The riveting first-person narrative of a young man who grows to be the most notorious magician his world has ever seen. From his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, to years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime- ridden city, to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a legendary school of magic, The Name of the Wind is a masterpiece that transports readers into the body and mind of a wizard. It is a high-action novel written with a poet's hand, a powerful coming-of-age story of a magically gifted young man, told through his eyes: to read this book is to be the hero.

""The debut of a writer we would all do well to watch. Patrick Rothfuss has real talent, and his tale of Kvothe is deep and intricate and wondrous."" -Terry Brooks ""The great new fantasy writer we've all been waiting for."" -Orson Scott Card ""The type of assured, rich first novel most writers can only dream of producing. THE FANTASY WORLD HAS A NEW STAR."" -Publishers Weekly (starred review) ""REFRESHINGLY NIMBLE AND OF-BEAT...a finely-tuned coming-of-age story, full of humor, action and the occasional dose of magic."" -San Francisco Chronicle ""One of the best stories told in any medium in a decade."" -The Onion ""A rare and great pleasure."" -Ursula K. LeGuin ""Elegantly told."" -Library Journal (starred review)