Fantasy Book Club – February 2011: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

After the success of the first month’s Fantasy Book Club, our members are uniting once again to take on another title. This time we are tackling The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.

This is a book that was pretty much voted unanimously within the forum; a book that is known globally as one of the very best fantasy novels written in the last decade. Because its sequel is due soon, some members were also eager to re-read it just to ensure they are refreshed and ready for the new book. It’s sequel in fact, is so anticipated, it came higher on our list than the likes of George R. R. Martin’s A Dance with Dragons, Scott Lynch’s Republic of Thieves, and Brandon Sanderson’s A Memory of Light. Can you get a bigger list of names to trump? I think not! So, what is this book?

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

So begins the tale of Kvothe – currently known as Kote, the unassuming innkeepter – from his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, through his 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 the notorious magician, the accomplished thief, the masterful musician, the dragon-slayer, the legend-hunter, the lover, the thief and the infamous assassin. The Name of the Wind is fantasy at its very best, and an astounding must-read title.

Reading will commence on February 1, 2011

Book Club Rules

Rule 1: We don’t talk about Fantasy Book Club. Oh, sorry that’s a different club. You are actually welcome to invite friends and tweet this link about everywhere. We want as many readers as possible!

So…How does it really work?

Choosing a Book

What we do is take suggestions from our forum members throughout the month and then open a poll about 2 weeks before the month’s end. Then our members vote on which book they would like to read. A week before the end of the month we close the poll and users have a week to obtain the book – either borrow it, buy it, find it and pull it out from your collection, etc.

Spoiler Free Discussion

Next, we want discuss our books in a way that will not spoil the story, so we limit how much you can discuss and when.

Week 1 – You may only discuss the first 1/4 of the book
Week 2 – You may only discuss the first 1/2 of the book
Week 3 – You may only discuss the first 3/4 of the book
Week 4 – Anything goes

We are going to go based on page count. So for example, if a book has 500 pages then week one you can discuss up to page 125 and then week two 250 and so on. Each week will have a seperate thread, so as not to spoil the story for people who fall behind or come in late.

What if you want to read faster than that?

Not a problem at all. You are more than welcome to read ahead, but when discussing things just remember to post in the appropriate thread. And if you’re not sure when something happened, you can always use the spoiler tag to hide your post.

Should you not want any spoilers or discussion during the reading process, then just come after the end of week three and start discussing the book once you have finished. (This is how most book clubs operate anyway.)

If you would like to join in this month you can visit our forums and add your name to the list.

Print Friendly