At 993 pages the second book of the Kingkiller Chronicle is an epic in and of itself, let alone when combined with 672 page first book, “The Name of the Wind.”
Even more to the point, the audio book version of “The Wise Man’s Fear” took over 43 hours – which translates into multiple weeks listening to the life and adventures of Kvothe (the main character).
I mention the length of the book up front as it is usually the first thing that people see when look at the book. However, please don’t let the page length stop you from reading this book. It is, like its forbearer, a phenomenal book that pulls you into a different world and allows for the characters to evolve according to the culture and situations presented.
In a lot of ways, the Kingkiller Chronicle is more of an autobiography then a typical fantasy novel as the main character is narrating his life story to “The Chronicler” who is writing it all down. This means that the majority of the book is written in the first person with occasional jumps forward to the ‘present’ time where Knothe and the Chronicler are sitting in an inn.
While I enjoyed the book, I do have to say that it drag a bit in the middle… it was almost as if the details of Kvothe’s life too over from the primary story line of Kvothe’s search for the Chandrian who killed his parents. I also found myself holding my breath waiting for Kvothe’s expulsion from the University as mentioned on the back of Book One and Two – only to find out that nothing happened…
Patrick Rothfuss is going to have a lot of loose ends to tie up in Book Three…so much so that I wouldn’t be surprised if he (and the publisher) add a fourth book to the series like Christopher Paolini did in his “Inheritance Cycle.”
I guess we are all going to have to wait for until Rothfuss finishes Book Three (which if he continues at the same publication rate, should be out in 2015).
The 
Dragons. Elves. Magic. Heroes. Novel. Written by a 15 year old boy.
