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Sharon's Reviews > The Wise Man's Fear
The Wise Man's Fear (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #2)
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I’m 1600+ pages invested in The Kingkiller Chronicle, yet no kings have been killed in this series. There’s good stuff, though. And terribly random stuff.
And a great quote about traveling:
“No man is brave that has never walked a hundred miles. If you want to know the truth of who you are, walk until not a person knows your name. Travel is the greatest leveler, the great teacher, bitter as medicine, crueler than mirror-glass. A long stretch of road will teach you more about yourself than a hundred years of quiet introspection.�
The quote immediately reminded me of Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting, when he lays the smackdown on Matt Damon’s character Will, reminding him he’s just a snot-nosed little kid who’s never been on a plane, or seen the Sistene Chapel, or really been in love.
Similarly, Kvothe follows his professor’s advice early on in The Wise Man’s Fear to go out and experience the world (and avoid getting punched in the face by his classmates for all of his smug “How do you like them apples?� antics in the process). The intent is to become Kvothe/Kanye 2.0: stronger, better, faster, smarter - not just book smart, but street smart. A “Go see about a girl� Kvothe, if you will. Oh, and to maybe secure a patron. Cause university ain’t cheap.
What follows are over 1000+ pages of his adventures. There is a Thor: Ragnarok feel to it, lighthearted mini-stories and subplots in different locales: with some locales registering way more successful than others. (There’s a good 200 pages of Kvothe with the Fae where I put the book down for a solid month, not really caring what happened to him anymore).
In between adventures, we continue to return to present-day innkeeper Kvothe, who is narrating his story to the Chronicler.
This took me a WHILE to finish. I found myself tearing through hundreds of pages, then putting the book down for weeks and weeks. Way more uneven than The Name of the Wind, yet never a bad yarn. Just a little over-indulgent for my liking. I’m finding the whole, “Kvothe is good at anything,� kind of annoying, but I do appreciate it up against present-day Kvothe, who is a shadow of his former self.
So much is still unresolved at Book 2’s end, I fear the page count of the final yet-to-be published Book 3. (Maybe that’s the real Wise Man’s fear.)
3.5 stars when compared to Book 1. A book that takes me months to finish is never a great sign, but there is still some epic storytelling in places.
And a great quote about traveling:
“No man is brave that has never walked a hundred miles. If you want to know the truth of who you are, walk until not a person knows your name. Travel is the greatest leveler, the great teacher, bitter as medicine, crueler than mirror-glass. A long stretch of road will teach you more about yourself than a hundred years of quiet introspection.�
The quote immediately reminded me of Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting, when he lays the smackdown on Matt Damon’s character Will, reminding him he’s just a snot-nosed little kid who’s never been on a plane, or seen the Sistene Chapel, or really been in love.
Similarly, Kvothe follows his professor’s advice early on in The Wise Man’s Fear to go out and experience the world (and avoid getting punched in the face by his classmates for all of his smug “How do you like them apples?� antics in the process). The intent is to become Kvothe/Kanye 2.0: stronger, better, faster, smarter - not just book smart, but street smart. A “Go see about a girl� Kvothe, if you will. Oh, and to maybe secure a patron. Cause university ain’t cheap.
What follows are over 1000+ pages of his adventures. There is a Thor: Ragnarok feel to it, lighthearted mini-stories and subplots in different locales: with some locales registering way more successful than others. (There’s a good 200 pages of Kvothe with the Fae where I put the book down for a solid month, not really caring what happened to him anymore).
In between adventures, we continue to return to present-day innkeeper Kvothe, who is narrating his story to the Chronicler.
This took me a WHILE to finish. I found myself tearing through hundreds of pages, then putting the book down for weeks and weeks. Way more uneven than The Name of the Wind, yet never a bad yarn. Just a little over-indulgent for my liking. I’m finding the whole, “Kvothe is good at anything,� kind of annoying, but I do appreciate it up against present-day Kvothe, who is a shadow of his former self.
So much is still unresolved at Book 2’s end, I fear the page count of the final yet-to-be published Book 3. (Maybe that’s the real Wise Man’s fear.)
3.5 stars when compared to Book 1. A book that takes me months to finish is never a great sign, but there is still some epic storytelling in places.
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carol.
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rated it 2 stars
Jun 15, 2019 10:27PM
I was wondering where you would come out on this one. Nice review :)
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Remember how gung ho I was about fantasy in February, Carol? Lol. Now I feel drained. That was a longggggg read.
Yes, I'm sure it was. I didn't want to rain on your parade! I'm glad you found some fun spots. I remember facing the review and not even wanting to think about it one. second. longer.
