The Name of the Wind

I knew from early on in my read that I would not enjoy this book but I don't DNF on principal because I'm a completionist and don't think that I have a right to comment on a book that I did not finish. So here I am and we are all worse off because of it.

The pervasive feeling I got as I was reading this book was akin to experiencing one long drawn out microaggression. Nothing was egregiously offensive or even outright bad but you still knew that it wasn't good.

I honestly believe that I would've liked this book more if Kvothe's story wasn't narrated by Kvothe himself. It had all the good bits you'd want from a fun fantasy zero-to-hero story except a likable protagonist. He and his voice were my main issues with this book, a huge problem for a reader who's reading experience hinges upon my love and sympathy for the main character.

Kvothe is unsympathetic. Kvothe buys into his own myth. Kvothe is smarter, more clever, more daring, more talented, more interesting than everyone else in the world. Which would've been fine... had HE not been the one to claim this.

The whole book feels braggadocios. Here's a compilation of Kvothe's greatest hits with zero self awareness! Flaws? What flaws? He's smug, he's arrogant, and he has this slimy false humility that I find off-putting. And we're supposed to believe that he has lost sight of who he was with that clunky ending? I don't believe it for one bit.

What else? The writing was fine, the world-building was subpar when compared to other fantasy novels I've read, the story was standard, the way the novel was structured felt clumsy and clunky, the female characters aren't seen as real people. Actually, none of the characters are real people except the great Kvothe, stealer of princesses, killer of kings, boy genius, wunderkind.

“You may have heard of me.”