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.