Discover #1 New York Times-bestselling Patrick Rothfuss’ epic fantasy series, The Kingkiller Chronicle. “I just love the world of Patrick Rothfuss.” —Lin-Manuel Miranda • “He’s bloody good, this Rothfuss guy.” —George R. R. Martin • “Rothfuss has real talent.” —Terry Brooks OVER 1 MILLION COPIES SOLD! DAY ONE: THE NAME OF THE WIND My name is Kvothe. I have stolen princesses back from sleeping … WIND
My name is Kvothe.
I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep.
You may have heard of me.
So begins a tale unequaled in fantasy literature—the story of a hero told in his own voice. It is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man’s search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.
Praise for The Kingkiller Chronicle:
“The best epic fantasy I read last year…. He’s bloody good, this Rothfuss guy.”
—George R. R. Martin, New York Times-bestselling author of A Song of Ice and Fire
“Rothfuss has real talent, and his tale of Kvothe is deep and intricate and wondrous.”
—Terry Brooks, New York Times-bestselling author of Shannara
“It is a rare and great pleasure to find a fantasist writing…with true music in the words.”
—Ursula K. Le Guin, award-winning author of Earthsea
“The characters are real and the magic is true.”
—Robin Hobb, New York Times-bestselling author of Assassin’s Apprentice
“Masterful…. There is a beauty to Pat’s writing that defies description.”
—Brandon Sanderson, New York Times-bestselling author of Mistborn
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It would be even better if this series was finished. As it is, I’ll re-read when the third book arrives, if it ever does.
The most promising debut novel I’ve ever read. Action-packed with great world-building, buckets of wit, and a cast of characters that you can connect with. The plot moves along very well and has a moor-ish quality that keeps the pages turning.
I read this a long time ago, but was thinking about it earlier today. The prose has a whimsical quality, and the young hero is easy to engage with. As with many first books, this one is far too long, but the prose is easy to read. The world building is intriguing, but there are a lot of dangling plot threads. Places where I’d have liked to have known more, but I never find out what I was wondering about.
When a huge book like this can keep me so hooked I read it in a weekend, I recommend it.
I’m just going to say, The Name of the Wind is one of the best books i have read. Not the series, no, no the story of what made Kvothe.
For me things were a bit stagnated in the Fantasy realm when I came across this book and by the time I was finished, i was glad for the re-ignition.
I mean CTR-ALT-DEL had a strip on Kvothe!
Patrick, can I call you Patrick? Please finish the series. 🙂
What to say about The Name of the Wind that hasn’t already been said? I feel like Kvothe trying to describe Denna. If I tell you it is an epic fantasy of majestic proportions, you’ll think that you’ve read stories like that before. If I tell you it has beautifully written prose, you’ll again think the same. If I tell you the characters are rich and vibrant and completely enthralling, you’ll name 8 books that have the same. In what manner is this book amazingly breathtaking? Since I cannot say enough, at least I will avoid saying too much. It is the first book of an epic fantasy trilogy. It is set in a diverse and flushed out world. It is riddled with hidden meaning and discovery on every page. Finally it is simply a wonderful book. The best book of all time, to me at least. But to be honest, it has been loved by other as well…
LOVED it… the only drawback is that it is the first of a trilogy, and the last one has not been written, though it has been promised for years.
My boyfriend has been trying to get me to read this book for months. I finally got around to it and I loved it. My only concern is that it’s supposed to be a trilogy and the third one isn’t out yet. This is a fantasy book, more or less a fictional autobiography of a young prodigies tragic back story. Very cleverly written. It didn’t take me very long to read because I couldn’t put it down.
Possibly the best written fantasy book in the last two decades.
My only complaint is that the story isn’t finished and may never be at the rate the author is writing it. I really want to know how the story ends0
Great story with a bonus of being easier to read than GOT.
Just read this novel a second time and was just as blown away as on my first read. It’s the sort of fantasy novel that leaves me immediately ordering the next 2 and horribly impatient that the author hasn’t finished the series.
Nothing is the same as it was before in 2020. With the world because the pandemic happened. With me because The Name Of The Wind happened. And I was wondering why it happened to me so late? Then I checked its reviews, and I realized oh yes, it had a slow start, which I completely forgot about, because to me, the next 500 pages or so happened like an explosion.
You see, most books I’m reading these days have this weird structure: A fantastic beginning, a terrible middle, and a satisfactory end that makes me forget about the terrible middle. So, I end up giving a good review to it, and later I feel like a foolish consumer who got manipulated by the last 100pgs. (Remember what happened in the last 3 minutes of Tokyo Ghoul? Yeah, you know the feeling.) So, what I’m trying to say is, this book, this great masterpiece, has totally the opposite thing. It has a slow first-50-page, a super-fantastic middle, and an Ok end.
And that fantastic 500-page middle stole me. Kvothe stole me. His lute stole me. And this active, engaging middle is something I’m not finding in books these days.
When I say, a slow start, I mean only ‘slow’, not ‘bad’. Bad is when you don’t care about the protagonist yet even when you are at page 50, when there’s not enough tension, when you don’t know what’s really happening, or when the writing is jerky, murky, not-flowing-sh*t etc.
So, it has a slow start yes. But no way it’s bad. It had great writing and witty dialogues even in the start too. I rooted for the character straight from the early pages. I wanted to know just what this old amazing Kvothe did, and there was even tension with those monsters which kept me hooked.
While reading a book, my first parameter to judge it is if it’s keeping me on the page, if the author did enough work that the readers understand it, and if it’s making me curious enough to turn to the next page. This book passed all the parameters. It’s a book that I ‘finished’, a book that I read under one week, and a book that made me search #thenameofthewindfanarts on Twitter. If I were not too busy now, if I read it 10 years ago, I’d be drawing a fanart too.
It worked for me for those writing, that art in bringing the tension on the page, and the details of the moments and reasonings that made the world and the characters real. A book can tell a lot about the author. Reading this book, I got a peek into the author’s mind. That this is someone’s heart’s work, and it touched my heart too, so I didn’t mind the things like the female characters aren’t much active here. I put blind eyes to its tinny tiny issues. And I realized the symptom; you do that when you become a fan.
Ok, I’m a fan of this book. It was relatable, and it was relatable for those crafty prose and Kvothe’s constant desires and worries on every page. I’ll soon be reading The Wise Man’s Fear
This is, by far, my favorite book!!! I’ve read it several times and it never gets old. It also never disappoints. Pat has such a beautifullt poetic way of writing, it’s hard not to get sucked in. If you like fantasy epics, then you’ll adore this book!
I love this book. He doesn’t get 5 stars because I have been waiting for book 3 for 10 years.
One of the best well written books I’ve read in a long time.
The world, the characters, the magic, the music it’s all so amazing! I’ve read the King Killer Chronicles multiple times and each time fall in love all over again! Can’t wait for book 3!
This was one of the best things I’ve read in a while.
Absolutely brilliant read. This book grabs your attention from the first page and doesn’t let go until you’ve reached the final page and then it leaves you craving for more. Brilliantly written with colourful characters that you can identify with and come to know really well but the main character is the one that you root for. I highly recommend this book, you will not be disappointed.
Please read my review for The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss at https://bodaciouscopy.com/2021/01/19/the-name-of-the-wind-by-patrick-rothfuss/