The Narrow Road Between Desires

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death.

The Narrow Road Between Desires takes place in Temerant, the fantasy world of Patrick Rothfuss’s The Kingkiller Chronicle series. The novella’s central figure, Bast, is the Fae companion and apprentice of the series’ protagonist, Kvothe. Both characters make their first appearance in Rothfuss’s debut novel, The Name of the Wind (2007). The Kingkiller Chronicle novels employ a frame narrative. In Kvothe’s present, he has retired from adventuring and is an innkeeper using the alias Kote. At the prompting of Bast and a scribe called Chronicler, he shares his life story, including his early years in a traveling theater troupe, his family’s murders by supernatural beings called the Chandrian, and his adventures during his time as a student of magic at the University. Kvothe continues to share his tale in The Wise Man’s Fear (2011). Like each of the two novels, The Narrow Road Between Desires takes place over the course of a single day in the rural town of Newarre. The novels are set in late autumn, and the novella is set on Midsummer Day, meaning that the novella takes place before Chronicler arrives and Kvothe begins unfolding his life story. The Narrow Road Between Desires doesn’t directly state either Kote’s secret identity as the legendary Kvothe or Bast’s hidden Fae heritage, making the broader series’ context especially important on these points.

Throughout The Kingkiller Chronicle, Bast’s primary motivation is to make the world-weary Kvothe remember who he is and reclaim his former power and glory. The novella doesn’t reveal how the two characters met or why Bast feels so deeply indebted to Kvothe, but their bond makes vital contributions to Bast’s characterization and the novella’s examination of The Tension Between Freedom and Obligation. The Fae man is scheming and crafty, hiding secrets and hatching plots throughout the novella. Bast displays these same traits in the novels. For example, he spreads the rumors that draw Chronicler to the Waystone Inn as part of a plan to remind Kote of his former greatness. In The Wise Man’s Fear, Bast hires two soldiers to attack and rob the Waystone Inn, thinking that this will force Kvothe to demonstrate his legendary might. When the plan goes awry and his master is injured, Bast tracks the soldiers down and kills them. The soldiers’ demise illustrates Bast’s capacity for violence and vengeance, and these traits also inform the methods he employs to make Jessom flee town. 

The Narrow Road Between Desires also alludes to some of the main series’ key events. For instance, Kvothe encounters a powerful Fae woman named Felurian in The Wise Man’s Fear, and Kostrel mentions the cloak of shadows she weaves for Kvothe in the novella. This reference gives an idea of the faen folk’s power and offers an example of how the people of Newarre are familiar with stories about Kvothe yet have no idea that Kote is the fabled hero. In addition, some of the Waystone Inn’s regular patrons who are introduced in the novels, such as Old Cob, Jake, and the smith’s apprentice, appear in Chapter 11 of the novella and provide exposition about Jessom and Martin. The Kingkiller Chronicle novels provide important context for the novella’s setting and characters, particularly through Bast’s complex characterization as both a loyal friend and a dangerous supernatural entity.