King Shrewd is dead at the hands of his son Regal. As is Fitz--or so his enemies and friends believe. But with the help of his allies and his beast magic, he emerges from the grave, deeply scarred in body and soul. The kingdom also teeters toward ruin: Regal has plundered and abandoned the capital, while the rightful heir, Prince Verity, is lost to his mad quest--perhaps to death. Only Verity's return--or the heir his princess carries--can save the Six Duchies. But Fitz will not wait. Driven by loss and bitter memories, he undertakes a quest: to kill Regal. The journey casts him into deep waters, as he discovers wild currents of magic within him--currents that will either drown him or make him something more than he was.

Young Fitz, the illegitimate son of the noble Prince Chivalry, is ignored by all royalty except the devious King Shrewd, who has had him tutored him in the dark arts of the assassin. He has barely survived his first, soul-shattering mission, and returns to the court where he is thrown headfirst into the tumult of royal life. With the King near death, and Fitz's only ally off on a seemingly hopeless quest, the throne itself is threatened. Meanwhile, the treacherous Red Ship Raiders have renewed their attacks on the Six Duchies, slaughtering the inhabitants of entire seaside towns. In this time of great peril, it soon becomes clear that the fate of the kingdom may rest in Fitz's hands--and his role in its salvation may require the ultimate sacrifice.

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.

黠谋国王死在亲生儿子帝尊的手中，斐兹亦然—至少他的敌人和朋友对此深信不疑。然而，透过他的盟友和本身的野兽魔法之助，斐兹死而复生，身心灵却遭受严重创伤，而六大公国也濒临衰亡之虞：帝尊将公鹿堡劫掠一空之后，就遗弃王国首都迁居内陆，而法定王位继承人惟真却迷失在他的疯狂任务之中，生死未卜。唯有惟真重返公鹿堡，或是他的王妃腹中的继承人，才能拯救六大公国。 然而，斐兹可等不及了。失落和痛苦的记忆促使他下定决心进行一项个人的秘密任务：铲除帝尊。这段旅程使他坠入狂潮和自身魔法的深渊里，而他或许会在这一阵阵激流中灭顶，也可能成就一番不凡的志业。 奇幻文学的耀眼新星罗苹·荷布，在此呈现精彩绝伦的瞻远家族三部曲终篇「刺客任务」。身为六大公国存续关键的斐兹骏骑，将如何面对自己的命运和这个世界？

一段身怀精技绝技的皇家刺客，一段与原智难以割舍的生死连结，一份无法坦白，而临破碎的情感。他，王室私生子，无数政治任务下的牺牲品，在性命与忠诚的两难抉择下，要如何才能扭转王国的危机…… 为何禁止记载关于魔法的特殊知识？或许因为我们都恐惧这类知识将落入不肖者的手中。尽管这样的尝试似乎可以让我们避开秘教不肖术士的侵害，但却也忽略了魔法并非源自这种特殊知识。人们对于特定魔法的偏好不是与生俱来就是极度匮乏。比方说，众所周知的精技魔法与皇家瞻远家族的血缘关系紧密相连，虽然它也可能在祖先为内陆或外岛人的“野种”中出现。接受精技训练的人能洞悉他人的思绪，而且无论距离多远都能一探究竟；而精通精技者更能影响他人所思，甚至与其对话。

王室私生子斐兹，在城中过着被众人视为耻辱，刻意被忽视的生活。王室家族视他为边缘人，只有诡计多端的黠谋国王秘密派人训练他刺客的技艺。因为斐兹的血液里流着魔法的“精技”——还有跟马厩猎犬一起长大、被家人排斥的孩子所具备的阴暗知识。 红船动匪的劫掠使海岸地区一片残破，此时斐兹也逐渐长大成人，很快就将面对他第一项危险而令人心神俱裂的任务。尽管有些人认为他对王位造成威胁，但他却可能正是王国续存的关键所在。 本书中充满了魔力与邪恶、热情与冒险、英勇事迹与不名誉的行为。这本初试啼声之作，出自于正统奇幻（high fantasy）文学界多年来最令人无法抗拒的新作家之手…… 罗苹·荷布这样一个听起来有点男性化的名字，却是属于一名女性奇幻小说家的。在男性主导的奇幻写作界，罗苹·荷布成功的走出自己的一条道路，她所擅长的是描述传统作品所未间接触的领域。刺客系列的作品描述的是其他奇幻小说极少碰触的阴暗面：杀手生涯。过去曾经有过相同尝试的作品不是太过阴讳，就是深藏在血腥之中，掩盖了原该有的剧情光采，但她的作品拥有一种截然不同的特殊风格。