Fantasy Book Club discussion

Hello, let us know how you're doing with this exciting book. There are as many theories as mysteries. Enjoy.

Thanks Helen <3

:)

As of last night, I'm on page 260 / Chapter 34 / 40% complete.

General comments/impressions so far (spoiler-free):

I very much like the way that the story is fed to a scribe from the main character. This enables hopping around in time and an ease of transition, while still getting involved emotionally in various parts of Kvothe's life.

The setting in general is well-described. I always love it when fantasy is able to drop you in the middle of an unfamiliar world without a deep, confusing prologue (ERIKSON), and yet ease you into an understanding of how things work. the storytelling here just feels so confident and natural.

Spoilers follow:

(view spoiler)[One of my pet peeves in fiction in general is the inconsistency of characters. I grew very frustrated on this point with Kvothe. At age 12 he's an absolute prodigy: multi-talented, extremely intelligent, incredibly gifted. He keeps himself alive in the wilderness for several months, is a near-savant with the lute, and can perform magic at a level appropriate for him to enroll at the arcane University...and then spends three years being miserable, using no higher thought, and making terrible choices as a street child. I realize he was struck a dreadful emotional blow and all, but I had a hard time suspending my disbelief through the 60-100 pages of his life on the streets. This seems to me to be a fairly clumsy excuse to further Kvothe's worldliness and diverse pool of talent, and I found myself frustrated with a fair amount of this portion of the book. (hide spoiler)]

More thoughts to come as I make more progress. Looking forward to hearing what anyone else has to say!

Daniel wrote: "As of last night, I'm on page 260 / Chapter 34 / 40% complete."

Comments on the same part of the book of the spoiler above:
(view spoiler)[ Yes, the portion of the book when he is living on the streets is probably the least enjoyable part of the novel. For me, although I was frustrated, I took my frustration as a sign that I was already connected to the character, even though we had only seen a small portion of Kvothe's childhood and the "real" story - the main plot - hadn't started yet.
In a real world situation, this is what living as a homeless street kid would be like - he has no opportunities. He does not have access to his intellect due to a variety of reasons (lack of other resources, lack of human support, malnutrition, etc.) and although this is what homelessness looks like in real life, it is frustrating because this is a fantasy novel.
Kvothe was a prodigy who could do anything he set his mind to - and now his only concern appears to be how much money he has so he can survive. Later, you can see this concern for money carry on as he is always reminding the reader how much money he has.
It is extremely frustrating to watch him, but what to take out of this is Kvothe is smart. He is also lucky. But he does have his moments where he does fail. You just have to suffer with him through about 100 pages before he gets back on track. :) (hide spoiler)]

I feel in some ways like Kvothe is sort of a Gary Stu type character, yet he's still an enjoyable one for all that.

Though perhaps the most interesting thing about this story, and Kvothe's character as a whole is the 2 layers of untrustworthy narrators, first off we don't know how much Kvothe exaggerates, invents and omits, then the same is also true for Chronicler. So what we get to see most of the time is a reflection of a reflection, not the true image. Is Kvothe the all-knowing and powerful hero, are his trials and tribulations as difficult as they seem? Who knows?

Jenna wrote:
Comments on the same part of the book of the spoiler above:

You bring up a good point, Rothfuss has done a good job getting me to care about the character of Kvothe. However...

(view spoiler)[Kvothe still obviously had command of his wits at certain points throughout, so why he didn't take one of many other options (leaving the city sooner, venturing back to the country, etc.) rather than subsist in misery and dull intellect is not explained to my satisfaction. In short, Rothfuss takes pains to convince me that Kvothe is exceptionally capable (even while completely distraught), and then drags his character through the mud in a manner almost completely at odds with his behavior both before and after this episode. It's too dramatic a change for me to be able to ignore. I've heard this complaint against the book before, and I perceive it as a strike against the otherwise immersive/plausible nature of the novel. (hide spoiler)]

I'm quite the critic though, so don't think this doesn't mean I'm not enjoying the read!

I think the writing is beautiful, he captures human emotions and grief so well. The descriptions of music (particularly when Kvothe plays the lute for the first time in 3 years) are possibly the best I've read.

In my opinion, Kvothe is the most arrogant character I have ever read. I hate him as much as everyone hate Goodkind and Donaldson.

Kevin wrote: "In my opinion, Kvothe is the most arrogant character I have ever read. I hate him as much as everyone hate Goodkind and Donaldson."

I actually kind of agree with the first part of this. More than just Kvothe, Rothfuss' writing seems implicitly arrogant and superior about a number of subjects - perhaps even unconsciously. I definitely am enjoying this better than Goodkind though.

Daniel wrote: "Kevin wrote: "In my opinion, Kvothe is the most arrogant character I have ever read. I hate him as much as everyone hate Goodkind and Donaldson."

I actually kind of agree with the first part of th..."

Also I dislike Rothfuss because of his personal point of view along with Scalzi.

What I loved about this book is the world build is so very subtle. A picture starts to form from page one, and before you know it you are imagining this world.
The characters all have something to them. All of them!! And there are not just a couple characters, there are a bunch. Some of them steal the spotlight whenever they are on the pages. Some of them just seem to play the parts they are suppose to, but they all have a distinct personality to them.

Kevin wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Kevin wrote: "In my opinion, Kvothe is the most arrogant character I have ever read. I hate him as much as everyone hate Goodkind and Donaldson."

I actually kind of agree with the f..."

What is it about them that you disagree with? Though I've yet to read anything by Scalzi other than a couple articles and essays, both seem like intelligent and generous people.

Dan wrote: "Kevin wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Kevin wrote: "In my opinion, Kvothe is the most arrogant character I have ever read. I hate him as much as everyone hate Goodkind and Donaldson."

I actually kind of ag..."

I don't agree with their political view points.

For Scalzi I hate most of his books how he's just recreating something well known his own way, and everybody is fine with that.

Finished this late last night. I sensed myself wearing out on the story somewhat, so I forced myself to plow through the rest. I quite liked the ending, and I liked enough that I'll be looking for the sequel at some point, despite my occasional frustrations.

What is keeping me going:

(view spoiler)[Bast, seeing what events have led up to the modern events of the story, and the Chandrian. The whole atmosphere of mystery and terror around the Chandrian is something I find fascinating. Completely unlike Kvothe's relationship with Denna, which I find tawdry. (hide spoiler)]

Just read this book last january. Finished, tried to read other books before "The Wise's Fear" and just couldnt. Finoshed it also a couple days ago. Fantaaaastic reading, and bugs me a lot having to wait the third book. =\

I'm just stalking since I've read the book a few months back.

Margret wrote: "I think the writing is beautiful, he captures human emotions and grief so well. The descriptions of music (particularly when Kvothe plays the lute for the first time in 3 years) are possibly the be..."

I personally found the writing amazing, too, and the music descriptions were incomparable. I felt like I was literally reading music for the first time ever!

I read that people had theories about Rothfuss in reality being a rogue author because the writing in his first book turned out like this :D

Daniel wrote: "Finished this late last night. I sensed myself wearing out on the story somewhat, so I forced myself to plow through the rest. I quite liked the ending, and I liked enough that I'll be looking for ..."

(view spoiler)[I can see why the Chandrian fascinate you, and why you didn't like Kvothe's relationship with Denna.
I HATED Denna, going around with a different guy every once in a few days and poor Kvothe running after her like a little dog, it's just plain frustrating (hide spoiler)]

Can't wait for book 3 to come out and to finally get the solutions to all those little riddles :)
For those of you who have already read both books now and are thinking about all the little riddles in them,
(view spoiler)[I found
WARNING. DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK IF YOU HAVEN'T READ BOTH BOOKS YET OR WANT TO AVOID EVEN POTENTIAL SPOILERS FOR THE THIRD
Campbell's review pretty awesome (hide spoiler)]

I started the audiobook which I got from Audible, with a credit. Then I noticed there is an audiobook posted on YouTube, for free, with a different narrator, whose voice is more suited to this type of fantasy, I think. Probably not legal.

Anyway...I am really enjoying the book, but I'm stopping for now. I will forget the plot by the time book 3 is published. When the trilogy is finished, I will read the whole set at once, so my memory will be fresh. I dislike spending so much time in a complex series that is not yet complete.

By the way, it's been a while — several years have passed since book 2.

So... I'm massively biased. I've read this book a lot. And I love it to bits. In fact, I credit it for getting me out of my fantasy book rut and exploring again a few years back. Because for awhile, Tolkien and Jordan ruled my life.

I think what gets me is just how many layers there are to the story that is being told. At its surface it's a life story of a supposedly famous person. But it's also story being told from the perspective of said famous guy. Which makes you wonder if we have an entirely reliable narrator.

Not to mention all those interesting little secrets that has yet to be uncovered or figured out. There's plenty of whys to this book that makes the whole construct fascinating. But also... odd at times.

It's a fun read all the same though. Well paced, smoothly written and organized pretty smartly.

Now, if only the man would take after Sanderson more than GRRM when it comes to time between novels here...

Thinking back a couple years to when I read this...

I found his writing to be inconsistent, in that (for me) it went from "can't put it down" passages to stretches of "lulled into near boredom". That was the main reason why I did not continue on with the second book. However, I am still intrigued with the character Bast, and would love to read more of his story. So, perhaps I will pick up the second at some point.

I'd say the second book is more inconsistent as far as pace goes, but I enjoyed both books quite a bit, and found them to be rather engrossing overall.

Dan wrote: "I'd say the second book is more inconsistent as far as pace goes, but I enjoyed both books quite a bit, and found them to be rather engrossing overall."

Good to know. Thanks, Dan. I'm wondering if my expectations were too high because of all the hype when the book first came out. I kept hearing it referred to as a "must read". Definitely worthwhile, though.

Expectations can dictate one's enjoyment of a book (or movie, or anything really) that's for sure.

I read this a few months back. I really wanted to love it but it just fell flat for me. I abandoned the series which I don't often do. It wasn't that the book was bad it's that it was only OK and I have so many other things I want to read.

Monica wrote: " I am still intrigued with the character Bast, and would love to read more of his story. So, perhaps I will pick up the second at some point."

Or just see if there's a wikipedia entry about Bast and save yourself the trouble of reading a not-so-great book.

Marc wrote: "Or just see if there's a wikipedia entry about Bast and save yourself the trouble of reading a not-so-great book..."

I've read a very good short story about Bast, titled "The Lightning Tree", in Rogues.

Dan wrote: "I'd say the second book is more inconsistent as far as pace goes, but I enjoyed both books quite a bit, and found them to be rather engrossing overall."

Yeah, I'd definitely agree with that.

I've loved both books. Read them both before I knew anything about them or Rothfuss; kinda glad I didn't have any preconceived notions about the work going in.

I remember finding even the slow moving, sometimes boring parts to be very fast moving. Or maybe I was just blowing through to get to the more interesting parts. I do love his use of language, though. Paints a wonderful mental image without an overwhelming amount of detail.

I am very concflicted on this book.
There are many things that I like in this book: the lore, the magic system, the music, the chandrian and the Dragon/Drakkus....I found them engaging, funny and sometimes poetic.
What I struggled to read was the teenage Kvothe part, starting with the "street urchin" part, ending with the "super student" part, especially the "Kvothe in love". I feel them forced, not flowing with the same "grace/strength" of other chapters.
In the end I think Mr. Rothfuss is a great writer because he forced me to keep reading despite my falling out with the hero.

I've been following along, though not commenting, because it's been a while since I've read this (and I can't find my copy :( !)


I think I agree Lioth.
Bast kept me interested...I want more on him.
And the hope that Kvothe will not let me down in the end.
He is only human..... errr....I guess

Lioth wrote: "I am very concflicted on this book.
There are many things that I like in this book: the lore, the magic system, the music, the chandrian and the Dragon/Drakkus....I found them engaging, funny and s..."

I largely agree with both your likes and dislikes here, though I did like many things about life at The University. Call me a sucker for Hogwarts magic schools.