lucia-pacciola t1_j9m1ky9 wrote on February 22, 2023 at 11:06 PM

Mainly, I expect a published-by-a-publisher book to have been edited. I don't ever expect a published book to make me stop and think, "how did that get from the original manuscript into the printer's copy?"

Like, no shade to Patrick Rothfuss's editor, but Wise Man's Fear really needed a come to Jesus moment between her and the author. I assume that at some point in the revision process she decided that discretion was the better part of valor, and that it was probably for the best to just get something out there making money, rather than pressure him into giving up entirely.

I bet she still wonders to this day if, had she played it differently, Doors of Stone would be on shelves right now, and DAW would still be in business.

JingleHelen11 OP t1_j9m3b7c wrote on February 22, 2023 at 11:17 PM

Oh, I'm not familiar with Rothfuss's work (one of those things I'm always meaning to get to), but that definitely sounds like there's some tea here. Is it a story problem?

Griffen_07 t1_j9mbvkd wrote on February 23, 2023 at 12:19 AM

Just the turn to college age guy going on sexcapede with multiple immortal women including a goddess not to mention general mary sue issues. It's either Rothfuss is amazing and the next book will be someone in the corner calling the storyteller on his BS or it's just the utter male fantasy it appears to be. There has been a lot of talk about which way it will end up being on r/fantasy if you care to search for it.

Amphy64 t1_j9n5g8q wrote on February 23, 2023 at 4:00 AM

One immortal woman, the others are entirely normal women, and not an unreasonable number, just typical college student lifestyle. I absolutely think the depiction of the mercenary culture was a mistake, but it's not really these aspects in and of themselves that make it border on either wish-fulfillment or a possibly misguided attempt to play with the conventions of the genre.

Amphy64 t1_j9n4jv1 wrote on February 23, 2023 at 3:52 AM

No. I don't like the aspects complained of, either, don't get me wrong, but that doesn't mean they needed editing out or even that there isn't a reason for them - it's absolutely crystal clear from the start that what you're getting is the main character telling the real (though still possibly exaggerated) version of how they became a figure people are telling these conventional epic fantasy stories about. So it's one case where complaining about genre conventions, even those bordering on wish fulfillment, doesn't automatically fit because that's the point, and we were all warned going in. (also the 'sex goddess', more a Circe figure, and the main character is really just acting like a normal enough college student: I think it stands out genre fans jump to complain about this aspect, over points where the main character is far more clearly exaggerating his abilities) Does remain to be seen whether Rothfuss ever can or will do anything with that playing with and commentary on genre, not holding my breath he'll even ever write another book.

But maybe give the first one a go, rather than reading up and having aspects spoiled? What I really like of Rothfuss' is the novella, The Slow Regard of Silent Things, think it stands out as better written than most fantasy (though that would be a low bar) and more magical realism-esque, but it does concern a character from his main series so not fully stand-alone exactly.