are alive. After reading the Farseer trilogy (also by Robin Hobb), I couldn't wait to get my hands on more of her books. This one was as good, if not better. The characters Robin creates are real people, they don't always behave the way you expect them to, they make mistakes and they evolve based on what has happened to them. None of the characters are completely good or completely evil, and they don't fit into classic stereotypes.
This series is actually placed in the same world as the Farseer trilogy and there are a few subtle ties to that story (which is fun if you've read it). If you find you like Robin Hobb's style, you should really consider listening to her works in order. Each trilogy stands alone, but is made better if read in the right order. Start with the Farseer trilogy, next is the Liveship Traders, then the Tawny Man, and finally the Rainwild chronicles. If on the other hand, you are only going to read one set...read this one. It is impossible to stop listening until you've reached the end.

Great Story, horrible narrator.

What did you like best about Ship of Magic? What did you like least?

Interesting world with interesting characters. The narrator almost ruins the entire experience. The breathy, strange ending to most sentences, sends me over the edge.

How could the performance have been better?

Simply use another narrator.

Play at 1.25 - 1.5 speed to "fix" narration

Would you try another book from Robin Hobb and/or Anne Flosnik?

Robin Hobb produces excellent material. Anne Flosnik should be a greeter at Walmart, with duct tape over her mouth.

What didn’t you like about Anne Flosnik’s performance?

Sing song voice. Terrible inflections. Drawn out speaking. Makes the mature characters sound immature.

Love this author. The performance..not so much

I have four Robin Hobb books and enjoy the stories. This performer’s diction is so over done that it’s distracting from the story. I am minutes into the story and ready to turn it off.

The narrator almost made me give up

This is a good story, but I had such a hard time with the narrator. I see another Robin Hobb book for sale, but with the same narrator, so I'm going to pass. Yes, it's that bad. She drrrawwws out everrrry RRRR, assss iff she werrrre rrrreading assss a purrrrring caaaat.

great story, weak narration

this was the first narrator I truly struggled with. I found 1.2x speed improved the narration enough to get used to her style. worth it to enjoy the great story

Great Story. Tough Narrator To Get Used To

The story/world that Hobb has created is fantastic. This narrator was very hard to get used to though. If you do get this book, listen to it at 1.5x speed. I was going to return the book, but thankfully, I read older comments that said the same thing and it saved the book for me.

Quite enjoyable

If you could sum up Ship of Magic in three words, what would they be?

A good read

Who was your favorite character and why?

I like Brashen Trell, a fairly relatable character for many.

What about Anne Flosnik’s performance did you like?

I did not enjoy this narrator's performance at first and almost didn't buy the books because of the sample I listened to. However, after getting well into the series it became tolerable and then even enjoyable. If the sample of her voice bugs you, just give it time, the story is worth it.

great story

there are plenty of reviews on how great this series is, all I'll say is don't read the second fitz trilogy before reading this or you'll spoil a lot.

Outstanding story!

This was a well written and performed story that I enjoyed listening to from the first page to the last. I can not wait to start the 2nd book!