THE LADY OF THE LAKE, A NOVEL BY A. SAPKOWSKI, WITCHER BOOK #7 (REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATION)

Hello dear readers and fellow bloggers! In this post, I shall review The Lady of the Lake, the eight book and the fifth novel in the Witcher series by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Published in 1999, The Lady of the Lake  is a direct sequel to The Tower of Swallow. Chronologically,  The Lady of the Lake is the last novel in the Witcher series. However, there's another Witcher book, Season of Storms, that follows it. Season of Storms is a prequel of sorts, basically a novel chronically placed between the first two Witcher books. Published in 2013, Season of Storms is the actual last published Witcher book. Nevertheless, it is not wrong to regard  The Lady of the Lake as the final book of the Witcher saga. 

 In fact, The Lady of the Lake is basically the final book of the Witcher series. After all, this novel is the one that really wraps up the saga and ends the story. Having read this fifth novel, I do have a sense of closure. I might even wait a bit, you know, before I read and review Season of Storms. I have had such a lovely time reading and reviewing the Witcher saga. I started back in Summer and I managed to complete it before the end of Autumn. Immersing myself into the Witcher saga, meant less published posts, because these reviews take forever to write, but that's alright. I'm a fast reader, but book reviews take time!

I'm happy to have finally stolen some time to type this review. I got up at 6am on a Saturday morning to get a head start. That's some reviewing dedication. This novel actually surprised me in a number of ways. I will have to be careful about how I word my review, because I want to avoid major spoilers. My initial reviews weren't spoiler free, because I figured a lot of people are familiar with the basics of the Witcher saga, due to the increasing popularity of the series and all that. Once something goes Netflix, everyone seems to know about it. I don't do Netflix but I've seen enough of ads for this series to confirm there are indeed differences between the books and the most recent adaptation. All the same, I don't want to spoil someone's enjoyment by revealing too much.  As the adaptation is still catching up with the books, the ending of the saga isn't widely known.  I'll do my best to keep this review spoiler free. What I can say for certain is that The Lady of the Lake was an extremely satisfying read. 

“Love mocks good sense. That's its charm and beauty.”

THE LADY OF THE LAKE, 

A NOVEL BY ANDRZEJ SAPKOWSKI    5/5

What is your first impression upon hearing the title? Camelot? Well, that wouldn't be wrong. Ciri's stories continues in world of Arthur. The novel opens with Sir Galahad's (as in King Arhur's Knight of the Round Table!) happening upon Ciri and mistaking her for the Lady of the Lake. Quite a turn of events! 

“You may turn around.”

 “Lady of the Lake—” 

“And introduce yourself.” 

“I am Galahad, of Caer Benic. A knight of King Arthur, the lord of Camelot, the ruler of the Summer Land, and also of Dumnonia, Dyfneint, Powys, Dyfedd…”

Moreover, the opening is wonderfully humorous.  Galagad is being a true gentlemen, but Ciri isn't having any of it. Ciri is, all her magical powers put aside, very down to earth type of gal. Her conversations with Sir Galahad were very amusing. This book manages to be delightfully funny in a number of ways. No matter how bleak things get, there's always space for humour. 

“There's Merlin. And Morgana. But Morgana is evil.'
'And Merlin?'
'Average.”

This pairing was not what I expected, but it actually makes a lot of sense.  Arthurian myths are a sort of fantasy, aren't they? In Arthurian myths, knights fight with monsters. In this saga, the knight who fights evil is seemingly Gerald, but in reality women play an important part in the turn of events, particularly Ciri and Yennefer. Not that woman didn't play a role in medieval literature. Morgana, for example, was a sorceress, like Yennefer. In the early Arthurian legends, Morgana was portrayed as a positive character. Later, she was portrayed negatively and finally in our modern times she became somewhat of a heroine (if a flawed one). Similarily, Yennefer is seen as a positive character by some and a negative by others. 

Moreover, the witcher is set in a time period that could be linked to medieval times. The world of the witcher is not our world, but it resembles it, especially in the description of human society. The elves and dwarves do feel otherworldly, or at least belonging to a different culture, but the Witcher humans resemble us acutely in both in good and bad qualities. Yennefer, Gerald and Ciri are not your average humans, being isolated by their powers, but they are also like us in many ways. In my previous reviews, I elaborated more on the fact that some parts of the Witcher world, particularly the urban settings, felt like late medieval period or even early Renaissance.

As a novel, The Lady of the Lake seems to acknowledge both the historical and the modern writing. It can be compared to other fantasy writing of our time. In particular, there are parallels with the Tolkien's world. There is also the historical context to consider. The Lady of the Lake opens with (what can be interpreted) as a nod to medieval literature (hence the Camelot episode). Is it implying that Camelot was real? Not necessarily. Camelot could be just one of parallel worlds, not necessarily our own. The author really did some thinking when he created the witcher saga. All the worldbuilding really makes sense in The Lady of the Lake. At the same time, Sapkowski greater parallels between The Lady of the Lake and other books.   At the same times, its intertextuality doesn't make it seem any less real. I quite liked this!

THE NARRATIVE DEVICES EMPLOYED IN THIS NOVEL ARE COMPLEX

 This novel partly uses as a double frame narrative set in a future in which Gerald, Ciri and Yennefer are historical figures. A priestess of the lake tries to dream about Ciri to find out the truth behind the legends. It all happens somewhere in the Northern Kingdoms, upon some lake, years or perhaps centuries after the events described. There is this young priestess  apprentice (perhaps also student sorceress) Condwiramurs who serves the Lady of the lake Nimue by dreaming 'true' dreams. Her job is to study the legend of Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri. Condwiramurs does not mind it, even if she sometimes struggles with her dreams, because she has always been fascinated by Ciri. Is Condwiramurs a completely reliable narrator? Who knows? 

“Foolish indeed is he who lends credence to dreams and treads the path of delusion. Nonetheless, whoever disdains and does not believe them at all also acts unwisely. For if dreams had no import whatsoever why, then, would the Gods, in creating us, give us the ability to dream?”

CIRI TELLS HER STORY TO SIR GALAHAD AFTER SHE BEGINS TO TRUST HIM

Meanwhile, Ciri tells her story to Sir Galahad. After some misunderstandings, sparks start flying. It seems that Ciri likes Sir Galahad. Ciri might have been trained by witchers, but she was born a princess. Ciri has an education of a princess, it's just that she has been forced to deal with bandits and murderers. Once she meets a true knight, Ciri is somewhat softened. When Ciri is ashamed of her scarf, Sir Galahad reassures her by showing his own scarf and telling her that no scarf is ugly when it is earned in a battle. Once a relationship of trust is establish, Ciri starts to tell her story. 

So, it's sort of a story within story, framed narrative within a frame narrative. The narrative voice is therefore quite unreliable in some ways. That's delightful if you like ambiguous books and writing that is open to interpretation, but it might not make everyone happy. Is Ciri a completely reliable narrator? Who knows? 

A FRAMED NARRATIVE PACKED WITH MANY DIGRESSIONS AND SUBPLOTS

Once Ciri starts to tell her story, it is not all linear. At the same time, the narrative follows other heroes as well. The narrative actually follows different perspectives and sometimes it seems like it is told by an all knowing third person narrator. Things get even more complicated, when we learn about parallel universes. 

NUMEROUS TIME JUMPS AND CIRI'S INCREASING POWERS

Ciri does time jumps! Yes, you have read that right. Ciri grows more powerful, but she struggles to control her power. She travels through time and parallel universes. So, obviously there are digressions. We see some familiar characters as they catch  a glimpse of Ciri from the future. The scenes are written very well, I must say. It must have taken a lot of effort from the writer to plan all those scenes in the way they make sense, but Sapkowski certainly managed to do it. Moreover, Sapkowski managed to make it all sound reasonable and sensible. It serves to his credit as a writer.

There are numerous time jumps as Ciri rides for her life. The time jumps or world hopping made me think of walking the shadows in the Amber series. Like in that legendary series, the parallel words are not completely explained and I honestly don't mind it. Sometimes it's good to keep something a mystery. 

MORE WORLD-BUILDING AND MORE BITTER ELVES

Ciri finds herself among elves again. The Witcher saga portrays elves as sophisticated, beautiful and proud, but also cruel and bitter. Their kind is dying, so it is no wonder they are bitter. The long life span has made them arrogant and conceited. However, the elves are also powerful. Moreover, they exist in different parallel worlds. Doesn't this tell the reader something about their powers? Throughout the series, Ciri's elven blood is repeatedly stressed. It is the key to her powers. Or is it? Ciri's identity is interesting to study. Culturally and racially, she is more human than elven.  Both humans and elves want to use Ciri for her power. Nevertheless, her power doesn't belong to any race. It belongs only to her- if Ciri manages to control her power- it becomes truly hers. In order to do that, Ciri has to embrace the best in her human and elven side. During her time among the elves, Ciri learns a thing or two. Even when the elves treat her cruelly, Ciri manages to see the good in them. 

“There,’ said the elf. ‘The ancient snake Ouroboros. Ouroboros symbolises eternity and is itself eternal. It is the eternal going away and the eternal return. It is something that has no beginning and no end. ‘Time is like the ancient Ouroboros. Time is fleeting moments, grains of sand passing through an hourglass. Time is the moments and events we so readily try to measure. But the ancient Ouroboros reminds us that in every moment, in every instant, in every event, is hidden the past, the present and the future. Eternity is hidden in every moment. Every departure is at once a return, every farewell is a greeting, every return is a parting. Everything is simultaneously a beginning and an end.”

THE KING OF ELVES, SOPHISTICATED BUT ALSO CRUEL

To avoid spoilers, I don't want to reveal how Ciri found herself among the elves. I also don't want to say whether she was with them by choice or not. I will, however, say that there was something between her and the kind of elves, Auberon Muircetach. The two of them spend some time together, not necessarily by a deeply personal choice but they do get to know one another a bit. 

I found the king's portrayal quite interesting. At times he is cruel towards Ciri but most often he is just cold, treating her with politeness. There is one moment when Auberon insults her, revealing his hatred towards the human kind. Obviously, the king sees humans are less worthy creatures. 

“It's all my fault,' she mumbled. 'That scar blights me, I know. I know what you see when you look at me. There's not much elf left in me. A gold nugget in a pile of compost—'

 He turned around suddenly. '

You're extremely modest,' he drawled. 

'I would say rather: a pearl in pig shit. A diamond on the finger of a rotting corpse. As part of your language training you can create even more comparisons. I'll test you on them tomorrow, little Dh'oine. O human creature in whom nothing, but nothing, remains of an elven woman.”

 Sometimes Auberon is almost kind and Ciri manages to see that behind his coldness lies a broken heart. I think Ciri is able to feel for the elven folk, even when she doesn't approve of their ways. It seems that Lara was his daughter or at least someone extremely dear to him. The king cannot get over the fact that Lara isn't living. 

“Who are you,” he asked extremely calmly, “to dare to defile her name in such a way? Who are you to dare to abuse me with such miserable charity? Oh, I know, I see who you are. You are not the daughter of Lara. You are the daughter of Cregennan. You are a thoughtless, arrogant, selfish Dh’oine, a simply perfect representative of your race, who understands nothing, and must ruin and destroy, besmirch by touch alone, denigrate and defile by thought alone. Your ancestor stole my love from me, took her away from me, selfishly and arrogantly took Lara from me. But I shall not permit you, O his worthy daughter, to take the memory of her from me.”

UNICORNS STEP BACK ONTO SCENE

I don't want to reveal too many details but unicorns appear again. Once again, they seem to get along with Ciri. What is more, Ciri meets an old friend. I loved this part of the book. It really confirmed unicorns were intelligent beings. I just remember one joke about unicorns from one of the previous books in the series. 

“We won’t manage to do much more than we’re capable of,’ he said more quietly and more warmly. ‘But we shall all do our best to make sure it won’t be much less.”

CIRI LONGING FOR HER PARENTS AND VICE VERSA

Longing is huge in this book. Our unorthodox family is doing everything to come back together. Gerald is looking for Ciri and so is Yennefer. At the same time, Ciri is looking for them. In fact, Ciri is ready to do just about anything to get reunited with her non biological parents. There is one moment in the book, when Ciri stops for lunch in a tavern in a strange world (possibly a parallel one) and refuses the offer of the tavern owner to spend the night. Despite the fact that the lady and Ciri don't speak the same language, they are able to communicate with gestures. The lady understands that Ciri hurries to find her mother.

“How does it happen, thought Ciri, what can it be ascribed to, that in all worlds, places and times, in all languages and dialects that one word always sounds comprehensible? And always similar?

"Yes. I must ride to my mamma. My mamma is waiting for me.”

A NARRATIVE THAT FOLLOWS SEVERAL DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

“And a day will come, perhaps, when we shall stop believing at all that something is lurking in the darkness. We shall laugh at such fears. Call them childish. Be ashamed of them! But darkness will always, always exist. And there will always be Evil in the darkness, always be fangs and claws, death and blood in the darkness. And witchers will always be needed.”

The narrative is, as I explained,  quite complex and even complicated at times. However, I didn't find he story hard to follow. The jumps between the perspectives felt a bit sudden at times, but I got used to them. As Gerald continues his travels with his fellowship, we learn more about them. 

“You know what, Reynart,’ Geralt suddenly said. ‘I also prefer you as you are now. Talking normally. Back in October you were using infuriating, moronic mannerisms.’ ‘’Pon my word, Witcher, I’m a knight errant,’ chortled Reynart de Bois-Fresnes. ‘Have you forgotten? Knights always talk like morons.”

A SATISFYING CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT OF GERALT'S FELLOWSHIP

One thing I loved about this novel was how consistent the character development was. The reader can really see them as not just a rescue party for Ciri, but a group of individuals connected with ties of friendship and love. At times it even seemed like Geralt wasn't their leader but rather that they were leading themselves. Sometimes it was them who urged Gerald to go on. His fellowship, gang or however we are to call them really came through for him.  I was particularly impressed by the humanity of the vampire.

“If it is written in the books of providence", the sorceress said after a while, “that Geralt will find Ciri, then it will happen. Regardless of whether the witcher sets off into the mountains or sits in Toussaint. Predestination overtakes humans. Not vice versa. Do you understand that? Do you understand, Mr. Regis Terzieff-Godefroy?"

"Better than you think, Miss Vigo.” The vampire turned the sausage link in his fingers. "However, you must excuse me, I do not accept that predestination is in some book, written by the hand of a great Demiurge, or the will of heaven, or the unalterable judgment of any providence. Rather, it is the result of many seemingly unconnected facts, events, and actions. I tend to agree with you that the predestination overtakes humans...and not only humans. However, I accept much less the view that it could not also be reversed. Because this view is a convenient fatalism. It is a paean to apathy and baseness on a feather bed and the charming warmth of a woman’s womb. In short, to live in a dream. Life, Miss Vigo may be a dream, may end in a dream ... But it's a dream that you must actively dream. Therefore, Miss Vigo, the road awaits us."

WE GET TO SEE MORE OF THE CHARACTERS WE HAVE GROWN TO LOVE

Seeing more of the characters we have frown to love is always good, right? Besides Geralt's gang, there are some other recurring characters that make an appearance. Some of them appear only towards the end, but I was still trilled to see them. As always, the dialogues were so well written and they made the characters come alive. 

“Progress,' he said with reverence, 'will lighten up the gloom, for that is what progress is for, as - if you'll pardon me - the arsehole is for shitting. It will be brighter and brighter, and we shall fear less and less the darkness and the Evil hidden in it. And a day will come, perhaps, when we shall stop believing at all that something is lurking in the darkness. We shall laugh at such fears. Call them childish. Be ashamed of them! But darkness will always, always exist. And there will always be Evil in the darkness, always be fangs and claws, death and blood in the darkness.”

.........

“Progress,’ he said finally, ‘is like a herd of pigs. That’s how you should look at progress, that’s how you should judge it. Like a herd of pigs trotting around a farmyard. Numerous benefits derive from the fact of that herd’s existence. There’s pork knuckle. There’s sausage, there’s fatback, there are trotters in aspic. In a word, there are benefits! There’s no point turning your nose up at the shit everywhere.”

..........

“Progress,” said Yarpen Zigrin amidst the silence, “will eventually light up the darkness. The darkness will yield before the light. But not right away. And definitely not without a fight.”

THE BAD GUYS ARE JUST AS ANNOYING AS THEY WERE

“And even if you don’t make a mistake, an opportunity will arise to blame you for something. Some misfortune, some disaster, some pestilence, perhaps a plague or an epidemic, will fall on humanity… Then your guilt will descend on you. You will not be blamed for having been unable to prevent the plague, but for being unable to remove its effects. You shall be to blame for everything. And then fires will be lit under stakes.”

THE SURPRISING INTRODUCTION OF NEW CHARACTERS

What I found quite surprising was the introducing of so many new characters. Not that I minded it, I just didn't expect it. Still, I must say that the new characters really made sense. 

We were all just as brave,’ finished Julia Abatemarco. ‘Neither of the sides had the strength to be braver. But we … We managed to be brave for a minute longer."

.....

“Because the people are ignorant, stupid, and easy to manipulate," Skellen finished the sentence, after he had himself a sneeze. "You need only ‘Hurrah!' and make a speech from the senate steps promising to open the prisons and cut the taxes."

"You are absolutely right, Owl," said the syllable stretcher. "Now I know why you shout so loudly for democracy.”

GERALT GETTING SIDETRACKED AND BEING VULNERABLE

She smelled of ambergris, roses, library dust, decayed paper, minium and printing ink, oak gall ink, and strychnine, which was being used to poison the library mice. The smell had little in common with an aphrodisiac. So it was all the stranger that it worked on him.

Geralt gets entangled in a relationship with a sorceress. We follow their story as Fringilla narrates it, so we have another story within the story. 

"I believe," the vampire replied calmly, "You are mistaken, Miss Vigo. The dream you dream with the witcher is, I confess with a bow, magical and beautiful. However, any dream that we dream for too long becomes a nightmare. And from it we awake with a scream.”

As Fringilla brags to other sorceress about how she seduced Geralt, we learn that not all is as it seems. In fact, Fringilla has fallen for Geralt. 

"Go ahead." Fringilla stood up, almost as violent as Milva recently. "As you wish! Snow, cold, and predetermination await you on the passes. And the atonement that you so urgently seem to need. Go ahead! But the witcher is staying here. In Toussaint! With me!"

A TOXIC SORT OF LOVE STORY AND SORCERESSES BEING TOUGH

Sorceresses might be tough, but they suffer too.

“Fringilla,” he answered after a while. “You’re a woman a man can only dream about. My fault, my only fault, is that I don’t have the nature of a dreamer.” 

“You are,” she said a moment later, biting her lip, “like an angler’s hook, which once it’s stuck in, can only be pulled out with blood and flesh. Well, I’ve only got myself to blame. I knew what I was doing, playing around with a dangerous toy. Luckily, I also know how to cope with the effects. In that respect I have an advantage over the rest of the female species.”

.......

“Love,’ Fringilla said slowly, ‘is like renal colic. Until you have an attack, you can’t even imagine what it’s like. And when people tell you about it you don’t believe them.”

THE WINTER IS COMING....

There are some wonderful descriptions to be found in his novel. As for example this passage about the arrival of winter.....

“The sight of the table, arranged in a gigantic horseshoe, signalled emphatically that autumn was passing and winter was coming. Game in all possible forms and varieties dominated the delicacies heaped on great serving dishes and platters. There were huge quarters of boar, haunches and saddles of venison, various forcemeats, aspics and pink slices of meat, autumnally garnished with mushrooms, cranberries, plum jam and hawthorn berry sauce. There were autumn fowls–grouse, capercaillie, and pheasant, decoratively served with wings and tails, there was roast guinea fowl, quail, partridge, garganey, snipe, hazel grouse and mistle thrush. There were also genuine dainties, such as fieldfare, roasted whole, without having been drawn, since the juniper berries with which the innards of these small birds are full form a natural stuffing. There was salmon trout from mountain lakes, there was zander, there was burbot....."

YENNEFER BEING LARGER THAN LIFE BUT NOT AS PRESENT AS I WOULD HAVE LIKED

Yennefer plays a central role in saving Ciri. She endures as much suffering as her adoptive daughter, but always come out stronger. I absolutely loved all the episodes featuring Yennefer, I only wished there was more of her in the novel. When she does step on the scene, Yennefer is very memorable. 

“Bless you,’ said Yennefer, not at all bothered by Vilgefortz’s portentous words. ‘Where did you catch such an awful chill, good sir? Did you stand in a draught after bathing?”

STORIES ARE TOLD BUT REALITY OF WAR IS ALWAYS BRUTAL

“Stories were made up and spun in the evenings in rooms smelling of melting lard and fried onions, village halls, smoky taverns, roadhouses, crofts, tar kilns, forest homesteads and border watchtowers. Tales were spun and told. About war. About heroism and chivalry. About friendship and hatred. About wickedness and betrayal. About faithful and genuine love, about the love that always triumphs. About the crimes and punishments that always befall criminals. About justice that is always just.

THE HUMOUR IS EVER PRESENT IN THE WITCHER SAGA....

For a saga that portrays a violent and chaotic world,  it is wonderfully funny. The amount of humour to be found in his novel is impressive: 

“There are plenty of tapestries like that in Beauclair. The master who wove them was a true master. But he drank an awful lot. As artists do.”

“When they’re about to hang you, ask for a glass of water. You never know what might happen before they bring it.

“Women don't need money. I mean what for? They don't drink, they don't play dice, and they're bloody women themselves.”

“The great and grandiosely heralded feast,’ began Geralt, ‘was preceded by serious preparations. We had to find Milva, who’d hidden in the stables, and convince her that the fate of Ciri and almost the entire world depended on her participation in the banquet. We almost had to force her into a dress. Then we had to make Angoulême promise she would avoid saying “fuck” and “arse”.”

“Caring not for Angoulême’s vulgar October jests,’ Reynart leaned back from the table, his belt loosened, ‘today we drink a fine label and a fine vintage, Witcher. We can afford it, we’ve made some money. We can revel.’ ‘That’s right,’ Geralt beckoned to the innkeeper. ‘After all, as Dandelion says, perhaps there are other motivations for earning money, but I just don’t know any.”

“There was talk about a great victory in this war; it was so important that… That this war put an end to all wars.’ Sheldon Skaggs snorted, spitting beer onto his beer. Zoltan Chivay roared with laughter. ‘What do you think, gentlemen?’
Now it was Dennis Cranmer’s turn to burst out laughing. Yarpen Zigrin retained his seriousness. He studied the young man attentively and seemed concerned.

‘Son,’ he said very seriously. ‘Look. There, sitting at the counter is Evangelina Parr. She is admittedly, substantial. Indeed, even great. But despite her actions, not one whore can put an end to all whores.”

HOWEVER, THE DARK THEMES ARE EXPLORED AS WELL

At the same time, this novel explores some serious subjects such as wars, politics, murders and abuse. There is an underlying message that humans are often the worst monsters.  Perhaps it also implies that- We all must fight our demons in order for the world to become a better place.

“Evil has stopped being chaotic. It has stopped being a blind and impetuous force, against which a witcher, a mutant as murderous and chaotic as Evil itself, had to act. Today Evil acts according to rights–because it is entitled to. It acts according to peace treaties, because it was taken into consideration when the treaties were being written …”

Victory should look thus: the defeated are compelled to buy goods manufactured by the victors. Why, they do it willingly, because the victors’ goods are better and cheaper. The victors’ currency is stronger than the currency of the defeated, and the vanquished trust it much more than their own. Do you understand me, Baron Fitz-Oesterlen? Are you beginning slowly to differentiate the victors from the vanquished? Do you comprehend whom woe actually betides?”

DANDELION AND A FRIENDSHIP THAT HAS SEEN IT ALL

“Dandelion spoke first; elaborately, fluently, colourfully and volubly, embellishing his tale with ornaments so beautiful and fanciful they almost obscured the fibs and confabulations. Then the Witcher spoke. He spoke the same truth, and spoke so dryly, boringly and flatly that Dandelion couldn’t bare it and kept butting in, for which the dwarves reprimanded him.
And then the story was over and a lengthy silence fell.

CIRI ACTING AS SOMETIMES AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR

 

As we move toward the ending, Ciri becomes more unreliable as a narrator.

THE RISKY ENDING THAT WON'T WORK FOR EVERY READER

The ending of the saga was incredibly touching- in my view. It might not appeal to everyone as it is open to interpretation. An ambiguous ending is always risky. 

“He nodded. Reluctantly. He’d had enough of silent assent. Of agreeing to everything she communicated to him, with everything she decided. But he nodded. He loved her, when all was said and done.”

“Destiny isn't the judgements of providence, isn't scrolls written by the hand of a demiurge, isn't fatalism. Destiny is hope. Being full of hope, believing that what is meant to happen will happen.”

OTHER BOOKS IN THE WITCHER SERIES I HAD REVIEWED

THE LAST WISH, THE FIRST BOOK IN THE WITCHER SERIES

The Last Wish could just be the best book in the series for me. It is definitely my favourite among the Witcher books I have read so far. The Witcher series started with short stories. In my opinion, the short story format works really well for this series, especially with the white wolf as protagonist.

 

SWORD OF DESTINY , THE SECOND BOOK IN THE WITCHER SERIES

Sword of Destiny consists of six short stories. All of the stories feature Gerald, the witcher as the protagonist. The stories are told by an all knowing narrator whose voice is often rich with irony and sarcasm. The writing style is simple and descriptive, but at times also poetical.

BLOOD OF ELVES, THE THIRD BOOK (AND THE FIRST  NOVEL) IN THE WITCHER SERIES

Once I started reading Blood of Elves, I immediately felt drawn into the story. The novel is well plotted and well paced.  It's rather conversation heavy so that slows down the pacing but it helps us to get to know the characters better. Moreover, I really enjoyed the dialogues.  I enjoyed learning more about this fantasy world, so I'm not complaining. 

TIME OF CONTEMPT

Time of Contempt is a direct sequel to Blood of Elves. Honestly, at first I hardly noticed the transition from one novel to another. The first part of Time of Contempt might as well be included in Blood of Elves as it almost feels like the same novel. In addition, I was able to read the novels one after the other so the transition was especially smooth. However, as Time of Contempt develops, some differences between the two novels can be spotted. Published in 1995, Time of Contempt takes off where Blood of Elves ended, but it feels more fast paced than its prequel.

BAPTISM OF FIRE

As the novel opens, the war is still in progress. Our heroes were utterly unprepared for an attempted coup at the mage meeting that turned into complete chaos and left the protagonist separated. Yennefer is missing, Geralt is recovering from his serious wounds with the help of dryads. As we learned from previous novel, Dandelion is by Geralt's side. Moreover, another strong female character is soon introduced. One thing I really appreciated is how the witcher world  is depicted as quite complex and morally ambiguous. As the war wages on, one understand the Witcher's wish for neutrality better and better. 

THE TOWER OF THE SWALLOW 

The Tower of the Swallow opens with Ciri waking up in a safe location. One of my complaints about the previous novel was that it didn't feature Cirilla and Yennefer enough. While I understand the reason for their absence, that is, the fact that the novel cannot trace all subplots and characters simultaneously, I still felt like they could have been included somehow. For example, they could have been present in the thoughts of other characters. Whereas it is obvious that Geralt is thinking of them in the prequel novel, it is not exactly shown. In a nutshell, Ciri and Yen are key characters, so their absence is always felt. This novel, however, more than makes up for it. Yen and Ciri take the front stage in this novel.

Thank you for reading and visiting!