Review - The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

WOW! Where have I been all these years? That's right, I'm actually really glad to have waited this long. I can't stand the couple month-long wait I have for a book that's already finished let alone a couple years.

Reading other books right now, I honestly feel like I need to get back to The Name of the Wind [US] [UK] ... because it's not finished yet. Everything is stale in comparison because I'm still right in the middle. What's Ambrose going to do next and how's Kvothe going to get back at him, what about Denna or Kvothe's poor money-managing skills? I'm dying to know and I only have to wait a little longer (fingers crossed that Amazon sends my copy of Wise Man's Fear [US] [UK] out early like it's seems to be doing a lot lately).

Now, The Name of the Wind isn't something you just plow through. It's not just some McDonald's you picked up to satiate the appetite.


You have to saver it, like a fine wine or my favorite, a delectable piece of Lindt chocolate. It won't blow you away right away, it takes it's time and builds your relationship with the characters until pretty soon, you're best friends.


Rothfuss follows an interesting construction with his debut novel. He tells a story within a story, which of course I have to compare to Inception - as I do with everything since I saw that movie (most recently it's been Hearsay in my Evidence class).

You will let me know when I go overboard on the pictures, will you? :)

Kvothe is a legend in the making. His life's been a constant rollercoaster and now he's finally going to sit down and tell it. The entire thing. And this is day one. In The Name of the Wind, we go from tragedy, to life on the streets, to life at the University, slowly introducing the great characters that have surrounded Kvothe throughout his life, including his love interest.

Why Should You Read The Name of the Wind?

As you can tell from this glowing review, I would whole-heartedly recommend The Name of the Wind. It's not fast paced, but it is well-paced and I was blown away by the end. I can tell why people have been so mad at Rothfuss the past couple years and I'm excited to jump into Day Two...and then wait a couple years for book three. Doh!

5 out of 5 Stars

Review - Corvus by Paul Kearney

I finally reviewed Corvus by Paul Kearney and I can't wait for the last of the trilogy coming this June.

Review - Betrayer of Worlds by Larry Niven and Edward Lerner

The review is up and Known Space is a pretty cool place to be.

Book Haul

The World House [US] [UK] by Guy Adams (Angry Robot)
(4 - Something different)

There is a box. Inside that box is a door. Beyond that door is a house. In some rooms forests grow. In some, prisoners wait.

At the top of the house, a prisoner sits behind a locked door waiting for a key to turn. The day that happens, the world will end...

I tried to show a picture of the back of the book, but, as you can tell, it didn't quite turn out. It's supposed to show how Angry Robot not only advertises their own books, but gives you recommendations for other books as well. It says:

IF YOU LIKE THIS [The World House] TRY Daniel F Galouye / Simulacron-3 - Tad Williams / Otherland - Clive Barker / Weaveworld

That definitely makes Angry Robot a class act in my book.


The Unremembered [US - April 12] [UK - April 12] by Peter Orullian (Tor)
Book 1 of the Vault of Heaven
(5 - Lots of hype behind this)

I read the blurb on the back of the book and the problem I'm having is that it's already sounding a lot like The Wheel of Time. It also doesn't help that I'm currently listening to The Eye of the World. Maybe I'll wait a little on this one.

The gods, makers of worlds, seek to create balance—between matter and energy; and between mortals who strive toward the transcendent, and the natural perils they must tame or overcome. But one of the gods fashions a world filled with hellish creatures far too powerful to allow balance; he is condemned to live for eternity with his most hateful creations in that world’s distant Bourne, restrained by a magical veil kept vital by the power of song.

Millennia pass, awareness of the hidden danger fades to legend, and both song and veil weaken. And the most remote cities are laid waste by fell, nightmarish troops escaped from the Bourne. Some people dismiss the attacks as mere rumor. Instead of standing against the real threat, they persecute those with the knowledge, magic and power to fight these abominations, denying the inevitability of war and annihilation. And the evil from the Bourne swells….

The troubles of the world seem far from the Hollows where Tahn Junell struggles to remember his lost childhood and to understand words he feels compelled to utter each time he draws his bow. Trouble arrives when two strangers—an enigmatic man wearing the sigil of the feared Order of Sheason and a beautiful woman of the legendary Far—come, to take Tahn, his sister and his two best friends on a dangerous, secret journey.

Tahn knows neither why nor where they will go. He knows only that terrible forces have been unleashed upon mankind and he has been called to stand up and face that which most daunts him—his own forgotten secrets and the darkness that would destroy him and his world.

Review - How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu

My review for How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe is up. Very stylized and very good.

Alec's Review - The Heros by Joe Abercrombie and Indie Lit Awards Winners

Alec's review of The Heroes is up at Only the Best, a book I'm really looking forward to. Although, I guess I should probably read Best Served Cold first.

Also, the winners have been picked for the Independent Literary Awards and there's more here.

Review - Toll the Hounds by Steven Erikson

Got a shortish review of Toll the Hounds up. It's really long (Not the review). Really. Long. Good, just long.