Top 10 Reasons To Read The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss

Top 10 Reasons To Read The Kingkiller Chronicles

The King Killer Chrnicles by Patrick Rothfuss
Published by: DAW

Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss

10) Quality That Equals The Quantity
From the start it will grab you and never let go. The Kingkiller Chronicles have been planted in rich loam that has been tended by a master weaver of words. Epic fantasy with a mystery about it. A feeling like something vital is just out of reach. Much is revealed but there is something missing, something just around the corner. This feeling that there was a glimpse that we should have caught at outside edge of our vision. J.R.R. Tolkien is not alive, but Patrick Rothfuss is still with us. That means even if it takes many years we are likely to see many, many more tales of Kvothe and the crew from the Arcanum.

9) Kvothe
Kvothe a fiery red haired arcanist is the protagonist, he doesn’t hold back or idealize either himself or those he loves. His tale is told with warts and all. The series begins with his life as a child among a troop of traveling players, where it ends, only Patrick Rothfuss really knows.

8) The Edema Ruh
It is hard not to like the Edema Ruh. When I was a child I dreamed about running away with the Gypsies. The Edema Ruh are like the Gypsies of my dreams. They are similar to traditional Romani in that they live life on the road, perform many and varied tasks, tell tales, sing and dance and are associated with delving into the supernatural. Of course they also differ. They are literate yet entertain the illiterate masses. Many of their troops have patrons to pave the way for them to perform across the countryside. While their reputations have been tarnished, central to the Edema Ruh is their code of honor. Violate that code and you are forever banished from the Ruh.

7) The University and The Arcanum
The University and all its quirky masters and students are a world unto themselves. If you want to be an Arcanist (and who wouldn’t), the University is the place to go. There are regular students and faculty but there are many who seem to flirt with madness and others who have passed over to full blown psychosis.

The University is the home of the Archives, the greatest repository of knowledge in their world. Sympathy,sygaldry,alchemy,history,algebra and geometry, medicine,languages are just some of the subjects of the tomes and scrolls that are housed there and there are other, more esoteric paths of study that lay within it’s walls.

6) The Chandrian
The Chandrian are much the way Churchill described Russia, a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Except if you make the slightest headway into enquiring or even speaking of them, they will hunt you down and exterminate you and everyone you may have spoken or written to. They make a really intriguing “big bad” and while not encountered frequently, we know that their invisible tentacles are everywhere.


5) Bast
Handsome, talented and mysterious, Bast is reason enough to stick around. Is he friend or foe? Who is Bast exactly? He is sort of a student and apprentice to Kvothe, or is he? He is smart, strong and proud of being fae but he has also tied himself to Kvothe and we don’t know why. One moment you can believe he is the best friend and guardian of his teacher. The next he is deceitful and treacherous. Will he turn out to be on the side of light or darkness? Are there such sides or are there just shades of grey. Stay tuned.

4) Denna
The puzzle that is Denna is another reason to follow the Kingkiller Chronicles. She is strong, smart, independent and beautiful. To Kvothe she is the essence of everything he dreams of in a woman. She is also seriously damaged. She has been abused and abandoned many times. For all her strength she is oh so vulnerable.

3) Auri
Auri is a former student and one who danced too close to the flames. She is shy and fearful of the brash humanity that fills the school and the city. As a result Auri has taken to living below The University in an underground maze of tunnels and caverns that few are even aware exist. Approaching her is like trying to reach a wounded baby bird.

2) The Eolian
The Eolian is a bar/pub located in Imre, the largest city near the University. No other establishment comes close to its popularity and with good reason. It is a gathering place for the finest musicians and those that aspire to be included in that circle. An entertainer might find a patron to sponsor and protect them in the Eolian if they are gifted and their personality is found to be charming. It was in the Eolian that Kvothe won his silver Pipes. Those pipes mark him as a worthy player.

1) The Music
Music is what has sustained Kvothe from his earliest memories. He learned so much of history through song and many customs. When he lost everything it was music that kept him from going mad. When I think of Kvothe, I think of music first, then magic. That is why I find it tragic that when he took on the role of Kote the Innkeeper of the Wayside Inn, he seems to have lost his music. Will he ever get it back?     I need to know so I must keep reading.

For those who love epic fantasy novels and have not read the Kingkiller Chronicles, You really want to read these books!

For those who know the series what would you add to our above list?
Let Us Know In The Comment Section Below!

by June K. Williams

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