The Wise Man's Fear

Kingkiller Chronicle, Book 2

By: Patrick Rothfuss

Narrated by: Nick Podehl

Length: 42 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's Summary

Discover #1 New York Times-bestselling Patrick Rothfuss’ epic fantasy series, The Kingkiller Chronicle.

“I just love the world of Patrick Rothfuss.” -Lin-Manuel Miranda

“He’s bloody good, this Rothfuss guy.” -George R. R. Martin

“Rothfuss has real talent.” -Terry Brooks

Day two: the wise man’s fear

“There are three things all wise men fear: the sea in storm, a night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.”

My name is Kvothe. You may have heard of me.

So begins a tale told from his own point of view - a story unequaled in fantasy literature. Now in The Wise Man’s Fear, Day Two of The Kingkiller Chronicle, Kvothe takes his first steps on the path of the hero and learns how difficult life can be when a man becomes a legend in his own time.

Not just another day: listen to more in the Kingkiller Chronicles.

©2011 by Patrick Rothfuss. (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic Reviews

"Narrator Nick Podehl arrives at the end of this long audiobook, the second in the Kingkiller series, as engaged and fresh as he was at the start.... Podehl adeptly presents the broad cast of characters - from moneylenders and courtesans to kings. One of the most fascinating portrayals by Podehl begins with a young mercenary from the Adem who says little. And when he does speak, he has a flat voice, mostly devoid of expression. Podehl builds on this when Kvothe returns with him to study among the Adem, where the mercenary develops a recognizable pattern of speech reflecting many of the culture's characteristics." ( AudioFile)

“The best epic fantasy I read last year.... He’s bloody good, this Rothfuss guy.”
(George R. R. Martin, New York Times-bestselling author of A Song of Ice and Fire)

“Rothfuss has real talent, and his tale of Kvothe is deep and intricate and wondrous.” (Terry Brooks, New York Times-bestselling author of Shannara)

"It is a rare and great pleasure to find a fantasist writing...with true music in the words." (Ursula K. Le Guin, award-winning author of Earthsea)

Avoid This Until the Author Finishes Trilogy

Unless you enjoy frustrating yourself, don't bother with this. There's no question about the quality and depth of this story, but what you don't want to do is get trapped in purgatory with the rest of the fans. The author has spent his fame and talent playing games for over a decade now with no Ending in sight. He treats his adoring fans like they are his slave/minions that he can make wait, or donate to his charity, or watch him play games, or watch him play more games. And this exactly what's happening. It's a sad truth, but the author just doesn't want to do the work and gets visibly upset when questioned on it. BE GOOD TO YOURSELF and don't read this book until the author finishes the trilogy.

YEARS for the next book?

The book was great. I found it better than the first. I don't care for the way the book ended. It just "stopped".abrubtly. It needed a better transition spot but it is still really good. I can't believe they are talking about 4 yrs for the next book!! If I realized that, I wouldn't have started it.

Parts were great, parts were long and annoying

I enjoyed the first book quite a lot and had high hopes for this one, but the story really bogged down a couple of times. Felurian, the sexy fairy section, went on forever. I felt like I was reading someone's fantasy. I don't like romance novels and the endless descriptions of their encounters really slopped over into that genre.

The Adem mercenaries chapters were also long and tedious by the end of them. And their world just seemed contrived. I'm no prude, but again I found the "you can have sex with anyone and there is no emotional consequences or pregnancy" aspect of their culture a little too much like every man's fantasy. I don't like to be taken out of a story by the voice of the author and I felt like that was what was happening.

All that said, I will probably listen to the last one when it comes out. There's enough interesting going on that I want to know what happens, but I was a bit disappointed and felt the book could have been better with a judicious edit.

Book 3?

Will we wait forever like with Game of Thrones or sometime in this decade Patrick will send us Book 3.

45 hours of nothing

Rothfuss 1st book had sparks of brilliance, with this long waste of nothing he digressed. It felt like patrick was reliving his college days #semi autobiographical. In the prologue he stated that he was happy to write a book that he was proud of, and I absolutely believed that he did! Every single character was stagnant, none grew. P.S after publishing this why would anyone buy a third book. P.s.s Jack of many stories except this one, I really wanted to like this series now I feel cheated, disappointed, angry, hurt and pissed.

Went right off the rails

the first book was good, but the author lost sight of the story and got lost

Good, but not as good as the first

Kvothe's adventures seemed somewhat contrived. Parts like the ship wreck and trial were rushed, but his time in the forest seemed to draw on way too long. Hopefully, in the third book we get a little resolution. This book left me wanting more answers and not in a good, satisfying way. Too many major conflicts seem to be gaining no progress.

Well worth your time

This review covers the first books of the series Kingkiller Chronicles. Some fantasy can be exhausting: Dan Simmons, Brandon Sanderson, George R. R. Martin, Robert Jordan, even sometimes Neil Gaiman. Their stories can take your breath away but sometimes, also, knock the wind out of you with a force. Patrick Rothfuss is not about that. He is more about an easy-going kind of entertainment. These books do not knock you over with amazement, epic wars or adventure. They are more subtle and a great richness comes through in that subtlety. While usually light, do not be fooled; they contain a depth and richness that is just easy to read and easier to appreciate. This is nothing short of outstanding fantasy prose and character development. These stories are long but not too long. Rothfuss does not ramble. The continuity of the protagonist Kvothe’s stories is there but not so complex or convoluted that one can get lost over the span. While there are many characters there is a core of them that are easy to know and become invested in. The stories are more about people and their relationships than about what the wizard-in-training is actually learning and practicing. At least the first two books do not contain that much magic but they do not leave you wanting either. They only leave you in great anticipation of the next book to come in the series. Nick Podehl’s reading is impeccable. I am loathe to say this is a great book for YA’s for fear it might deter older readers from venturing here. That would be a mistake. These are great books for readers of all age or gender.

engrossing tale, good reader, loss of moral compas

Very well read. Some parts of this tale were extremely good on character development, suspense, sense of journey, etc. I would have liked to actually sense the wind and the sea on his ocean voyage, but this was skipped over. On the downside: SEX. "The Name of the Wind" was a book that I could recommend for my older children and I appreciated the main character in his relationship with the opposite sex-- kind, considerate and becomes a good friend! But, suddenly at the end of this book, the issue is that Kvothe seems to be a total chameleon in this area of his life. He just goes ahead and does it with one goddess and then several females--no holds barred. While at the same time, he has certain strong values from his mother and father (who seemed to be faithfully married) and the honorableness of being Idema-Rue. If he is willing to stand up and defend girls were being used and exploited in this way, what gives? Somehow you have this unexplained phenomenon in Imre where nobody has any emotional problems resulting from this lifestyle. Way too much of a stretch in my estimation.

Now this series is going to only mature audiences, that is unless you assume that "mature" means teenagers. Sorry for the bias, but I could have skipped those parts and had an otherwise great read which I could have enjoyed with older children.

Excellent, Imaginative, Beautiful, Page Turning!!!

Those in fear of a "sophomore slump" should look elsewhere. This is the stunningly excellent follow-up and second part of a proposed trilogy to "The Name of the Wind". I devoured this book. I am going to listen to it again with my wife, and that is a rare thing. After finishing this wonderful tale of old evil, love, loss, mischief, grief, song, cleverness, jocularity, beauty, and fantasy. I turned to my wife and said "you have to read these, they are wonderful". Our literary tastes never cross paths, but this is a tale I don't think anyone should miss. To not pass these along to others is neglect.

There are passages in this book that are achingly beautiful and so well written that I dispare for all others who attempt to write epic fantasy. There is a good deal of action too and it's never far from the main narrative of this installment. It's just that Rotfuss crossed the line with this book. There is passable fantasy, good, and even excellent fantasy. This, this is pantheon fantasy, this is why I read the genre, dare I say "tolkienesque". It really is that good. What a great time to be a fantasy fan.

The narration continues flawlessly from the first book and Mr. Podehl gives an outstanding performance. I am rapidly becoming a fan of his work, I certainly will look for him in future listens.