A Foray Into Fantasy discussion

so I've just finished the first book in the Kingkiller Chronicles series, The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. I liked it ok, it was very richly described and quite funny at times. But the book and it's sequel (which I have yet to read) are two of the most highly rated books on goodreads. So what I want to know is - Is The Name of the Wind worth it's 4.56 stars, do you think? If you haven't read it, is it on your list to read? Why or why not?

I had the book for several years before I read it, and while I did enjoy it there were a few things that kind of irritated me about it. Just curious as to what other people think!

I read The Name of the Wind a couple of years ago. I thought I'd hate it within the first thirty pages or so. I really dislike the whole 'let me tell you a story' premise. Surprisingly, I liked the past that he recalls, even though I hated each of the tavern scenes. To this day the book sticks with me. If I recall, he left quite a few loose ends at the end of this one. I gave this book a four, but I didn't read the next one. Not sure if I will pick up the next one either.

What about you?

I totally agree with you about assuming that I'd hate it after the first 30 pages. I don't like the particular kind of format either, because then you kind of know, no matter what kind of sticky situation the "protagonist" got himself into, you knew he'd come out alive. I wasn't a big fan of the tavern scenes either, but I really did like the back story. I just found the narrator so grating from time to time. So arrogant, and there wasn't really even any other feature of his narration to...offset the arrogance. I didn't really care for his love interest...I was just so mixed on it.

And yeah, the story did leave a big loose end, and like you, I haven't made a decision as to whether or not I'm going to pick up the sequel. As engaging as the story was...as into it as I really was, after the first 100 pages, I had a hard time putting it down, so that's why I gave it the 4 stars I did. So I'm not sure if it deserves the heaps and heaps of praise it has.

Did you ever find the narrator in his younger years as grating as I did? Or would it be fair to chalk up his behavior and attitude to that of a typical younger teenage boy?

Was there a time he wasn't arrogant? I think Rothfuss was using that arrogance in the character arc, and maybe if we had continued reading we'd see a change? Maybe?? Maybe I should read the next one and find out. One day.

What strikes me now is that I remember moments of the book more than I remember the entire story. I remember the caravan scene when he was a small boy. I remember his time living as a beggar. I remember the person he discovers at the academy. I remember the deal he makes to pay for his education. It's like individual scenes are memorable enough to stay with me, but the overall story and attachment to any characters is non-existent.

I think my biggest problem with the whole book is, when I picked it up EVERYBODY was raving about the new genius Rothfuss. Apparently, I created my own idea of what a fantastic, amazing, earth-shattering, ground-breaking novel was and this book didn't live up to it. If I hadn't done that, I might have enjoyed it better.

He did make me want to turn the page and finish the book I was reading, but he didn't give me enough incentive to rush out and get the next one. I just have so many others still to read. I have two Hobb's sitting on the shelf, three Pratchett's I haven't read, an older Gaiman, a series on alternate history I saw at the bookstore but I can't remember the author, and now I want to join a few of the monthly book discussions here on GR. One day I may get it, but probably not this year.

If you're not going to continue reading him, what are you picking up next?

You know, that's a really good point about the different events in his life. I mean, I only just finished it about 2 weeks ago but I agree, I think the moments of the caravan and some of the things that happened in the school, like when he demonstrated sympathy to the class he was in, those things definitely stick out to me, but I know there are other things that I just read that I will probably forget in time.

And yeah, there in lies the whole thing with like...raving about how great this book is. When I saw that rating on goodreads, I just kind of thought..with all those ratings and reviews, this book has to be amazing, and I think maybe I expected a little too much out of it. I mean, like you said, it's definitely a page turner, but I don't think it's the best I've read by far. I guess I am relatively new to reading tons of fantasy, having been a fantasy virgin when I read the first Game of Thrones back in 2012. But now, I am trying to read more.

I have The Lies of Locke Lamora on my kindle but haven't read it yet. I'm also looking forward to possibly reading some more of Brandon Sanderson's work and continuing Hobb's series. There's so many things on my to read list, it's getting ridiculous!

Do you have any recommendations?

If you're reading Hobb, I recommend the Liveship Trader series. Althea is a strong female protagonist, probably one of the strongest, believable protagonists I've read in a long time. Sanderson I haven't read yet or The Lies of Locke Lamora. I think I might pick that one up next.

He had me at "The Waystone Inn lay in silence, and it was a silence of three parts."

The only problem I've had with The Kingkiller series — aside from the wait — is that it's ruined me for most other fantasy. I find myself picking up other fantasy books and putting them down because they seem trite, especially the characters. It has made me go back out and read in other genres, usually literary fiction.

I find myself going back to Jack Cady, reading Joseph Campbell's Faces of God series, and weirdly I still love Abraham Merritt's novels, and I'm liking Carol Berg's Collegia Magica books. Patricia McKillip, always, and Juliet Marillier. If it weren't for Patrick Rothfuss I might never have been driven to read Memoirs of a Geisha in my desperate search for something to read, so I'm grateful to him for that, as well.

So the quick answer to the question is, yeah, and for me the rating should be higher.

I've read the first installment, so my impression is only based on that one book, not the whole series. I gave it four stars, and I think that's fair. (From what I can tell that star rating system is largely meaningless, but if we're doing a quick and dirty sort of thing then OK....)

I do think Rothfuss is engaging in an important process. He's a modernizer. He's taking what are, in effect, folk tales and updating them into the 21st century. I have criticism here and there about how he goes about that, and the "Marty Stu" aspects of his protagonist, but I think he's doing good work.

4.56 stars? (The current rating.) That might be a bit much. But it's not wildly off.

Oh I think you just put into words what I was trying to say - I think that Kvothe is a huge Marty Stu, for sure, and that's one of the main issues that I had with the book. I think that Rothfuss is a wildly talented writer, he can really tell a story, and do so in a really engaging and memorable way, for sure. I think the main character is my biggest issue and is in large part the reason I ended up giving it a 4 rather than a 5.

I think I put too much thought into my ratings in general though.

He does have a strong command of his narrative voice, and it's very much 21st century. I've called him the "most contemporary of his contemporaries" and I think that's accurate.

Sometimes it's a bit awkward, though. For instance, through the majority of the book his characters and narrative are all modern, but then during some flirtatious scenes with Denna he dips into an affected "courtly" or medieval/Renaissance style in the dialogue which really threw me. That style is the one adopted by most fantasy authors for their whole books, so it suddenly read like he was shifting into something "traditional" for fantasy novels. Those scenes read very badly for me.

The Marty Stu aspects are also an issue. His lead makes several decisions that read like artificial plot points put in by the author to give his lead a "problem" rather than have him confronted by serious issue. The whole sequence with Kvothe being too dim/tired/stupid to realize he can't bring a lit candle into the library, for example. I had real trouble believing he'd go for that.... So, it read as the author "making up" a problem.

There are a good six or eight of those in the book. He is amazing lute player, but the first thing that happens when he comes to town is (view spoiler)[his father's lute gets broken, so he can't make a living and must learn how to survive on his own as a thief, but he never tries to get hold of another lute while on the street to make a living as a street performer? (hide spoiler)] That's a little strained....

Still, these aren't huge criticisms. The book doesn't rest on those sequences. They are just factors in why it might not be a five star book.

I thought I would comment that I'm a little over halfway through The Wise Man's Fear and I've really enjoyed it so far. I'm not sure if it was just the build up or the younger years in the first novel or what, but I am really enjoying this one so far. Kvothe is still Kvothe of course, but...I'm finding him to be less grating this time around. Can hardly put this book down!