The Name of the Wind: Kingkiller Chronicles, Day 1
|
The Name of the Wind: Kingkiller Chronicles, Day 1
|
The originality of Rothfuss's outstanding debut fantasy, the first of a trilogy, lies less in its unnamed imaginary world than in its precise execution. Kvothe (pronounced nearly the same as 'Quothe' ), the hero and villain of a thousand tales who's presumed dead, lives as the simple proprietor of the Waystone Inn under an assumed name. Prompted by a biographer called Chronicler who realizes his true identity, Kvothe starts to tell his life story. From his upbringing as an actor in his family's traveling troupe of magicians, jugglers and jesters, the Edema Ruh, to feral child on the streets of the vast port city of Tarbean, then his education at 'the University,' Kvothe is driven by twin imperativeshis desire to learn the higher magic of naming and his need to discover as much as possible about the Chandrian, the demons of legend who murdered his family. As absorbing on a second reading as it is on the first, this is the type of assured, rich first novel most writers can only dream of producing. The fantasy world has a new star.
07/08/2011
This is Harry Potter for adults. Well written with an excellent ear for dialogue and an epic plot, the only sad thing is coming to the end of the 500+ pages and waiting for the next installment The hero even has a girlfriend I think of like Don Quixote's, although she is more apparent in the book.Plenty of action and inventive magic for a satisfying tale. I recommend this highly with a big thumbs up.
07/08/2011
!!THIS REVIEW CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS!!
A great young adult fantasy novel.Although it is a little too full of cliche, I still enjoyed the book.Even though I did like the book, I can also see where its detractors are coming from.The story does seem to mimic Harry Potter in a lot of ways:
* Kvothe's parents are murdered science behind it.I would highly recommend this novel to those that loved the Harry Potter series, I would not recommend this book to people that prefer gritty fantasy.
07/08/2011
If you were as devastated as me with George Martin's latest FLOP, then you need reparations...and FAST!The Name of the Wind is the cleansing you need!
Rothfuss is the Shakespeare of the modern day. He knows how to craft a clever paragraph. He's talented on many levels. You can read this story for plot and characterization, but you can also read this as something of literary merit. Some full pages of his prose actually rhymes! It's so subtle and so beautiful you might actually miss it!
It isn't a perfect fantasy. The bad guys leave something to be desired in the plot, but I don't care too much. This writer is that darn good!
06/08/2011
This book is pure excitement.It is beautiful and really creates a rich, deep and believable world.I love it more than Harry Potter. I have not read a lot of Fantasy, but this is truly excellent literature that most people would enjoy.The second book is just as excellent and doesn't disappoint!
Love this series, can't wait for the third!
06/08/2011
This is THE BEST BOOK that I have bought so far in my lifetime. I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys the Adventure Fantasy type. I love it, I have gotten this book for friends and family that I know enjoy reading, and they LOVED IT also. This book will keep you turning the pages! I never wanted to put it down.
01/08/2011
This is a decent novel from an up-and-coming fantasy writer, Patrick Rothfuss.The book tells the tale of Kvothe, a ragamuffin boy with a penchant for magic.Rothfuss creates a vividly drawn world with detailed character development.You read the book and get pulled into the scenes that Rothfuss has painted.Rothfuss also writes with a biting wit, as evidenced I guess Robert Jordan was the last writer who was able to create a really memorable magic system.Not a huge issue but something that could have improved the book.The book's major problem, though, is with flow.The beginning and middle of the book are paced very well but towards the end when Kvothe is pulled away to an urgent errand, the book seems to slightly unravel.This journey seems to yield almost no information about Kvothe's quest and seems disorganized (the errand seems to come out of nowhere).It would have been better if Rothfuss had provided more plot development prior to having Kvothe undertake this trip or have Kvothe find something more meaningful during the journey.Finally, nothing in the book seems to link back to the first incident at the bar with the scrael.Where did they come from?Who is leading them?
If I could have, I would have given the book 3.5 stars.It's a good read but needs some work to iron out the kinks.Hopefully Rothfuss manages the process better next time around so that future books can go from good to great.
28/07/2011
At first, I was just looking for a book to kill time. But no, this book did more than that.
It simply grabbed me, and drew me deep into the story, like I was actually doing the action. I wouldn't want to spoil you with details, but let me just say this book is a true fantasy story I've read in a long time.
I'm going to get the second book now, despite its kindle price. A riff off, but I think it will worth it.
27/07/2011
Patrick Rothfuss is a new author in the Fantasy scene, and the best one in a long time.I am an avid Fantasy reader, I have read The Wheel of Time, Farseer Trilogy, Thomas Covenant Chronicles, (Of course Lord of The Rings) and A Game Of Thrones.This book and series can be considered equal or greater to all of the books I just named.Rothfuss does a wonderful job of beautifully detailing his world and characters, so much so It's like you are wandering The Four Corners.
As many others say it is original, it may borrow from the whole "Character is poor and is down in the dumps, then comes back and becomes a hero" While that may relate to this story, he does so wonderfully that you don't even notice.It is like a behind the scene of the Hero's life.And it is just a great adventure to read.
I highly recommend this book, and it's sequel The Wise Man's Fear.A series that once it's complete, no one will forget.
25/07/2011
1) I use the Amazon rating system at face value. I liked The Name of the Wind, so I gave it 4 stars.
2) For a debut novel, I found The Name of the Wind to be an engrossing read. Not compelling, but engrossing. I read it in leiu of pursuing other leisure activities because it kept my attention.
3) Kvothe is, I think, an unreliable narrator. Not perhaps a typical unreliable narrator in that he is a liar. Rather, Kvothe's biggest weakness is that he cannot focus much beyond himself. Self-centered. That's not to say that he's any worse than any other person of youth(The Name of the Wind finishes when he is 15 and he is supposedly relating his story at the age of 25), but because the story is mostly related in the first person, this is exaggerated (leading, perhaps, to exaggerated perceptions of Mary Sueism from detractors, though there is probably some lesser level of this, in any event). Kvothe's closeness with himself and his distance from others also has the effect of making those he come in contact with seem flat. He doesn't reach for their essences but simply brushes by them as though walking past on the street.
4) I found the magic system in the world to be pretty straightforward. None of it is new, though the names may not be standard (sympathy is a pretty standard form of what other novels call thaumaturgy, sygaldry is rune magic).
5) While I don't find Rothfuss's writing especially good, it's not particularly bad either. Except for his poetry. His poetry is not up to snuff for me.
Your Name:
Your Review: Note: HTML is not translated!
Rating: Bad Good
Enter the code in the box below:
|
|
|
|
