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  • The Name of the Wind

  • The Kingkiller Chronicle, Book 1
  • By: Patrick Rothfuss
  • Narrated by: Rupert Degas
  • Length: 28 hrs and 3 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (17,950 ratings)

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The Name of the Wind

By: Patrick Rothfuss
Narrated by: Rupert Degas
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Summary

In The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss brings together elements from all the great fantasy writers, from George R. R. Martin to Robert Jordan, to create a thrilling and intricately spun story that will leave you breathless.

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 innkeeper - from his childhood in a troupe of travelling 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.

Read by Rupert Degas.

Please note this is now the entire audio of this book.

©2007 Patrick Rothfuss (P)2012 Orion Publishing Group
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What listeners say about The Name of the Wind

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Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
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    15,115
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Performance
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Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
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    13,234
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  • 1 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Totally enthralling from the outset

This is just the second audible book I have listened to and what a fantastic find. The narrator captivated me to the extent that I could not wait to plug my iphone back in as soon as I was out of bed in the morning. I really felt the emotions of a young man desperately trying to get on and being thwarted at every turn, the author perfectly describing scenes and events that they are so easy to conjure in the mind. I was gripped by the ending and am now buying book two!

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Expertly crafted and sealed with a song...

Where does The Name of the Wind (Part One) rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's in my top three of this last year... Including my iTunes downloads, That's got to be around 100+ books, as I'm a bit of an addict. If you like Joe Abercrombie, George Martin, Scott Lynch etc... Well... It's a must listen.

What did you like best about this story?

When you like Cormac McCarthy, Tim Winton and John Kennedy Toole, you've been spoilt with a myriad of well edited, wonderfully composed lines and paragraphs... These storytellers have produced complex tales that go beyond mere novels.

It's so early in, "The Kingkiller Chronicles" saga, that singing an unfinished tales praises, fills me with no small amount of trepidation, in regards to reviewing, "The Name of the Wind - Part 1", but from what I've garnered thus far, I know Rothfuss is going to deliver an ending to this series that is at worst, satisfying and at best truly exceptional.

What did I like best about this story? It feels like a book, where the author is dictating the pace and not s pushy agent or publisher.

It feels like the culmination of some very well thought out characters, following a beautifully structured path. Detail is good, language and style are premium and the narration, though a little monotone initially, develops positively with every chapter.

What does Rupert Degas bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Degas is up there with Pacey when it comes to narration. I didn't think I'd find another story teller, who would invest as much time into creating such a broad range of appropriate voices for a novels entire character cast. i was wrong.

These two guys literally own every book series an author gives them. It goes without saying that they are reliant on the quality of their material, but it's a match made in heaven when they are reading something stellar.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Pass

Any additional comments?

Excellent. That's my two pence/cents.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

one of the best

What did you like most about The Name of the Wind (Part One)?

Patrick Rothfuss gives a life to characters and places that so few authors manage to convey. If you don't become engaged with the characters in here, you probably don't like fantasy. I found that when my favorites were left behind for a while, as a different part of the story unfolded, I would miss them and be impatient for their return. The epic plot takes the reader through a vast and contrasting universe that is realized so well, that if you close your eyes, you feel like you could be touching it. This would not be the case without Rupert Degas' amazing narration. So many narrators leave you wishing that they had simply recorded the book in Stephen Hawking's computerized voice, just to get some more life into the recording. A very few make you feel like you are in a play with a full cast. Rupert Degas is one of a handful of narrators that are so talented that they not only improve the book but give it a narrative quality, that is far better than it would have been by simply imaging the character's voices in your head.

I couldn't stop listening to this story so of course I will be listening to it again.

The only negative thing is that I agree with another reviewer, it is very poor of Audible to split these books in to two parts, so that to get the trilogy you will have to pay for the cost of six books. That being said, if they split it into quarters I'd still pay the price just because it is rare to find a fantasy audio-book of this quality.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story line and brilliant narration

Would you listen to The Name of the Wind (Part One) again? Why?

Yes

Which character – as performed by Rupert Degas – was your favourite?

Difficult to choose because he did them all so well. The narration was well paced and did not come across as artificial even once.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

The narration really makes the story and characters come alive. This is one of those instances when I would choose the audiobook over the paper version.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful

This is so perfect that it has become my standard from which I compare all other audiobooks to.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

I have been gripped!!!!

This is not for the person who wants a quick story fix, its rambling, fascinating and the narration is so good every character comes alive instantly, and you have to know what happens next, every part of the main character is explored, its like living his life in your ears!! get this book, its compelling and I can assure you you will be listening to it non stop, the feeling is that everything you are bieng told in the beginning is going to mean something further on down the line, I have already bought the second one, signed up for some boring overtime so I get some peace to listen, and am looking forward to it, yes its that good, actually looking forward to overtime!!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

great book

again....... brilliantly read by Rupert...the different voices he uses for the character are excellant... can't wait for book three next year.... hope its an audio book pretty quick after release....thanks audible.co.uk

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An engaging story, well told.

A good story, well told. It draws you in and the character development is excellent. This book is largely the main character telling someone his (rather interesting) life story. A slight annoyance is that he sometimes drops hints about what's going to happen next in his story before he's got to that part. The narration is good, especially for the main character.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

outstanding

i really felt prt of this story. al the way through i was shouting in my head at the main character.

dont expect a happy tale, expect a rollercoaster where you feel connected with each and every emotion and reasons in all characters.

i only wish i knew that number 3 is no where in sight. i am on a 3rd listen and its as rich and enjoyable as the first time.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Oh the twists and turns

Great story beautifully read and produced. Thoroughly recommend. I’m off to listen to the next one!

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