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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
i love my parents geralt of rivia and yennefer of vengerberg
adventurous
challenging
funny
medium-paced
Watching the Witcher years ago certainly helped me understand. And I’m happy that while reading this that I actually remembered parts… now that I no longer have Netflix to revisit the show.
adventurous
The Witcher has a unique set up among fantasy greats. It started out as a short story Sapkowski wrote for a competition. People wanted more, so he wrote more before his short stories were eventually compiled and he began the novel series. This is the first volume of those episodic stories before the main series. This is also the only entry in the series I absolutely love as it has pretty much everything I want in a grim dark fantasy adventure and the least amount of the increasingly popular negative sexual content.
The Last Wish is six short stories, which are all twisted versions of popular fairy tales, surrounded by a frame story. I'll start with the frame story as it is the weakest part of the book (aside from Yennifer). The Witcher (a mutant monster hunter) Geralt is recovering from a battle with a monster in a temple full of priestesses. The main priestess is amazing as she is sassy with Geralt like most nurses are with a non-compliant patient (which Geralt is). Throughout the whole process, Geralt is reflecting on his past adventures and realizing the world doesn't need him like it once did. The whole struggle is existential, made all the more apparent as an order of knights wait outside to kill Geralt because they see him as a monster like the ones he hunts. Their very existence also asks if he is still necessary to hunt these monsters.
The stories themselves are the highlight of this novel. As the back says, "His [Geralt's] sole purpose: to destroy the monsters that plague the world. But not everything monstrous-looking is evil, and not everything fair is good." Many of the true monsters are the people in these stories, which is a common trope in monster stories as the monsters are meant to reflect the sins of humanity. Sapkowski takes this to another level by making each story a vague retelling of popular fairy tales. Sleeping Beauty is now a cursed vampire born of incest, Snow White is a murderer fleeing a sorcerer who thinks she is a curse meant to dismantle his kingdom, Beauty and the Beast are the most interesting bit, Rumpelstiltskin is a monster sworn to marry a princess many factions were already wanting for a political marriage, etc. Each can be recognized by those familiar with fairy tales, but is placed in a grim Tolkienian fantasy world. They all have evil on both sides of the conflict with no clear 'lesser evil.' And as much as Geralt claims to be focused on coin, he has a moral code he must constantly reexamine. Each of the characters in the stories are also given depth related to their own struggles. The story "The Lesser Evil" highlights this as both sides of the conflict are right. Renfri is evil and will continually kill innocents, even children. Yet Stregebor, the man hunting her, only wants her dead to make the prophecy he predicted true. In trying to gain power, he created a monster he must now stop. The monster wants revenge and her own personal freedom. There are many others, which I will let you discover should you read it.
However, the negatives of the book (and series in general) must be addressed. There are mentions of sexual assault (that is how the Beast became the Beast) and Yennefer, the primary love interest introduced in the last story, is the epidemy of a sexualized female character. She is always popping her breasts out, sometimes to manipulate men (such as her first appearance), sometimes just because the author wants to visualize her boobies (the end of her story). This sexualization of women only increases as the series progresses (especially with a graphic rape scene in the forth book/second novel). Luckily, the series also gets much more depth of world building, complex questions and characters as it goes. In essence, it gets both better and worse. If you absolutely loved this work (aside from Yennefer) as I did, go on to The Sword of Destiny and see if you still like it. If you are turned off by the sexualization of women, it would be best to stop here. HOWEVER, I would still highly recommend this entry as it highlights many good and bad aspects of humanity while also critiquing acts of heroism, yet also showing how they are necessary. The characters are amazing, full of dry humor, not to mention epic monster fights and moral questions worth asking. If you like any of those things, read it! It can be a standalone, so you have nothing to lose, except maybe your hope in humanity (which Dandelion can make up for).
The Last Wish is six short stories, which are all twisted versions of popular fairy tales, surrounded by a frame story. I'll start with the frame story as it is the weakest part of the book (aside from Yennifer). The Witcher (a mutant monster hunter) Geralt is recovering from a battle with a monster in a temple full of priestesses. The main priestess is amazing as she is sassy with Geralt like most nurses are with a non-compliant patient (which Geralt is). Throughout the whole process, Geralt is reflecting on his past adventures and realizing the world doesn't need him like it once did. The whole struggle is existential, made all the more apparent as an order of knights wait outside to kill Geralt because they see him as a monster like the ones he hunts. Their very existence also asks if he is still necessary to hunt these monsters.
The stories themselves are the highlight of this novel. As the back says, "His [Geralt's] sole purpose: to destroy the monsters that plague the world. But not everything monstrous-looking is evil, and not everything fair is good." Many of the true monsters are the people in these stories, which is a common trope in monster stories as the monsters are meant to reflect the sins of humanity. Sapkowski takes this to another level by making each story a vague retelling of popular fairy tales. Sleeping Beauty is now a cursed vampire born of incest, Snow White is a murderer fleeing a sorcerer who thinks she is a curse meant to dismantle his kingdom, Beauty and the Beast are the most interesting bit, Rumpelstiltskin is a monster sworn to marry a princess many factions were already wanting for a political marriage, etc. Each can be recognized by those familiar with fairy tales, but is placed in a grim Tolkienian fantasy world. They all have evil on both sides of the conflict with no clear 'lesser evil.' And as much as Geralt claims to be focused on coin, he has a moral code he must constantly reexamine. Each of the characters in the stories are also given depth related to their own struggles. The story "The Lesser Evil" highlights this as both sides of the conflict are right. Renfri is evil and will continually kill innocents, even children. Yet Stregebor, the man hunting her, only wants her dead to make the prophecy he predicted true. In trying to gain power, he created a monster he must now stop. The monster wants revenge and her own personal freedom. There are many others, which I will let you discover should you read it.
However, the negatives of the book (and series in general) must be addressed. There are mentions of sexual assault (that is how the Beast became the Beast) and Yennefer, the primary love interest introduced in the last story, is the epidemy of a sexualized female character. She is always popping her breasts out, sometimes to manipulate men (such as her first appearance), sometimes just because the author wants to visualize her boobies (the end of her story). This sexualization of women only increases as the series progresses (especially with a graphic rape scene in the forth book/second novel). Luckily, the series also gets much more depth of world building, complex questions and characters as it goes. In essence, it gets both better and worse. If you absolutely loved this work (aside from Yennefer) as I did, go on to The Sword of Destiny and see if you still like it. If you are turned off by the sexualization of women, it would be best to stop here. HOWEVER, I would still highly recommend this entry as it highlights many good and bad aspects of humanity while also critiquing acts of heroism, yet also showing how they are necessary. The characters are amazing, full of dry humor, not to mention epic monster fights and moral questions worth asking. If you like any of those things, read it! It can be a standalone, so you have nothing to lose, except maybe your hope in humanity (which Dandelion can make up for).
I absolutely loved this book! So much fun to read, so enthralling, and really easy to follow along. Geralt is amazing and because I had already watched the show, it was lovely picturing Henry Cavill. Can’t wait to read the other books!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Loved it. I don’t have a clear rating system yet.
Such twists and twisted yet imaginative stories. All leading into a central plot but told in witty segments that all seem to make sense later. Love the depth that you can feel the places that the video game so faithfully reflects.
Such twists and twisted yet imaginative stories. All leading into a central plot but told in witty segments that all seem to make sense later. Love the depth that you can feel the places that the video game so faithfully reflects.
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Misogyny, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Sexual content
4.5
QUÉ BIEN ME LO HE PASADO LEYENDO ESTE LIBRO. Así, en mayúsculas.
Un conjunto de relatos cortos de la vida del brujo Geralt de Rivia, unos más interesantes que otros, pero todos repletos de acción y mucho humor.
Me gusta como está escrito y estructurado y estoy ya con el siguiente libro en la mano, poco más puedo decir.
QUÉ BIEN ME LO HE PASADO LEYENDO ESTE LIBRO. Así, en mayúsculas.
Un conjunto de relatos cortos de la vida del brujo Geralt de Rivia, unos más interesantes que otros, pero todos repletos de acción y mucho humor.
Me gusta como está escrito y estructurado y estoy ya con el siguiente libro en la mano, poco más puedo decir.
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated