Back in November 2010, I held a poll asking you all to choose what book I should read next.
You chose The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.
I took that book with me to visit author Terry Brooks and his wife at their new Oregon coast home in late November. I needed a brief respite from my every day life and Terry invited me down to relax, recharge, and otherwise not do a damn thing other than sleep, eat, drink wine, read, and play Scrabble every night.
I got settled in quickly once I arrived and found myself on a couch the first afternoon. As the Pacific Ocean pounded the coast during a blustery winter storm, I lounged and ignored it all, fully immersed in the story of Kvothe.
After an hour or so, Terry came down from his writing nook, finished for the day working on his next Shannara novel, and sat on the couch opposite me to read the newest Publishers Weekly. After a few minutes, he glanced over and saw what I was reading.
“A bit late on that one, arent’ you?” he asked.
I flipped the book and looked at the cover. “Yeah. I’m a bad person. I know. I know.”
“You better get back to reading. And enjoy it,” Terry said pointedly. “Books like that one don’t come along often. Can’t wait to read the next one, actually.”
It got my wheels turning. When I returned to Seattle, I wrote Pat an email. We’ve been friends for several years now and I knew if I asked Pat might be able to help Terry out—earlier than usual.
What did I ask Pat? I asked him if he had an additional Advanced Reader Copy of The Wise Man’s Fear to give to Terry.
This arrived today in the mail:
As you can see, Pat came through. He was happy to oblige. He told me he feels nothing but admiration for Terry, who gave Pat a quote for The Name of the Wind and helped—even a little bit—to get the word out about the debut book. In my opinion, it was a deserved quote and deserves to be read by everyone who loves great fantasy literature.
In that photo, the ARC is sitting on my desk, appropriately next to Terry’s books. Warranted, the ARC is for Terry, who is returning to Seattle for a week or so on January 25th, at which time I’ll hand the ARC over.
In the meantime though, this ARC is just sitting next to my keyboard as I type this, staring at me…
… and I’m losing my self control…
… to not open it…
…
The Wise Man’s Fear will be published on March 1st.
Want a signed copy? Read Pat’s blog about how to get one HERE!
