1 book done, 8 to go. This is going to take a while... 
 This first book tells the story of Fitz, a bastard of the heir prince, since he is dumped at the age of six to the care of the royal family, till his mid adolescent years. At first he just helps in the stables but later is recruited by the king to be trained as an assassin. 
 He mainly struggles with 2 things throughout the book: loneliness and identity. 
 His role as a bastard is a complicated one. If he is recognized as legitimate heir by his father, the whole line to the crown is messed up. Besides, even if he decides to get away of the political intrigue, he'll be considered a threat because he may be used by people rebelling the crown. So Fitz is stuck in a limbo, his only counsel being to stay loyal to the king and not be considered a threat to the crown. If possible, he is not to call in attention from anyone. Of course, this doesn't happen. He therefore is coerced to become an assassin in training and, in various times, required to show his loyalty to his king. 
 Loneliness is also a major part in the book. Fitz seems isolated from everyone and the way it is written made me almost cry. Every parental figure or role model he has seem distant at times. Burrich with his narrow mind, Chade by being under the orders of the king and his mentor, Patience because of her awkwardness, Verity because of his princely duties, Molly who doesn't know who he is, and the Fool because of his mystery... 
 Oh the Fool, the best character by far, without him the story would have been boring! He is amazing, and extremely mysterious. What's his story? Where is he from? Why can he predict the future? Does he have a plan and want to be Fitz's puppeteer? Is he a boy or a girl? And I don't know if it is mentioned maybe I didn't get it, but how old is he? He seems equally (or even more) lonely than Fitz himself. The glimpse we had of his room was extremely intriguing! Whenever he appeared he lighted up the whole portion of the chapter. I think Fitz needs to give him more attention. Although he says he likes him and calls him a friend, he only searches for him once and doesn't seem to be interested in spending time with him or talking to him. The fool, on the other hand, has always been there in some way for him. I really hope he'll have a bigger role in the next books. 
 My only complaint is that the story is a bit slow paced, a bit boring in the middle. The Fool was the only thing keeping it interesting at times. I sound like a fangirl. 
 Fitz fixes fyce fits. Fat suffices !