Mad Ship by Robin Hobb is the second book in the Liveship Traders trilogy.
Introduction
Mad Ship by Robin Hobb is the second book of the Liveship Traders trilogy and book five of the Realm of the Elderlings saga. The novel follows six main plot arcs. The groups are the sailors Althea and Brashen, headed to Bingtown; the Vestrit family of Bingtown, owners of the Liveship Vivacia; the Khuprus family from The Rain Wild River; Wintrow and pirate captain Kennit on the Liveship Vivacia; Paragon, a blinded and derelict Liveship near Bingtown; and a group of sea serpents traveling north. These groups interact, leading to something special happening to the Mad Ship.
Summary – Prologue
The prologue has one point-of-view character.
Shreever is a sea serpent. She follows the prophet Maulkin, who seeks She Who Remembers. They follow a dark provider that drops food for them.
Summary–Main Plot Arcs
Mad Ship by Robin Hobb has six main plot arcs.
Kennit is a pirate captain who turns slave ships into pirate ships under his control, but then he captures the Liveship Vivacia. He is supported by his first mate Sorcor and his paramour Etta. On the Liveship Vivacia is Wintrow Haven (the son of Keffria Vestrit) who is connected to the Liveship and necessary to keep the ship running. His father is Kyle Haven, the former captain of the Liveship Vivacia.
The Vestrit family in Bingtown are Ronica Vestrit, her daughter Keffria, and her granddaughter Malta. They have drama involving Rain Wild Traders and the running of the family finances. They own the Liveship Vivacia but owe debt payments to the Khuprus family.
The Khuprus family took over the debt of the Liveship Vivacia. Jani Khuprus takes the note because her son Reyn intends to wed Malta Vestrit. Reyn is involved with the excavations of the Elderlings along the banks of the Rain Wild River. He looks to learn the secrets of the Elderlings.
The Liveship Paragon, who is a derelict on Bingtown beach. Amber wants to buy him from the Ludluck family and restore him.
Althea Vestrit and Brashen Trell have a hot and cold romance. They were sailors on the Liveship Vivacia and later The Reaper, a slaughter ship taking cargo from the barrens with a home port of Candletown. They come to Bingtown. Althea to help her mother and Brashen to help Amber and Paragon.
The sentient sea serpents search for She Who Remembers.
Recommendation
Mad Ship by Robin Hobb is a fabulous middle novel for the Liveship Traders trilogy. It is set in the same universe as the Farseer trilogy and there are a few references to those books, but no direct connections. There are many points of view characters. Each chapter has multiple points of view, though there is no head hopping.
I enjoyed the Althea and Brashen romance, Wintrow’s struggle with his past and future, and the mystery of Paragon. I like the Malta story better than in the earlier novel because of the addition of Reyn. Reyn’s story is intriguing because of how it relates to the dragons and the Elderlings. The Kennit story was interesting in his horribleness. Is he a protagonist or a villain? We learn more about him in this novel, but the rest of the story will tell. The sea serpents were easier to read in this novel because I understood more about them. I think I know how the sea serpents are related to the Liveships, so that will be important later. Overall, I loved it and will soon read Ship of Destiny, Book #3 of the Liveship Traders.
Links
This is the link to the Goodreads page of Mad Ship by Robin Hobb
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6462121-mad-ship
Review of Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb. Liveships are sentient and bonded to their owners. This is the story of the Liveship Vivacia and the Vestrit family.
