Maybe it's just me...
Ever read a book that all your friends were raving about, only to wonder what on earth they were thinking? I'm having a similar experience with The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.
Apparently it was very popular when it first came out, and I've read about a zillion glowing reviews of the book, many of them from people whose opinions I respect. However, upon idly picking it up in a bookstore and reading the back cover, I saw this:
"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.
Is it just me, or does that blurb sound...bad? So far, it has completely deterred me from reading the book, despite the aforementioned glowing reviews. If anyone has read this book and wants to convince me otherwise, I'm willing to be persuaded...but it is not looking good.
As I mentioned, though, other people seem to love The Name of the Wind, so maybe it's just me. Have you ever assumed you would like a book because everyone else did, only to be unpleasantly surprised?
Apparently it was very popular when it first came out, and I've read about a zillion glowing reviews of the book, many of them from people whose opinions I respect. However, upon idly picking it up in a bookstore and reading the back cover, I saw this:
"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.
Is it just me, or does that blurb sound...bad? So far, it has completely deterred me from reading the book, despite the aforementioned glowing reviews. If anyone has read this book and wants to convince me otherwise, I'm willing to be persuaded...but it is not looking good.
As I mentioned, though, other people seem to love The Name of the Wind, so maybe it's just me. Have you ever assumed you would like a book because everyone else did, only to be unpleasantly surprised?