Also, while the first book is more or less perfect, gigantic chunks of Book 2 are actually horrible, and Rothfuss is a bit of a cock. I mean, a charity-supporting cock who wrote one of my favorite books ever, but as-is, I just try to avoid anything he vomits onto the net while waiting to see if Book 3 can make up for 2 and also successfully wrap one of the most potential-filled series I’ve ever encountered.
I’m with you. I thought the first book was great, and then the second book kind of stripped that good will away from me. I had read previously that he wrote the general story while in college, and something about that book screamed immaturity to me, so I assume he made the mistake of not actually rethinking large portions of the narrative.
The best case scenario is that Kvothe is a massively unreliable narrator, telling the story of how “I was always the best forever and banged all the chicks and also fought all the dudes and did you know my dick is MASSIVE???” to Chronicler while, in reality, he did virtually none of it as described.
And even then, it’s still annoying to read. When I eventually force myself back through A Wise Man’s Fear to prep for Book 3’s release (sometime in mid-2024, I think), there’s no way I’m not skipping the entire interminable Fae section.
I enjoyed both novels when I first read them, but the second one less so. Once someone told me what a Mary Sue character was, it’s hard to unsee that. I bet if I’d known that going in, I wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much. Think of Harry Potter, you had Hermoine who had the book smarts, Ron who was good at something I’m sure that I’m forgetting now, and Harry who was good at some stuff, like flying on the broom. But the character in these Kingkiller novels was good at everything. And that’s a great point.
But it was still an enjoyable read when I didn’t notice any of that. The writing style was very enjoyable, and I love stories like Ender’s Game which take place in an academic environment where students are learning together. I’m a sucker for that sub-genre. I wish I knew about more books in that sub-genre besides Harry Potter and Ender’s Game and Kingkiller Chronicles and the Soldier Son Trilogy by Robin Hobb.
I don’t know who this is, entirely as a product of how pop culture comes across each individual’s doorstep in different ways. I mean I’ve heard of Hamilton, which is the musical. . . thing that was getting talked about a lot (I don’t really know much about Hamilton, ok). Also, I’ve had my head down of late. But I have an email in my inbox raving about the choice of Miranda from someone who would have an idea so my interest is piqued.
I think a movie would be weird, and would much prefer to see it all as a TV show. I think the effects would lend well to it, as a significant portion of magic is just applied physics. Also, I think various things would cook better in TV format (8-10 ep seasons, of course). Kvothe is an interesting case. And the world lore is so juicy. It’s a slow cook, and better for TV IMO. Two movies won’t do The Name of the Wind justice.
I expect this thread is largely going to be for people who liked the books and want to watch the TV show. I think rehashing who does or doesn’t like the book/which book/etc is going to be boring. Another discussion mis-labeling Kvothe as a Mary Sue doubly so. YMMV.
I loved the first book, but didn’t like the second book. I also think this “trilogy” will never be finished in three books as the third book would either have to skip 3/4 of the main characters life or be 5,000 pages long.