oxytocin reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Nice
5 stars
Pretty similar to the first book (but in a good way)
Hardcover, 994 pages
English language
Published March 10, 2011 by Daw Books.
The Wise Man’s Fear
The Kingkiller Chronicle: Day Two The Kingkiller Chronicle #2
4 stars
(165 reviews)
“There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.”
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 the tale of a hero told from his own point of view — a story unequaled in fantasy literature. Now in The Wise Man's Fear, an escalating rivalry with a powerful member of the nobility forces Kvothe to …
“There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.”
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 the tale of a hero told from his own point of view — a story unequaled in fantasy literature. Now in The Wise Man's Fear, an escalating rivalry with a powerful member of the nobility forces Kvothe to leave the University and seek his fortune abroad. Adrift, penniless, and alone, he travels to Vintas, where he quickly becomes entangled in the politics of courtly society. While attempting to curry favor with a powerful noble, Kvothe uncovers an assassination attempt, comes into conflict with a rival arcanist, and leads a group of mercenaries into the wild, in an attempt to solve the mystery of who (or what) is waylaying travelers on the King's Road.
All the while, Kvothe searches for answers, attempting to uncover the truth about the mysterious Amyr, the Chandrian, and the death of his parents. Along the way, Kvothe is put on trial by the legendary Adem mercenaries, is forced to reclaim the honor of the Edema Ruh, and travels into the Fae realm. There he meets Felurian, the faerie woman no man can resist, and who no man has ever survived ... until Kvothe.
In The Wise Man's Fear, Kvothe takes his first steps on the path of the hero and learns how difficult life can be when a man becomes a legend in his own time. --front flap
FishermansEnemy reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
The Wise Man's Fear - Review
4 stars
Content warning Very mild general description of the overall tone of the book
So this is the type of book I swore I would never read again - book two of ? in a series of ? and it's been a decade since this book was released, with no word on when book three will be out, and if that will actually finish the story. I can't fault the interesting way this story is told, and do want to see exactly where this story is going though, but I can't in good concience recommend this knowing you'll be left in the lurch. It also very suddenly got very horny at about the 50% mark, and pretty much stayed there for the next 500 pages.
Dustin reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Just like the first book, I loved this one a lot. The stories are not action-filled or otherwise immensely exciting but then also somehow are. It is so well written that I just could not put it down at times. Kvothe is brilliant and I’d love to meet him in real life. The whole universe is brilliant!
Now the hardest part: wait for the release of book 3.
exterm reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Captivating story, fantastic exercise in world building.
Great sequel. If you liked The Name of the Wind, you will like this one.
On the negative side,
- things that were announced in the first book still haven't happened, and it can feel a little drawn out
- the last part in the series has been in the works for almost ten years, and nobody knows when, or if, it will be finished.
anaulin reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I do wish these had been published all together. As it is, I'll have to wait un indeterminate number of years until the 3rd volume and end of the story comes out.
Thomas Gaffney reviewed The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of "The Wise Man's Fear" on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Amazing follow up to The Name of the Wind. Lovely world, intriguing characters, and a fantastic take on heroes, legends, and folklore. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
laura palmer. reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
A huge “meh”, specially the Felurian bit. And in this one Kvothe is depicted as kind of invincible, so... Not realistic and I'd even say it becomes annoying.
ScottSchlueter reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Damn
mjmenger reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
i'll write a review after the third book has been published...well after I've read it.
MaddestMax reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
4 1/4* I read some of the negative reviews, just to see. Jeez people, STFU! Sometimes a story is a story. Reading too much into something takes away from it. Unfortunately, we're living in a world where most people are trying to leech all the joy out of everything with ridiculousness.
This book is fun. I understand why some people call it a tad juvenile. It does away that way. It's not particularly "hard" fantasy. And that's okay. It's a great story that can keep the reader engaged and away from the real world for quite awhile. I'm not going to probe the details or nitpick it. I loved it. I look forward to the next. For the life of me though, I don't see why he would have pigeon-holed himself into a trilogy. I could see his going at least four or five books before it gets old. Maybe …
4 1/4* I read some of the negative reviews, just to see. Jeez people, STFU! Sometimes a story is a story. Reading too much into something takes away from it. Unfortunately, we're living in a world where most people are trying to leech all the joy out of everything with ridiculousness.
This book is fun. I understand why some people call it a tad juvenile. It does away that way. It's not particularly "hard" fantasy. And that's okay. It's a great story that can keep the reader engaged and away from the real world for quite awhile. I'm not going to probe the details or nitpick it. I loved it. I look forward to the next. For the life of me though, I don't see why he would have pigeon-holed himself into a trilogy. I could see his going at least four or five books before it gets old. Maybe more. Time will tell.
tgt reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Storygraph'
4 stars
Scattered thoughts:
- The Vintas section (around 600 pages) dragged on horribly. Kvothe became even more insufferable after his encounter with Felurian. Few characters were particularly interesting and the work with the Maer did little to solve any mysteries. Some progress would be nice... Training with the Adem was similarly stretched out. Every character I've grown attached to is at the university, which made things even worse. Realising how long this part was makes me feel my rating may be overly generous.
- I'm sick of Denna. The mystery surrounding her is interesting, but her encounters with Kvothe and his subsequent thoughts are not.
- I'm pretty bored with the Ambrose rivalry.
- Whilst I don't want every mystery wrapped up quickly I'd like some progress. Rather than solving some mysteries and uncovering others, it feels like mysteries are just being piled up. Perhaps I've just forgotten the more minor …
Scattered thoughts:
- The Vintas section (around 600 pages) dragged on horribly. Kvothe became even more insufferable after his encounter with Felurian. Few characters were particularly interesting and the work with the Maer did little to solve any mysteries. Some progress would be nice... Training with the Adem was similarly stretched out. Every character I've grown attached to is at the university, which made things even worse. Realising how long this part was makes me feel my rating may be overly generous.
- I'm sick of Denna. The mystery surrounding her is interesting, but her encounters with Kvothe and his subsequent thoughts are not.
- I'm pretty bored with the Ambrose rivalry.
- Whilst I don't want every mystery wrapped up quickly I'd like some progress. Rather than solving some mysteries and uncovering others, it feels like mysteries are just being piled up. Perhaps I've just forgotten the more minor revelations. There's so much left to reveal that either many mysteries will be left unsolved in the next book or they'll be dumped on us. I suppose books after the three days would solve this problem. Alternativey, I suppose the mysteries might all link up so neatly that they can't really be revealed too far apart... (Loeclos box, four-plate door, Denna's patron, Chandrian, Denna, the moon, Bredon, Amyr, and on and on)
- I find every scene with Auri, Elodin, Devi or Sim/Wil enjoyable. There're probably other characters I enjoy, but they spring to mind.
- The Vintas section (around 600 pages) dragged on horribly. Kvothe became even more insufferable after his encounter with Felurian. Few characters were particularly interesting and the work with the Maer did little to solve any mysteries. Some progress would be nice... Training with the Adem was similarly stretched out. Every character I've grown attached to is at the university, which made things even worse. Realising how long this part was makes me feel my rating may be overly generous.
- I'm sick of Denna. The mystery surrounding her is interesting, but her encounters with Kvothe and his subsequent thoughts are not.
- I'm pretty bored with the Ambrose rivalry.
- Whilst I don't want every mystery wrapped up quickly I'd like some progress. Rather than solving some mysteries and uncovering others, it feels like mysteries are just being piled up. Perhaps I've just forgotten the more minor revelations. There's so much left to reveal that either many mysteries will be left unsolved in the next book or they'll be dumped on us. I suppose books after the three days would solve this problem. Alternativey, I suppose the mysteries might all link up so neatly that they can't really be revealed too far apart... (Loeclos box, four-plate door, Denna's patron, Chandrian, Denna, the moon, Bredon, Amyr, and on and on)
- I find every scene with Auri, Elodin, Devi or Sim/Wil enjoyable. There're probably other characters I enjoy, but they spring to mind.
Victor Hugo Kebbe reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Good, good story. But it's too long. To long.
Blair reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I feel that this book is slower than The Name of the Wind, perhaps due in part to Kvothe's adventures, perhaps in part due to a number of stories-within-stories, and perhaps in part due to the fact that this is a middle book.
The plot doesn't advance much from The Name of the Wind. Kvothe leaves the University to reduce the University's liability, and essentially traverses one quest after another. Kvothe experiences some growth, and I expect that growth to drive the third book's plot development. But don't read this expecting to receive any answers to questions raised in the first book, and expect frustration at more questions when you finish.
Overall, this wasn't as enjoyable for me as The Name of the Wind. I kept reading, hoping the book's pace would pick up, even as I was looking forward to finishing the book so I could …
I feel that this book is slower than The Name of the Wind, perhaps due in part to Kvothe's adventures, perhaps in part due to a number of stories-within-stories, and perhaps in part due to the fact that this is a middle book.
The plot doesn't advance much from The Name of the Wind. Kvothe leaves the University to reduce the University's liability, and essentially traverses one quest after another. Kvothe experiences some growth, and I expect that growth to drive the third book's plot development. But don't read this expecting to receive any answers to questions raised in the first book, and expect frustration at more questions when you finish.
Overall, this wasn't as enjoyable for me as The Name of the Wind. I kept reading, hoping the book's pace would pick up, even as I was looking forward to finishing the book so I could move onto something else.
Curtis reviewed The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of "The Wise Man's Fear" on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I doubt I'm the first one to say this, but The Kingkiller Chronicles is this century's [b:The Lord of the Rings|33|The Lord of the Rings (The Lord of the Rings, #1-3)|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411114164s/33.jpg|3462456].
brucy reviewed The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Review of 'The Wise Man’s Fear' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I have finished the second of three parts, third to be published. This book was nowhere near as good as the first, which is a shame. There were long stretches of sheer nothing, to the point where the book was probably about 20% too long. What's worse is, and I'm going to try to give nothing away, a potential exciting portion was glossed over in favor of parts that sucked the life out of the narrative. I'm giving 3 out of 5 only because the good parts are really good. Hoping the final installment has an editor with a bit more sway and a story with a bit more drive.
Subjects
- Fantasy - General
- Fiction / Fantasy / General
- Fiction
- Fiction - Fantasy
- Fantasy