This is a novel that was recommended to me by a friend and came with a warning… “This is addictive. Seriously, it really is.” She was most definitely not wrong.
First of all, it begins with a map. And I have to say that I do love a good map at the beginning of a novel. It shows me that this is going to be a serious fantasy story, one with real depth.
It is ultimately a story of Kvothe, who is an inn keeper in a small village in the world of The Four Corners of Civilization. He listens to the sober and the drunkards tell tales and sing about the legends, little do they know that the legend they are singing about is the very man that is serving them their drinks.
It is a tale of his life and adventures. We begin with him as a child and keep on hgoing, it is written in his narrative and he is telling it to a chronicler in the present day, letting his story be told once and for all. We occasionally have “interludes” where we visit the present day and follow the current adventure, which may not seem quite as exciting as the past but just wait…
Kvothe is an incredible character. He is so complex and has such depth that you are rooting for him from day one. There is nothing like an underdog to really get you on side! But what I love most about this story isn’t necessarily the adventures or Kvothe but the whole world and the other characters within it. There are no ‘secondary’ characters because you don’t see them as characters who pop up when needed or used for a purpose. They are all people that interweave with his life. It is seamless. And so much more absorbing for it.
We are told of a few of his most excellent achievements or events at the beginning (even in the blurb) and it is really exciting to read and check them off one by one as they happen. There is a sequel that I bought immediately upon finishing The Name of the Wind and by then I was a complete goner…
The third is not out yet and we do not know when it will be. Patrick Rothfuss has written a novella about one of the characters that I am waiting for paperback to read. Suffice to say, this world is only just beginning to be explored. And I cannot wait to delve into it again. A reread may be on the cards very soon.
Addicting… yes. Absorbing… yes. One of the best fantasy novels I have read in a long time… Yes. One of the best fantasy series I have read in a long time… Absolutely.
The Name of the Wind Patrick Rothfuss
A Wise Man’s Fear Patrick Rothfuss
Novella:
The Slow Regard of Silent Things Patrick Rothfuss
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