First Lines Fridays | 14th of June 2024

Hello Hello! How are you?

It’s been about two weeks since I’ve posted on the blog because I’ve been so busy, running around everywhere, and also really tired and generally trying to rest as much as I can before the heat gets too overwhelming here in France. But today I decided to get a quick and easy post up to keep myself in the blogging vibe!

So this week I’m bringing you a First Lines Fridays post and I’m really excited to read the book I’m featuring today, hopefully I can get around to it sooner rather than later as it’s been sitting on my shelves waiting for YEARS. Without further ado, keep on reading to find out more!

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet — you need to hook the reader first.
• Finally… reveal the book!

My pen falters, then falls from my knuckle grip, leaving a worm’s trail of ink across Fedwren’s paper. I have spoiled another leaf of the fine stuff, in what I suspect is  futile endeavour. I wonder if I can write this history, or if on every page there will be some sneaking show of bitterness I thought long dead. I think myself cured of all spite, but when I touch pen to paper, the hurt of a boy bleeds out with the sea-spawned ink, until I suspect each carefully formed black letter scabs over some ancient scarlet wound.

What book is this quote from?

Assassin’s Apprentice (The Farceur Trilogy #1) by Robin Hobb

In a faraway land where members of the royal family are named for the virtues they embody, one young boy will become a walking enigma.

Born on the wrong side of the sheets, Fitz, son of Chivalry Farseer, is a royal bastard, cast out into the world, friendless and lonely. Only his magical link with animals – the old art known as the Wit – gives him solace and companionship. But the Wit, if used too often, is a perilous magic, and one abhorred by the nobility.

So when Fitz is finally adopted into the royal household, he must give up his old ways and embrace a new life of weaponry, scribing, courtly manners; and how to kill a man secretly, as he trains to become a royal assassin.

I’ve had this book on my shelves for at least 4 years and I’ve wanted to read it for a lot longer than that. I think because this universe is so large (16 books I believe), I’ve been a bit put off by the time it might take me, as well as the funds I’ll need to use in order to get books from the same edition! But I have decided that if I don’t read it soon I probably never will, and it’s one of those series I’ve put on a list to tackle soon. I’m so excited to discover this world and these characters!

That’s all for now, I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

See you soon, stay safe,

Ellie xx