So Many Books, So Little Time! Here’s the next installment in my, “Books Off the Shelf” series—a grouping of some short book reviews on books quite literally off my bookshelves—books I’ve read or listened to. I will attempt to give you an idea on some books you might enjoy or not enjoy quite as much without ruining it with too many spoilers.
The Name of the Wind (Kingkiller Chronicles, Day 1) by Patrick Rothfuss Rating 9.5 out of 10 My name is Kvothe, pronounced nearly the same as "quothe." Names are important as they tell you a great deal about a person. I've had more names than anyone has a right to. The Adem call me Maedre. Which, depending on how it's spoken, can mean The Flame, The Thunder, or The Broken Tree. "The Flame" is obvious if you've ever seen me. I have red hair, bright. If I had been born a couple of hundred years ago I would probably have been burned as a demon. I keep it short but it's unruly. When left to its own devices, it sticks up and makes me look as if I have been set afire. "The Thunder" I attribute to a strong baritone and a great deal of stage training at an early age. I've never thought of "The Broken Tree" as very significant. Although in retrospect, I suppose it could be considered at least partially prophetic. My first mentor called me E'lir because I was clever and I knew it. My first real lover called me Dulator because she liked the sound of it. I have been called Shadicar, Lightfinger, and Six-String. I have been called Kvothe the Bloodless, Kvothe the Arcane, and Kvothe Kingkiller. I have earned those names. Bought and paid for them. But I was brought up as Kvothe. My father once told me it meant "to know." I have, of course, been called many other things. Most of them uncouth, although very few were unearned. 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 Kvothe—from his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, to years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-riddled city, to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a difficult and dangerous school of magic. In these pages you will come to know Kvothe as a notorious magician, an accomplished thief, a masterful musician, and an infamous assassin. But The Name of the Wind is so much more—for the story it tells reveals the truth behind Kvothe's legend. This book is AWESOME! If you haven’t read it, you need to get it now. Go order it and then come back. Done? OK. Like I said, this book is awesome. Rothfuss’s ability to create believable, endearing characters that demand their presence be both seen and heard is breath taking. We first meet Kvothe as a man, younger than he seems, and living a mostly-unremarkable life in a third person telling. As the story unfolds, though, Kvothe offers us a striking tale of his life through a first person retelling. As you can guess from Rothfuss’s own description above, Kvothe has lived an incredible life, doing more than most would consider possible in a lifetime, and all of this while still being a young man. We get to tag along through joy, discovery, heartbreak, near-starvation, and a detection of deep power. One of the things that is so great about Rothfuss’s writing is that there is always more hinted at—more world, more secrets, more everything. It grants his writing an incredible depth. One can immerse here, live here. It is simply wonderful. All that being said, I only gave THE NAME OF THE WIND a rating of 9.5 out of 10. The reasoning is probably a little unfair. Rothfuss has bitten off a massive story which he has promised to finish in three books. (Granted each book is a tome worthy of propping open doors, but still…) I am nervous that I won’t be satisfied with the story ending. I don’t want to be a naysayer. I have every confidence in Rothfuss’s ability; I am just nervous. As a small spoiler there is a part in the second book, A WISE MAN’S FEAR, that the narration skips to a broad, sweeping struck, and the reader is told that there is not time to tell of…(then he lists several story worthy parts of the adventure.) We are just dropped off months later with the barest of nods toward what happened in the between. I know this seems nitpicky, and really it is my only complaint. But if the third book fails to give closure, THE NAME OF THE WIND won’t be as good. All this to say, this is a fantastic book. Go get a copy. You need to read this. And on a side note, I am just finishing reading Rothfuss’s The Slow Regard of Silent Things. It is a short break from the main story line allowing us to explore the life of a side character. I’ll do a Books Off the Shelf entry on it soon. For now, go read THE NAME OF THE WIND. And, as always, if you have suggestions of books to review, please let me know. If it is Science Fiction or especially Fantasy, there is a good chance it is on my shelf or should be. If you would like to be the first to hear about other great books and updates on my own writing, along with free giveaways, I would love for you to sign up on the right. |
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Exciting news from the home front: I have successfully (or at least I hope so) combined the nine manuscripts of my upcoming novel, MIST FALCON: BOOK ONE OF THE WARRIOR POET ARCHIVES into one manuscript. After burning through three pens and dozens of cups of coffee, all of the rewrites, edits, and scribbles are united onto one manuscript in preparation for the final draft. If you look at the picture on the right, you will find my incredibly fancy folding table/editing lab where all the excitement happens. Oh, and if you look close, you may catch a glimpse of my oft mentioned “So Many Books So Little Time” coffee mug. And in case you missed it from several posts ago, here is a short glimpse into the world of MIST FALCON: “I write this now, chiseled in stone and wrapped in wind with the hope that you may yet be saved from my folly. Avoid my errors and do not follow in my footsteps, save in greater preparation and wisdom than I have shown. Do not be fooled by the appearance of things. They are so rarely as they seem in this.” In a kingdom shattered by war and never properly healed, Aiden is whirled out of his ordinary life scraping-by, scavenging the outskirts of Oustenbasch, one of the Nine Cities. Through total loss and driven by revenge, Aiden finds himself fretfully navigating a world of political mayhem while floundering through power in a magic he never dreamed to control. Willem is a traveling musical prodigy, his voice and talent drawing crowds and filling taverns along with his troupe’s coffers. All the golden eagles in the realm can’t protect him, though, when the Swaar raiders attack the town of Bellcross, sending him scurrying into a life he would never have chosen, questioning the meaning of his existence while wrestling with a music that may be more powerful than he had ever imagined. Known amongst all the Swaar as “Wolf Rider”, Ren Tako lives and dies by his axe and the strength of his arm. Tako finds himself blown into a situation where he must choose between loyalty to his Dal, the famed Rock Giant, and following a new destiny that could cost him everything he has ever believed or gain him everything he has ever dreamed. Welcome to the Nine Cities and the Waste beyond to the East. Come ride with me. Soar above a broken land in search of a glimmer of hope, an uncut gem hidden to all but the most perceiving eyes. Come fly with me to the towers of Holmsguard and beyond, and see what it is to be MIST FALCON. There you have it. MIST FALCON, BOOK ONE OF THE WARRIOR POET ARCHIVES in snap shot teaser. Stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to publication, and I’d love for you to be the first to hear about writing updates and receive giveaways for the book. Sign up over on the right and I’ll stay in touch.
I said in my last post that I get asked often how my writing is going. And I said that I’m nearly done with edits for the third (possibly final) draft of MIST FALCON, BOOK ONE OF THE WARRIOR POET ARCHIVES.
The question that nearly always follows (and the one that several of you have asked me) is “what is your book about?” Well, here you have it—an amazingly short glimpse into the world of MIST FALCON. “I write this now, chiseled in stone and wrapped in wind with the hope that you may yet be saved from my folly. Avoid my errors and do not follow in my footsteps, save in greater preparation and wisdom than I have shown. Do not be fooled by the appearance of things. They are so rarely as they seem in this.” In a kingdom shattered by war and never properly healed, Aiden is whirled out of his ordinary life scraping-by, scavenging the outskirts of Oustenbasch, one of the Nine Cities. Through total loss and driven by revenge, Aiden finds himself fretfully navigating a world of political mayhem while floundering through power in a magic he never dreamed to control. Willem is a traveling musical prodigy, his voice and talent drawing crowds and filling taverns along with his troupe’s coffers. All the golden eagles in the realm can’t protect him, though, when the Swaar raiders attack the town of Bellcross, sending him scurrying into a life he would never have chosen, questioning the meaning of his existence while wrestling with a music that may be more powerful than he had ever imagined. Known amongst all the Swaar as “Wolf Rider”, Ren Tako lives and dies by his axe and the strength of his arm. Tako finds himself blown into a situation where he must choose between loyalty to his Dal, the famed Rock Giant, and following a new destiny that could cost him everything he has ever believed or gain him everything he has ever dreamed. Welcome to the Nine Cities and the Waste beyond to the East. Come ride with me. Soar above a broken land in search of a glimmer of hope, an uncut gem hidden to all but the most perceiving eyes. Come fly with me to the towers of Holmsguard and beyond, and see what it is to be MIST FALCON. There you have it. MIST FALCON, BOOK ONE OF THE WARRIOR POET ARCHIVES in snap shot teaser. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it. Also, stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to publication, and if you want to be the first to hear writing updates and receive giveaways for the book, sign up over on the right and I’ll stay in touch. I have helped start and run a handful of businesses over the last decade, and I spend the majority of my working time running a lot of day to day activity for one of these businesses now. Business ownership / self-employment is not the ideal setting for providing an immense amount of free time for writing. Owning a business means wearing lots of hats, multitasking lots of projects, and spending lots of hours. The buck stops with you, which is great, but frankly, the buck stops with you. There’s no one left to pass it on to.
When you pare the multiple business hats with the husband, daddy, son, brother, and friend hats, the author hat sometimes gets a bit pinched…okay, sat on, creased, and thrown into the corner where the moths devour all but the lining. Scheduling helps—forcing a block of time when writing will happen frees that feeling of “never getting to it.” Sometimes it is just a matter of choosing writing over relaxation even when tired. Writing takes more energy, but offers oh-so-much-more fulfilment. This post isn’t really meant to be a how-to guide for time management. Rather, I’ve had several people ask how my book is coming along, and I wanted to give you all a quick update. I’m nearly done with edits for the third (possibly final) draft of MIST FALCON, BOOK ONE OF THE WARRIOR POET ARCHIVES. The author hat finally got enough time—picked up, dusted off, and patched before perched on my head. Stay tuned for more upcoming news on MIST FALCON, and if you want to be the first to hear writing updates and receive giveaways, sign up over on the right and I’ll stay in touch.
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