Review | "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

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The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Epic Fantasy first published in 2007
DAW Trade
Author's website  |  Goodreads  |  Buy the Book on Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Told in Kvothe's own voice, this is the tale of the magically gifted young man who grows to be the most notorious wizard his world has ever seen. The intimate narrative of his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, his years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-ridden city, his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a legendary school of magic, and his life as a fugitive after the murder of a king form a gripping coming-of-age story unrivaled in recent literature. A high-action story written with a poet's hand, The Name of the Wind is a masterpiece that will transport readers into the body and mind of a wizard.

My Thoughts...

This was one of those books that I bought on a whim after reading one of those NaNoWriMo inspirational emails during November.  It was written by Patrick Rothfuss and he did talk a little about the book.  I then started seeing the name pop up on the YouTube channels I subscribe to.  Even one of the students in the 5th grade class that was doing NaNo with me was talking about it.  I like fantasy quite a lot so I knew that I was probably going to like this book.  I knew once I got it that I was going to want to read it right away so I put it in my TBR for December and picked it up pretty quickly once the month started.  Now, I will tell you that this is a long book and I think from the time I started to the time I finished it took me I think 10 days to read it, but I did put it down a couple times to read other books that I needed to do do reviews for.  I think I read about 90 some odd pages at the beginning then things/books kept getting in the way.  Then my son got sick and we were home from school a couple days and I literally sat and devoured the last 600+ pages in less than 24 hours!  I loved it so much that the next day I went out and bought the 2nd book...it's even longer and since the 3rd book is possibly several years from coming out I am hesitant to read it right away.

So, on to my review... this is a fantasy novel.  It's been called High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy and while I am not so sure what the difference in these is, it's definitely Fantasy!  The world that Mr. Rothfuss creates for this series is quite fantastic.  I have a couple of Fantasy series that I really enjoy and they all have elements that are similar, but it's the magic that makes a great Fantasy and the magic in this book is quite original.  At least it was to me.  The other thing that made this book so enjoyable for me was Kvothe himself. 

This book starts out in an Inn in a village with the Innkeeper Kote who we learn quickly on is actually Kvothe.  Now for some reason he doesn't want it known who he is and it's not clear how old he is at this point but there are times that he seems quite young.  So, there is something out there in the dark and Kote knows what it is and it's some type of beast that does some damage to one of the villagers.  The villagers are calling it a demon but Kote and his companion Bast know what it truly is and I suspect that Kote knows how to protect them from it.  It happens that while he is out waiting for these creatures to show up again he encounters a man who is what is called a Chronicler.  He has a name but they refer to him as if Chronicler is his name.  He was set upon and robbed and it's somewhat of a fluke that he comes upon Kote as these beasts attack again.  

Long(ish) story short, Kote saves him and takes him back to the Inn.  Chronicler suspects from the events that have transpired that Kote is indeed Kvothe and he wants to record his story.  Kvothe tells him that he will give him 3 days and that once the 3 days is up his story will be completed.  Chronicler has somewhere that he needs to be, but he is quick to put that aside to be able to chronicle the mighty Kvothe's story.  This first book is the story that is told on Day 1 of the 3 days that Kvothe promises to Chronicler.

Kvothe's story starts out when he is, I believe 8 years old and is traveling with his parents and their troupe.  They have a name for them but they are sort of like traveling gypsies or performers.  They set up in towns or just outside of towns and they perform all sorts of acts, plays, singing, etc....  Kvothe is a bright boy and retains a vast amount of information quickly.  Along the way they pick up a tinker who dabbles in what is comparable to magic and he starts to teach Kvothe what he knows about potions, sympathy and the like.  He is astonished at how quickly Kvothe learns and he is the first one to mention The University to Kvothe.  Kvoths sets his sights on attending and some years later is among the youngest admitted there.  The main part of this book centers around his first years at The University and the trials of being a bright and very young boy in a place that's way bigger than he is.  I believe that at the end of this book Kvothe is not yet 16.

We don't find out too much about the older Kvothe in this book since it's centered so much around his younger years.  He does go through a lot and it's clear that these events are what eventually turn him into the man he is and I can't wait to read further to see just how he becomes the mighty Kvothe!

If you are a fan of Fantasy then I highly recommend this book, I quite enjoyed it.  Mr. Rothfuss has a vivid imagination and he brings it very much to life in the pages of this book.  If you have read this book already I would love to hear what you thought of it!

XOXO, Shelly