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[BeatResetsTheWorld]

Guess this is really only relevant to people who have read the 2 books in the trilogy that have been released (Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear), but anyway I'm midway through the second and Denna is just...a completely intolerable character. Kvothe is obsessed with her for no reason, and there have been little to no compelling reasons given to explain it.

Not to mention the dialogue exchanges between them are some of the most awkward things published I've ever read. It's like reading those Tips Fedora and Milady memes except done unironically. It's gotten to the point where I'll often skim those sections.

Basically anytime I see it's a Denna chapter

 

[ActuallyHulk]

Whoops I for some reason got this confused with Stormlight but managed to not read the spoilers. I've only finished the first Kingkiller book. It was awesome. Leaving now

 

[meijiko]

You pretty much hit on one of my biggest problems with the series lol.

Good thing I forgot most of it.

 

[Vanillalite]

It wasn't IMO near as bad in book 1. For some reason it took a major turn for the worse in book two. It's a shame too because I really like other aspects of the world and story.

 

[ZackieChan]

There's a popular theory that Kvothe is, in fact, an unreliable narrator and bullshitting the whole thing. That would fit so much and make his fedora-level antics kind of make sense.

What pisses me off about this whole thing is that Rothfuss said at one point that he basically has it all written, yet we wait for years for the next book. Guy needs some of Sanderson's blood plasma injected into him.

 

[MartyStu]

There's a popular theory that Kvothe is, in fact, an unreliable narrator and bullshitting the whole thing. That would fit so much and make his fedora-level antics kind of make sense.

What pisses me off about this whole thing is that Rothfuss said at one point that he basically has it all written, yet we wait for years for the next book. Guy needs some of Sanderson's blood plasma injected into him.

I am sure he is, but certainly not to the extent that would make any of it bearable.

 

[TheXbox]

Yup, Denna sucks. The only time they ever acknowledge she's completely selfish and cruel Kvothe says he just doesn't care. Not very compelling.

Still, I'd take Denna all day over

Spoiler

that weird fairy erotica shit

halfway through the second book. What in the fuck was that?

 

[War Eagle]

I don't mind Denna because she reminds me of a girl I had an infatuation with and our time together when I was younger.

 

[Husker86]

Yeah...not a fan of her.

 

[Elfforkusu]

The first book was good.

The second... uh, the first half was brutal. I gave up for about two months, gave it a second chance on a whim, back half was ok. Not sure if I'll keep reading, though.

I agree about Denna. Doesn't help that Kvothe turns into a generic doofus whenever she's involved, so we go from zero unlikeable characters onscreen to two. Maybe that's the point, but it's sufficiently unenjoyable that I want no further part of it...

 

[BeatResetsTheWorld]

I don't mind Denna because she reminds me of a girl I had an infatuation with and our time together when I was younger.

Were you also majorly friendzoned and subjected to watching her go through dozens of different men every time you saw her?

 

[ZackieChan]

Is it bad that I don't even remember who Denna is? Maybe I need to re-read these books. I have a habit of forgetting pretty much everything about a book once I move on to another one.

Must be getting old.

 

[meijiko]

Yup, Denna sucks. The only time they ever acknowledge she's completely selfish and cruel Kvothe says he just doesn't care. Not very compelling.

Still, I'd take Denna all day over that

Spoiler

weird fairy erotica shit halfway through the second book.

What in the fuck was that?

Shhhhh I don't think OP has gotten there yet. But yeah. That shit almost made me put the book down for good.

 

[Kieli]

I thought Kvothe was going to fight archangels and raid the tombs of Great Kings.

What I didn't expect was for him to scuffle with an overgrown, drunken Komodo lizard..........................................................................................................................................................................

 

[War Eagle]

Were you also majorly friendzoned and subjected to watching her go through dozens of different men every time you saw her?

Yup... she turned out to be a crazy sociopathic bitch and is miserable and alone now. She still tries to hit me up to hang out once in a while, but I don't give her the time of day. But Denna has always reminded me of her and that part of my life.

 

[TheXbox]

Shhhhh I don't think OP has gotten there yet. But yeah. That shit almost made me put the book down for good.

Tagged it but apparently he's halfway through? Unless I'm misremembering that's when it occurs, and god is it terrible.

 

[tokkun]

Like every character and event in that series, she is there to make Kvothe look good.

We are supposed to feel sympathetic toward him since he is so devoted to her despite her not appreciating what a Good Guy (tm) he is.

 

[Elfforkusu]

Like every character and event in that series, she is there to make Kvothe look good.

We are supposed to feel sympathetic toward him since he is so devoted to her despite her not appreciating what a Good Guy (tm) he is.

I... don't think so?

If anything she makes him look bad.

 

[Haly]

Real actual quote from real actual book:

Spoiler

Occasionally I would talk about Denna with Wilem and Simmon. Being true friends they gave me sensible advice and compassionate sympathy in roughly equal amounts.

The compassion I appreciated, but the advice was worse than useless. They urged me toward the truth, told me to open my heart to her. To pursue her. Write her poetry. Send her roses.

Roses. They didn’t know her. Despite the fact that I hated them, Denna’s men taught me a lesson that I might never have learned otherwise.

“What you don’t understand,” I explained to Simmon one afternoon as we sat under the pennant pole, “is that men fall for Denna all the time. Do you know what that’s like for her? How tiresome it is? I am one of her few friends. I won’t risk that. I won’t throw myself at her. She doesn’t want it. I will not be one of the hundred cow-eyed suitors who go mooning after her like love-struck sheep.”

“I just don’t understand what you see in her,” Sim said carefully. “I know she’s charming. Fascinating and all of that. But she seems rather,” he hesitated, “cruel.”

I nodded. “She is.”

Simmon watched me expectantly, finally said.

“What? No defense for her?” “No. Cruel is a good word for her. But I think you are saying cruel and thinking something else. Denna is not wicked, or mean, or spiteful. She is cruel.”

Could Kvothe "m'lady" harder than this? Potentially, but I don't recall any other instance that was gratuitous as this one.

 

[BeatResetsTheWorld]

I remember when I read this in the first book and just shook my head

 

[meijiko]

Tagged it but apparently he's halfway through? Unless I'm misremembering that's when it occurs, and god is it terrible.

Oh yeah I could have easily forgotten when it was. I thought it was a bit later in the book than half, but I could be way off.

 

[Elfforkusu]

I remember when I read this in the first book and just shook my head

Yeah, but at least that was transparent and self-aware (from Rothfuss's perspective, not from Kvothe's).

During #2 I'm pretty sure we went through the looking glass

 

[Haly]

Fedora intensifies.

During #2 I'm pretty sure we went through the looking glass

Would this be before or after he

Spoiler

had tons of sex with a lust fairy goddess, became an omega-level pick up artist, and then went off to learn karate?

 

[lightus]

I enjoyed the entire book. Sure some of it was hammy but that was the point. It's all told through Kvothe's perspectives and it's all written in his bias.

Spoiler

Also, I have no problem with crazy fairy sex creature.

I do see why others would though.

 

[Das Ace]

I'd read 1000 pages of Rothfuss talking about paint drying tbh. As long as he maintains his quality of prose I'll stick with whatever crap he puts into his books.

 

[ZackieChan]

Maybe it's because I listened to it on audiobook, but I don't remember the book being this ridiculous. Must be the good stuff outweighing the bad. But goddamn at those quotes above.

 

[Coriolanus]

Real talk: the only entertaining girl in those damn books is the moneylender.

And even then, half the time she's going "oh kvothe, take a hint and plow me already"

 

[Haly]

Real talk: the only entertaining girl in those damn books is the moneylender.

And even then, half the time she's going "oh kvothe, take a hint and plow me already"

She was a good character up until that last part.

 

[Dr_Boris_Goltz]

I love both books, and I believe Denna is a fucking Chandrian and that's why Kvothe is so blind to her.

It's also why she shows up in his life conveniently.

Edit: I mean every other character sees nothing in her. I think we're supposed to despise her and feel confused as to why Kvothe doesn't feel the same.

 

[Coriolanus]

Edit: I mean every other character sees nothing in her. I think we're supposed to despise her and feel confused as to why Kvothe doesn't feel the same.

One-itis.

 

[Kingbrave]

Spoiler

Should of stuck with fucking the faery chick...

 

[CorvoSol]

At least she isn't rushing to jump on Kvothe's dick, unlike basically every other woman in the series. She still sucks.

 

[Meia]

I love both books, and I believe Denna is a fucking Chandrian and that's why Kvothe is so blind to her.

It's also why she shows up in his life conveniently.

Edit: I mean every other character sees nothing in her. I think we're supposed to despise her and feel confused as to why Kvothe doesn't feel the same.

I'm kind of leaning this way with her as well, to be honest. The point I think of the story is he's going to have a moment where he falls(so spectacularly I might add) that he feels he has to become an innkeeper and throw away everything for whatever reason. My only real concern is how gigantic that third book has to be if this is a trilogy(it was said it was, wasn't it?).

 

[fredrancour]

Oh. I figured I was about to read a spoiler thread telling me something bad had happened to her in the sequel book, which I haven't read.

Somehow, the first book managed to be a really compelling read that dragged me through in a very short period of time but left me with no desire to keep going. I don't think I liked any of the characters enough to keep reading for their sake. I remember being intrigued by the Chandrian but not really caring about the plot besides that. I guess it wasn't enough to bring me back for more. Wonder if I'll ever be desperate enough for more fantasy to read the sequel.

The juxtaposition between "I'll give you the real story behind the legends of my life" as a setup and "Actually, everything worked out improbably well for me at every turn" certainly seems like an unreliable narrator setup, but if I was supposed to wait multiple books for a payoff, I guess they lost me.But Denna as a Chandrian who then horribly devastates a ton of people because of Kvothe would be cool in theory, I suppose. I guess a reading of the book dedicated to dissecting the possible lies from Kvothe on a moment by moment basis could be done, but I just don't sense enough potential for payoff to be into it.

Also, based on the snippets that were posted here, I'm kind of stunned that I finished this. I remembered Kvothe as "kind of full of himself" but those quotes about Denna are downright unbearable cringe material.

As far as tastes in writing go lately, I've also noticed that I get put off really easily by narrator-delivered metaphors now. When I read Name of the Wind, the "silence of three parts" bit in the third-person intro sounded really cool to me. Now, such things are somewhat off-putting in my eyes.


Actually, the more I think about this book and my perception of it versus the apparently-overwhelming market reception, the more I want to re-read it just to analyze. I enjoy writing, and it'd be cool to see if I can separate out any popular things about the work from the things I find unpleasant.

And from the thing I've heard about the second book, either Rothfuss won't successfully wrap this up in three books, or there will be a delicious subversive ending where shit abruptly hits the fan in ways that render some of the potentially-lengthy stuff irrelevant. I fear that would make some of his fans feel betrayed if done wrong, though.

 

[mugwhump]

Eh, I get the feeling there's a lot going on with Denna we don't know about.

But all will be revealed... soon... ish...

 

[nawwafh]

Love these books.. when is the 3rd 1 out?
its been a while..
read the 2nd one ages ago..

 

[Dr_Boris_Goltz]

At least she isn't rushing to jump on Kvothe's dick, unlike basically every other woman in the series. She still sucks.

This is another thing I think is going to be explained.

I think Kvothe is going to end up being part Fae or something. Bast is also irresistible to women, and of course we have Felurian.

Not to mention his eyes change colors and he's super in touch with names.

 

[Kin5290]

Denna? She's just a symptom. Kvothe is the worst.

And to think that Patrick Rothuss published this big article about how important it is to write decent female characters...

 

[BeatResetsTheWorld]

Denna? She's just a symptom. Kvothe is the worst.

And to think that Patrick Rothuss published this big article about how important it is to write decent female characters...

Lol. Like I said, I'm only halfway through Book 2 but every female basically wants to jump on Kvothe's dick. I don't think he's made any that are significantly different from the typical fantasy norm, except for Denna, and she's her own brand of terrible

I actually have been thinking she's one of the Chandrian. In fact, I'm hoping there's more to here and that all of her antics have some justification, but I fear the worst...

 

[betterhalf]

Ferulian is the bae

 

[Ezalc]

Thing that annoys me about Kvothe is his complete loss of will whenever Denna is around. I get that she's basically his first love, and when you're young and in that honeymoon phase shit you get pretty blinded but goddamn he should snap out of it. Nowhere near as bad as the Felurian shit though, that pissed me off.

Also, read the two side stories about Airy(sp?) and Bast. Bast's was alright but the other one was just pretty dull. I was hoping to see more about their pasts than just a day in the life of _____.

 

[Brakke]

Yeah that shit's mostly frustrating because the books put some much dope shit on the mantel about legendary ultraknights and gibbering horrors and sinister menacing puppet masters and cool fights but then gets totally distracted flouncing around in dumbass teenager feelings.

Mooooove ooooooon already.

I kind of dug that short story though. The Slow Regard of Silent Things. Really weird book. Doesn't have fuck all to do with the things I want but it's so totally bizarre and interesting in form that its an ok distraction instead of an aggravating one.

 

[gdt]

Their whole this is insufferable. Denna is completely inlikable and Kvothe is an idiot when it comes to her. Like, I get that he loves her and maybe she likes him or something, but fuck man this shit is just a constant drag. On some Forest Gump shit.

 

[TyphoonStruggle]

I didn't like Name of the Wind, so I didn't continue the series.

The writer is fulfilling a childish boyhood fantasy of an unbeatable character. This fantasy also puts a girl on a pedastal. Too much fedora for my taste.

 

[BeatResetsTheWorld]

I didn't like Name of the Wind, so I didn't continue the series.

The writer is fulfilling a childish boyhood fantasy of an unbeatable character. This fantasy also puts a girl on a pedastal. Too much fedora for my taste.

I could see that. To be honest, I'm drawn to it for the world building more than the characters. Even just reading hints of the history and mythos and culture are exciting

 

[Kin5290]

And it's not like the girl being placed on a pedestal is like the one from Locke Lamora, who actually does things, is pretty awesome in her own right, and has a personality.

 

[TyphoonStruggle]

And it's not like the girl being placed on a pedestal is like the one from Locke Lamora, who actually does things, is pretty awesome in her own right, and has a personality.

I like the Gentleman's Bastards. Still gotta read the new book, and looking forward to it.

 

[Sesuadra]

Guess this is really only relevant to people who have read the 2 books in the trilogy that have been released (Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear), but anyway I'm midway through the second and Denna is just...a completely intolerable character. Kvothe is obsessed with her for no reason, and there have been little to no compelling reasons given to explain it.

Not to mention the dialogue exchanges between them are some of the most awkward things published I've ever read. It's like reading those Tips Fedora and Milady memes except done unironically. It's gotten to the point where I'll often skim those sections.

Basically anytime I see it's a Denna chapter

I read every book 5-6 times and by the time I started reading them a third time I just jumped everything with Denna.

Love Auri. Perfect loveable beautiful precious Auri. Probably daughter of ... And so awesome >.<

I loved the slow regard of silent things. Oh those books..

 

[Ratrat]

Rothfuss seems to be copying Diana Villiers from the Jack Aubrey books. He's just not half the writer and so yes, Denna sucks. Her and Kvothe are some of the most annoying characters in fantasy.

And it's not like the girl being placed on a pedestal is like the one from Locke Lamora, who actually does things, is pretty awesome in her own right, and has a personality.

She is indeed better for at least being consistent and comprehensible.

 

[bGanci]

I love these books to death. Denna is a very big mystery and I enjoy that. i hope Book 3 comes out this year. Also I pray this isn't the end of Kvothes story!
Also I'm on book 3 of the Farseer trilogy. Extremely good. After that I plan on reading mistborn and gentlemens bastard!