The Name of the Wind

Quick Review

Writing Style – 5/5

Patrick Rothfuss’s writing is really what makes this book shine.  In many ways, he harkensback to the great authors of the past.  I found myself having to slow down to truly appreciate the depth and richness of his word smithing.

The Characters – 3.5/5

I found myself having a hard time warming up to main characters of this book.  Though I do not find the protagonist to be shallow, he is sometimes a difficult character for me to identify with.  The antagonists are a bit one-dimensional for my liking.

The Plot – 4.5/5

The slow pace of the plot’s beginning took a while to draw me in.  This is the only reason it did not receive a 5/5.  Once I was drawn in I was completely hooked.  The reader is left wondering where the storyline will go over the rest of the series.  Containing numerous threads and stories within the story, The Name of the Wind is a very entertaining read.

Overall – 4.3/5

I came into the reading of this book with high expectations due to the enthusiastic recommendations from my friends.  It did not disappoint me.  The Name of the Wind is incredibly well-written.  Though the character development in the first book leaves a little to be desired, I was more than hooked by the plot and eager for the rest of the Kingkiller Chronicle.

Before I dive into this review I feel that it is worth mentioning that I am not a hardcore reader of fantasy.  It’s not that I do not enjoy fantasy, it has just never been my primary “go to” genre.  Because of this, I do not have the breadth of other reading experiences in this genre that other reviewers might.  I have, of course, read the Lord of the Rings trilogy as well as the Chronicles of Narnia.  Add to that some Stephen Lawhead, the Harry Potter books, and the Inheritance Cycle and that about summed up my fantasy reading until I read   I see that as a good thing.  Because there are many elements of fantasy that seem to find their way into most books in the genre, I feel that many reviewers who are well-read in fantasy tend to approach new books a little bit tired and perhaps even jaded.  As the newbie that I am, I benefit from “fresh eyes.”  These will inevitably effect my review.

Overview

When I write a novel, I like to spend time reading other books in the genre that I am writing in.  As I began work in late 2014 on my second novel in The Keeper Chronicles, I asked my friends and fans to suggest their favorite fantasy novels.  By far, the most consistent response I got was that I absolutely had to read The Name of the Wind.  It was talked about almost reverently by its readers.  Many couldn’t believe I hadn’t read it yet.  The sad truth is that I hadn’t even heard of it (which further illustrates the fact that fantasy isn’t my go-to reading genre).  When I finally bought a copy for my Kindle, I began reading and quickly lost myself in the story. 

The Name of the Wind was written by Patrick Rothfuss.  Released in 2008, the sequel and a novella have been released in the Kingkiller Chronicle.  It is the tale of Kvothe, a man of many names and a history that is the stuff of legends.  Amazon.com was quite right to file this book under Epic Fantasy.  There is nothing small about it.  Weighing in at a stunning 722 pages, the reader is not cheated when it comes to value for the price.  For this alone, I applaud Rothfuss and his publisher.  As a fellow author, I find it rather tiresome to hear the industry drone on about word count limits.  Great books tell great stories.  Sometimes they need 60,000 words.  Sometimes they need 400,000.  The number of words should be the last thing an author is worried about when crafting a story, especially in this booming age of the ebook.  But, enough of that soapbox.  What follows is my personal review of this novel.

Writing Style – 5/5

As you may have gathered from above, I am hardly daunted as a reader by a large word count.  In fact, I tend to seek out longer books when I am looking for something new to read.  Since I pretty much only read ebooks, the length doesn’t effect portability, and in my experience, longer books tend to allow the plot and character development to marinate more.  This is certainly the case with The Name of the Wind.  Rothfuss created a complicated and in-depth world populated by a mixture of realism and magic that kept me intrigued from digital cover-to-cover. 

Without a doubt, Rothfuss is a word smith in the truest sense.  Compared to other authors that I have read, even in this genre that has a tendency for more intricate writing styles, he stands out as an author from a different age.  The first book that I reviewed for this site was written in the nineteenth century.  Needless to say, it didn’t read like any of the books currently on the best seller’s list.  Even going back just a handful of decades to J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis will reveal a more refined, richer style of writing.  I don’t mean to make it sound like authors today are simpler or capable of less quality, it is just a fact that the English language has changed as has the consumption habits of those looking for entertainment.  Most of my favorite novels have been written in the last decade so I am very much still a fan of the developments literature has taken, but at times I do miss reading books that force me to slow down and even re-read pages to catch what I missed by going too fast.  The Name of the Wind is one of those books.  Rothfuss writes in a style that is eloquent without falling prey to sounding as if he is trying to show the world how smart he is by how he turns a phrase.  (In case you’ve never read a book like that, let me tell you that reading an author that is rather fond of hearing himself speak is not the most pleasant read.  Rothfuss is most certainly not that kind of author).  In short, his intricate writing style comes off as effortless and adds a great deal of depth to his writing.

As I will talk a bit more about in the “Plot” section, Rothfuss really sells this story by the depth of its plot.  In truth, it is a story within a story.  The reader is following multiple storylines at the same despite the fact that the “cast” is somewhat small compared to other fantasy novels that I have read.  I thoroughly enjoyed his writing style and have no qualms giving it a perfect rating.

One Critique

If I were to force myself to find one critique in his writing style, it would have to be in his usage of certain words when having a character curse.  I do not have a problem with an author using moderately “foul” language (i.e. using “swear” words in moderation).  In some genres it adds a high degree of believability.  That said, fantasy set in a time period of swords and magic has always seemed to me as a time before the usage of the common “four letter words.”  I admit that this is entirely a personal preference thing.  The book was in no way “foul” to me, but whenever a character would swear I would find myself taken a little out of the setting.  This is probably due to my relative lack of experience reading this genre.  Not every author should be bound by a Tolkien set of rules.  Obviously, this small critique was not enough of an issue for me to warrant a lower rating, but I thought it worth mentioning.

Writing Style Conclusion

Rothfuss, in many ways, hearkens back to authors of decades past.  He writes with a certain richness that is often lacking in best sellers.  In this reviewer’s opinion, it is in his writing style that this book most shines.

Characters – 3.5/5

One of my greatest challenges as a reviewer is when I am reviewing the first book of a series after already having read other books that follow.  In this case, I am trying to force myself to focus solely on my impressions of The Name of the Wind without taking into account of the sequels.  Because of this, I find it necessary to give his characters the lowest grade of the review.

Protaganists

Quite frankly, I had a very difficult time warming up to the main character (known throughout the book mostly as Kvothe or Kote).  After reading further into the series I get the sense that this was part of the author’s intent.  Kvothe defies many stereotypes.  He is arrogant to the point of being annoying at times.  He is brash to the point of making silly mistakes.  But he is brave and mostly good.  Because the story that resides “within the story” is somewhat of a coming of age tale, I felt that Rothfuss did a very good job of portraying this interesting and difficult age. 

I have read other reviews that have criticized Rothfuss for having shallow characters.  I couldn’t disagree with this more.  Each character stands apart and, in my opinion, has a solid amount of depth.  Though I don’t find myself particularly drawn to Kvothe, he is a fascinating character.

There are other protagonists introduced throughout the story.  Oddly enough, my two favorite characters receive a relatively small amount of attention.  Bast, a very interesting and mysterious character, is my personal favorite from the story.  Were Kvothe a bit more “likable” (in my opinion) I might not have latched on to him as much, but as it were, I found myself wishing for more time spent with him.  There is a lot that is left unknown, which isn’t a bad thing at all.  In fact, it was one of the primary hooks that kept me digging for more.  For fear of giving too much of the plot away, I will refrain from talking about my other favorite character.

Antagonists

Here is where I find myself giving The Characters the lowest grade.  The protagonists in this books were rather one-dimensional.  I found myself not liking them because they were obviously bad.  My favorite novels are ones that give me pause when considering the “villain.”  Perhaps it was Rothfuss’s decision to sort of “spread out” the antagonists to a number of characters, there just doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of depth to them.  The great antagonists of my favorite books all give me reason to like them as well.  In my opinion, a great villain is a real person.  Even the most evil person in human history had friends.  Why?  Because there was something about them that was likable.  Many will disagree with me on this, but I am always looking for at least one antagonist in a novel to have aspects of his/her character that draws me to him/her.  I couldn’t find that in this novel which is primarily why I gave it a 3.5/5.

The Characters Conclusion

I struggled at times to warm up to the protagonist.  While I don’t see the characters as “shallow” as some critics have said, I don’t find them as relateable or likable as some of my favorite novels.  The antagonists, in particular, feel a little one dimensional.  All that said, these personal preferences do not get in the way of my enjoyment this book.

Plot – 4/5

This one was the hardest for me to rate.  When I really dug into the meat of this book I found myself completely hooked in the plot.  The second book really reveals the depth of the overarching storylines.  The primary reason I couldn’t bring myself to give the plot a 5/5 is because it had a rather slow start.  It honestly took me a while to really get into the story.  Rothfuss’s writing style kept me interested, but Kvothe (Kote at the beginning) was somewhat stiff (intentionally).  None of the characters really grabbed me, nor did the pace of the plot early on.  Luckily, it is a 722 behemoth of a book.  Rothfuss had plenty of time to grab my attention.  When he did, he really did. 

Some reviewers that I have read have criticized the book for having a predictable plot.  Maybe I haven’t read enough fantasy, but I couldn’t disagree more with this thought.  Even after reading the subsequent books I am still very much lost in the mystery of where it is going. 

Another common critique is that the plot is not all that original.  In a sense this is true.   It is a coming of age story that deals with themes of unrequited love and revenge for the death of loved ones.  That said, I have absolutely no problems with that.  When you get right down to it, the human experience is rarely original.  We all deal with a variety of the same struggles.  That is what draws us all together, gives us commonality.  I think that Rothfuss does a great job of tackling these themes in a fresh and often energetic way. 

The Plot Conclusion

For me, the book was a bit of a slow start.  Once I was drawn into the plot, it grabbed me with its convoluted twists and turns.  I feel that Rothfuss did a great job of toeing the line between being mysterious and overly vague.  Even after reading the sequel I find myself itching to get the next book so I can know what is going on and where it is going.