Others say...

"Unusual take on traditional stories"
While The Blood of Elves won't be released for another month, Sapkowski's fantasy series can be begun thanks to the previous release of The Last Wish. The Last Wish is a collection of short stories featuring Geralt the Witcher.

Geralt is a trained monster-hunter, and the book takes him from one adventure to another. As the Witcher fights ghouls, vampires and djinni, the reader quickly learns that nothing is what it seems. The beasties are often the good guys and the humans the predators. Geralt is operating in a world in a state of change - the old ways are dying out, and the classical races like Dwarves and Elves are being pressed to extinction. As a Witcher, Geralt has adapted to the new world, by helping humans kill the monsters that prey on the outskirts of towns - but he doesn't do this without a twinge of guilt. More often than not, Geralt looks to cure, not kill - often to the disappointment of his bloodthirsty employers.

Set against this slightly angsty background, the short stories blatantly explore the familiar tropes of monster and fairy tales. Throughout the course of the book, Sapkowski retells the story of Snow White and Beauty and the Beast, and there are several other hauntingly familiar encounters.

Unlike The Blood of Elves, Geralt is actually front-and-center in all these stories. He holds up well under the added scrutiny. He's wise, but not annoyingly so, and competent, but not invincible. Although his distinguishing white hair and skill with the blade are slightly on the side of fanboy nonsense, Geralt is a well-considered and well-developed character.

A few of the characters from The Blood of Elves do make appearances, including Dandilion (still my favorite), Ciri's parents and, finally, the long-anticipated Yennefer. Unfortunately, the enchantress and love-interest of Geralt falters a bit. Although Sapkowski tries to imbue her with a bit of emotional depth with a melodramatic backstory, she's a overpowering brat, and Geralt's attraction to her is inexplicable. The idea that she just needed to be 'tamed' by Geralt's understanding is frustrating, offensive and surprisingly unoriginal.

Still, the Yennefer story (the title story of the collection) is the only place where this book falters. Geralt's adventures are exciting and unusual - an unexpectedly enjoyable combination of The Blade Itself and The Fairy Tales of Hermann Hesse.


-- PORNOKITSCH


"Don't Fear the Witcher"
I wasn't expecting much from this book because I don't read much fantasy anymore, so it came as a good surprise. The best thing about it is that, though it's basically about a guy who runs around, killing monsters, the plots are a bit deeper and more tantalizing than most books of its ilk--a notch or two above standard fare. And I say "plots" because this is not a novel; it's a series of short stories, loosely tied together. Which you can't really tell from the cover alone--so heads-up.

This book has a gritty, dark atmosphere, which I like, having read heavily in the horror genre. And it's a world and a character I'd love to visit with again. It really grew on me and the stories seemed to get better and better. Hopefully we'll see more translations from this author soon.

Recommended for those who like their fantasy dark.

"Fairy Tales for the Fright-Fantasy Buff"
I read this book with no knowledge whatsoever of the game called the Witcher, so for better or worse I approached this work with literary expectations.

It's great to type that I wasn't disappointed! The translation is well done (in terms of just good writing), and I greatly appreciated the obvious effort that the translator and editor(s) put in to make this such a great read.

The structure of the plot - framing vignettes within an over-arching "Voice of Reason" story line - was initially disorienting, but that was only because I didn't know the protagonist's situation and characteristics yet. As with the beginning of most books, it's best to have patience for a while to see how things develop. By the time I reached "Voice of Reason" the second time, I was totally hooked. In the end, I can strongly assure you that the way this story is framed is a fantastic way to present this character and his adventures.

There is a lot of romance presented in this book, incidentally, and of the variety that actually pulls at the heart and makes one care for the characters - whether they are mostly fairy tale re-visionings or not. I personally like to see new twists on fairy tales, so much of Geralt's adventures suited me just fine.

There is some sexual content, but that is mainly off-page (as it were) and described in tame language for the most part. But, make no mistake, this a book for adults - or older teens, at least.

All in all, I was very pleased with this book. I could hardly set it aside, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes the horror-fantasy genre; but expect a little more romance and a little less gore to go with the steady and excellent action and the often deep philosophizing... and understand that sometimes it's fun not to know the answers to all the questions a story can raise!

"Grim(m) Fairy Tales"
I came by The Last Wish via The Witcher video game, and I am quite satisfied with both. As a European, Sapkowski seems not to have been tainted by the triteness and commercialism that has afflicted so much speculative fiction in the U.S. His writing is gritty and dark, like the original fairy tales on which it seems to be based. The protagonist, Geralt of Rivia, is a classic anti-hero--a warrior who has made himself into a monster in order to combat still greater monsters. His task is necessary yet thankless, and he approaches it with the attitude of a hardened mercenary--as just another job. I cannot express how refreshing that is in an era of Tolkien-clones and shallow D&D novelizations, in which every character has some Grand Destiny(TM) and good and evil regularly clash in Titanic Battles for the Fate of the World(TM).

"Fairly good, easy read"
The author has a good writing style that made this book an easy and enjoyable read. However, the story is kind of disjointed. There are parts with little relevance aside from color, and some questions unanswered. The ending also seemed weak as the last twist seemed exceedingly out of character and instead fell on romance novel stereotypes.