Review: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

This year at Gencon, the Author Guest of Honor is Patrick Rothfuss, who wrote The Name of the Wind. I finished reading it last week, and it is one of the best books I’ve read in a very long time.

Basic Info – No Spoilers!

The first book in the Kingkiller Chronicle series, The Name of the Wind begins the story of Kvothe, a man of mystery who is credited for performing many legendary acts.  Since every good story should begin at the beginning, this story takes us through the early years of Kvothe’s life.

But the book doesn’t actually begin with Kvothe’s childhood story; it begins at an inn in a small town.  The story is told by the innkeeper, with occassional interruptions from his audience.  The book ends with all the open-ended story elements neatly concluded and story elements from the next book foreshadowed, preparing you to move on to the next part of the story.

My Impressions

When I first picked up this book, I was intrigued.  The intro chapter, the back cover description… it all sounded so interesting.  But when I first started to read it, I found myself easily distracted and quickly set it aside for a couple of months.  But like most good books, it sat there on the bookshelf,  patiently waiting for me to come back and try it again.

Second time was the charm for me; once I got through the first couple of short chapters, I found myself drawn into the story very quickly.  I took that book with me everywhere, reading every few minutes I had to spare.  I was well and thoroughly hooked, and I couldn’t wait to read what happened next.  Then, as I got closer and closer to the end of the book, I found myself slowing down, not because I wasn’t interested but because I didn’t want it to end!

The storytelling, for me, was perfect.  There were triumphant moments shared with the hero and tense moments as I waited to see how things would resolve.  Not every dramatic moment ended happily for the hero; sometimes, bad things happened, but there was character growth from those setbacks.

Overall

I truly enjoyed this story, and I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a well-written, immersive story.