The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince
How a myth is born: the true story of the Witted prince cast from the throne.
Synopsis
Long before Fitz, a prince gifted with the Wit nearly ruled the Six Duchies. Told by Felicity, the commoner companion of the willful Princess Caution, this prelude reveals the truth behind the legend of the Piebald Prince — and the origin of the hatred that will hound the Witted throughout the entire Farseer saga.
A short prelude to the Farseer saga, The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince reads as a chronicle — a partial, truncated historical account in the manner of the Buckkeep manuscripts. Robin Hobb illuminates a founding strand of Six Duchies mythology: why did the Wit, the magic of bonding with animals, become a cursed and persecuted magic? The story of the Piebald Prince and his downfall lends full tragic weight to the struggle Fitz will wage generations later. Background material, best suited to readers already familiar with the saga.
History is written by the victors, and the victors feared the Wit.
Key characters
Le Prince Pie, Princesse Caution, Félicité, Lostler
Themes
Préquelle, Le Vif, Six-Duchés, Persécution, Chronique