Scan barcode
linguistenthusiast21's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
xcblackdiamond's review against another edition
5.0
Welp finishing this weekend turned to today as I pushed through the last 120 pages, while putting off a growing pain in my stomach. So, minor spoilers: Denna stresses me out, I think I'm team Fela. Speaking of, it's hilarious how terrible Kvothe is with girls but I guess his reasoning for not making a move on Denna makes sense. Also, I'm happy he has access to the archives now. It is so backwards for a university to block one of their brightest students from learning. Bast is scary, present-day Kvothe needs to get happier, and we still know next to nothing about the Chandrian (except they're maybe related to the Fae somehow?) Onto The Wise Man's Fear!
liarosie16's review against another edition
1.0
FINALLY. Omg this was actually torture to get through. Read this bc it’s a fave of Taylor’s… Why do men like books where 2 characters talk about the price of a horse for 30 mins? Bffr… like I could have read the first chapter and the last chapter and gotten the gist.
queencam's review against another edition
5.0
Rereading this. Still an annoyingly smart protagonist and still terrible female characters, but also still so good at certain moments.
shonaholmes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
I'm hooked!
johnrudy's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
alexisfay13's review against another edition
5.0
Now I understand why so many people rave about this book. I expected it to be good, but I was blown away by how amazing this was. It took be a bit to get into it, but I flew through about 500 pages in the last 3 days. I could not put it down. This was definitely a "just one more chapter" kind of book for me. I really loved the magical school setting. Everything about this book just worked for me. The world, the characters, the writing style. Loved it all.
valyriereven's review against another edition
3.0
[3.5/5] • Back in December 2023, I borrowed The Name of the Wind from a friend after voicing my woes over the current state of the fantasy genre. Unfortunately I didn't get to really sink my teeth into it until June-July of this year (packing up to move across the country, followed by the process of settling in and catching up on work will do that to ya!).
I thoroughly enjoyed The Name of the Wind. The prose is vivid and lyrical — probably the greatest strength of this book. As the narrator and main character Kvothe tells his story, there were moments that made me gasp and chuckle and cry and cheer. Unlike some of the other readers here, I actually quite liked Kvothe and didn't find him Gary Stu-ish or unbelievable at all, as I've known a few people with the same caliber of charm, wit, and talent. Rothfuss has created a detailed world, mythology, and magic system so plausible it feels scientific. I was glued to the pages and couldn't stop turning them until the late hours of night and reminders of tomorrow's work begged me to put it down.
So, what's the problem then? Why the 3-and-a-half, rounded down to three, star rating?
The first answer to that question is this: Denna. Well, not just Denna — most of the characters have a sort of flatness to them, as though they're only cardboard props in the greater story, but this sense really becomes apparent with the women characters. So we'll start with her. Denna is the love interest, who — despite the fact that the main character spends hours at a time talking with her — we know virtually nothing about aside from the fact that she's beautiful, witty, and she doesn't stick around for long. When she isn't around, Kvothe yearns for her, which is annoying because honestly, there really isn't anything yearn-worthy about her; this sentiment is even echoed by another character. We're told that Denna is beautiful and elusive and talented and she keeps a long string of broken hearts, but she doesn't really have any yearn-worthy traits. She's not particularly kind, or intelligent (she's knowledgeable, but we never see this knowledge applied outside of bantering with Kvothe), she has no ambitions — her motivation wanders, literally. She's utterly flat. The only characters I really found myself invested in were Bast and Auri (which both have their own novellas; I haven't read Bast's, but I gave The Slow Regard of Silent Things five stars in my review). Honestly I felt more compelled by Bast and Kvothe's relationship and the oddly (unintentional?) homoerotic undertones between them (not like that's a bad thing, though!) than any of Kvothe's hopeless pining for Denna.
And lastly, my biggest gripe is the ending. As Kvothe recounts his life story to Chronicler and decides to wrap up, the story is left unfinished and he quite literally says, "well, the rest is a story for another day." There's no resolution. There are so many hints and allusions that have no payoff. Even the promise made in the series title, The Kingkiller Chronicles, is unfulfilled. Cliffhangers are understandable in a series. You can't expect every question to be answered right away. And I can understand that Kvothe will continue telling his story over the next book(s, if the third ever comes), but to not even follow through with the main promise is severely disappointing. As I learned about the background of the series and the real-world circumstances, suddenly, this lack of commitment in the narrative became an obvious reflection of the author himself. And sadly, that stomach-turning twist at the last chapter isn't enough to convince me to keep reading. The Name of the Wind's evident spiritual predecessor, A Wizard of Earthsea, did nearly everything this story did — and did it better.
Maybe eventually, when my reading list runs short, I'll pick up The Wise Man's Fear. But for now, it's a story for another day.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Name of the Wind. The prose is vivid and lyrical — probably the greatest strength of this book. As the narrator and main character Kvothe tells his story, there were moments that made me gasp and chuckle and cry and cheer. Unlike some of the other readers here, I actually quite liked Kvothe and didn't find him Gary Stu-ish or unbelievable at all, as I've known a few people with the same caliber of charm, wit, and talent. Rothfuss has created a detailed world, mythology, and magic system so plausible it feels scientific. I was glued to the pages and couldn't stop turning them until the late hours of night and reminders of tomorrow's work begged me to put it down.
So, what's the problem then? Why the 3-and-a-half, rounded down to three, star rating?
The first answer to that question is this: Denna. Well, not just Denna — most of the characters have a sort of flatness to them, as though they're only cardboard props in the greater story, but this sense really becomes apparent with the women characters. So we'll start with her. Denna is the love interest, who — despite the fact that the main character spends hours at a time talking with her — we know virtually nothing about aside from the fact that she's beautiful, witty, and she doesn't stick around for long. When she isn't around, Kvothe yearns for her, which is annoying because honestly, there really isn't anything yearn-worthy about her; this sentiment is even echoed by another character. We're told that Denna is beautiful and elusive and talented and she keeps a long string of broken hearts, but she doesn't really have any yearn-worthy traits. She's not particularly kind, or intelligent (she's knowledgeable, but we never see this knowledge applied outside of bantering with Kvothe), she has no ambitions — her motivation wanders, literally. She's utterly flat. The only characters I really found myself invested in were Bast and Auri (which both have their own novellas; I haven't read Bast's, but I gave The Slow Regard of Silent Things five stars in my review). Honestly I felt more compelled by Bast and Kvothe's relationship and the oddly (unintentional?) homoerotic undertones between them (not like that's a bad thing, though!) than any of Kvothe's hopeless pining for Denna.
And lastly, my biggest gripe is the ending. As Kvothe recounts his life story to Chronicler and decides to wrap up, the story is left unfinished and he quite literally says, "well, the rest is a story for another day." There's no resolution. There are so many hints and allusions that have no payoff. Even the promise made in the series title, The Kingkiller Chronicles, is unfulfilled. Cliffhangers are understandable in a series. You can't expect every question to be answered right away. And I can understand that Kvothe will continue telling his story over the next book(s, if the third ever comes), but to not even follow through with the main promise is severely disappointing. As I learned about the background of the series and the real-world circumstances, suddenly, this lack of commitment in the narrative became an obvious reflection of the author himself. And sadly, that stomach-turning twist at the last chapter isn't enough to convince me to keep reading. The Name of the Wind's evident spiritual predecessor, A Wizard of Earthsea, did nearly everything this story did — and did it better.
Maybe eventually, when my reading list runs short, I'll pick up The Wise Man's Fear. But for now, it's a story for another day.