Product Description

In the second breathtaking volume of Robin Hobb's Liveship Traders trilogy, a new tide of glory and terror sweeps forward the story of the Vestrit clan, their liveship Vivacia, and all who strive to possess her.

As the ancient tradition of Bingtown's Old Traders slowly erodes under the cold new order of a corrupt ruler, the Vestrits anxiously await the return of their liveship--a rare magic ship carved from sentient wizardwood, which bonds the ships mystically with those who sail them. And Althea Vestrit waits even more avidly, living only to reclaim the ship as her lost inheritance and captain her on the high seas. But the Vivacia has been seized by the ruthless pirate captain Kennit, who holds Althea's nephew and his father hostage. Althea and her onetime sea mate Brashen resolve to liberate the liveship--but their plan may prove more dangerous than leaving the Vivacia in Kennit's ambitious grasp....

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #41893 in Books
• Published on: 2000-02-29
• Released on: 2000-02-29
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 864 pages

Amazon.com
Robin Hobb returns to the sea with Mad Ship, the second book in a projected trilogy set in the same world as her famed Farseer series. Many unresolved questions from Ship of Magic are answered in this tale of sea serpents and dragons; living ships made of wizardwood; the Bingtown Trader families who sail the ships; and their disfigured cousins, the Rain Wild Traders, who build them.

The Vestritt family's liveship, Vivacia, has been taken by Kennit, an ambitious pirate. Captain Haven is a prisoner; his son Wintrow, who bears the Vestritt blood, finds himself competing with Kennit for Vivacia's love as she becomes a pirate ship. Althea Vestritt, in training to become Vivacia's captain, arrives home to discover her beloved ship lost. Brashen Trell, her old friend and shipmate, proposes that they sail to Vivacia's rescue in the liveship Paragon, who has lost two previous crews and is believed mad. Malta, Althea's niece, seeks help from her suitor, the Rain Wild Trader Reyn, whose family is the Vestritt's major creditor. Meanwhile, the sea serpents who follow sailing ships struggle to remember their history and return to their place of transformation.

Each volume in this series is a major undertaking, but those who enjoy original, epic fantasy, characters who grow and change believably, and fine writing will not want to miss The Liveship Traders. --Nona Vero

From Publishers Weekly
The second book (after Ship of Magic) in Hobbs's Liveship Traders trilogy solidifies the series's promise as a major work of high fantasy, reading like a cross between Tolkein and Patrick O'Brian. Protagonist Althea Vestrit is neither unrealistically beautiful nor mindlessly dauntless. She is a very human character who has her share of doubts as she undertakes to assemble a motley crew of allies (including her former lover, Brashen Trell) to take the blind, insane liveship Paragone to sea in search of the Vestrit family's liveship Vivacia. Meanwhile, Vivacia is enjoying a prosperous career as the flagship of pirate Captain Kennit. In spite of his peg leg, Kennit is a charismatic leader, with a genius for manipulation that his mistress Etta and his prisoner Wintrow Vestrit (Althea's nephew) seem ready to mistake for virtue. And in Bingtown, Wintrow's bratty sister, Malta, finally starts growing up when her family and town face ruin and she must take refuge in the Rain Wild forests. This second installment in the trilogy reveals the connections among liveships, the wizardwood used to build them, the sea serpents and the legendary Rain dragons. Apart from an overly long subplot concerning the feckless young Satrap, the novel is tightly written, with few passages not devoted to characterization, world building or action. Again, Hobb gives high fantasy a salty nautical spin that will please a great many readers. (Apr.) FYI: Robin Hobb is a pseudonym for Megan Lindholm.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Deprived of the liveship Vivacia, which should have been her inheritance, Althea Vestrit seeks solace in the attempt to restore the sanity of the abandoned ship known as Paragon and, through her efforts, find a way to reclaim her heritage. This sequel to Ship of Magic (LJ 2/15/98) continues the epic tale of sentient ships and ruthless trader clans in a world steeped in old magic and lost treasures. Imaginative and compelling in its attention to detail and breadth of characterization, this title belong in most fantasy collections.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Nautical Masterpiece
I am sadly growing addicted to this trilogy. I suppose that is a good thing. While I was never a huge fan of adult fantasy, I have always had a thing for the nautical. The original book of this trilogy "Ship of Magic", was absolutely divine, but still pretty much a set-up. Here, the action truly begins to come forth in an incredibly imaginative plot full of twists, dimensional characters, and good ol' swashbuckling fun (the latter being pretty much the best thing about the ship; how many authors can take such strange and serious ideas and still keep up classic pirate aura?)Hobb balances multiple character perspectives--which carries the worry of slighting the characters. However, every perspective carries a punch for its shortness.The ideas are wonderful, the writing neat and moody, and it all works with an exciting story not without a few moralistic concepts.Perfect reading for anyone who craves a solid adventure.

Finally, a series worthly to rival "The Lord of the Rings"
Robin Hobb is a master of story weaving. I am not especially fond of fantasy, but after a friend turned me on to the Assassins Apprentice series, we embarked on subsequent writings including the Liveship Traders and Tawny Man series. To maximize the effect of these interwoven novels, read them in that order (ie., The Farseer Trilogy, the Liveship Traders Series, and the Tawny Man Series.) The depth of the stories, as well as the richness and development of the characters easily rivals my all-time favorite series, The Lord of the Rings. Robin's work is truly a mastery of story telling. In fact, the only complaint I could conceive with her books is that they are too detailed (much in the same fashion of The Lord of the Rings.)

So much better!!
I nearly quit book one. If I hadn't already loved Robin Hobb I think I would have. Book one was slow to develop and horribly depressing. Nothing ever went right for anyone! Sure, plenty of that is necessary but can't someone catch a break every now and then???

They finally did in Mad Ship. Even better, the "bad guys" became more complex and compelling. Mad ship was the perfect balance of building drama and satisfying plot and character development. Robin's writing, as always, is beautiful and flows nicely. Mad Ship was not slow at all.

As a second book in a trilogy it was one of the better ones. I wish it had a more complete ending as a separate book. Robin did manage a complete ending to the second book of the Farseer trilogy so she's obviously capable of it, but I can overlook that failing when I have book three right at hand.

I'm so incredibly glad that Mad Ship became everything I'd wanted Ship of Magic to be.