Hello Fellow Journeyers,
I have a complicated relationship with the Witcher saga with two main problems: the first problem was how unimpressed I was with the main saga: Blood of Elves, Time of Contempt, Baptism of Fire, The Tower of Swallows, and The Lady of the Lake. The second issue I have a problem with is the amount of graphic sexual content involved in many books of the series. While I do not shy away from "adult" content such as violence, language, themes, and traumatic events, (all can be included in great writing and with purpose) there is a line of enjoyment that goes down seriously once it has been crossed in the realm of sexual content. Especially when considering the objectification of women highly prominent in mainstream fantasy. For this reason, I cannot rate this series as high as the writing may warrant because of the choices of the author in the latter category.
What's the story about: The Last Wish is a fun collection of short stories introducing us to the infamous Witcher, Geralt of Rivia. What is most enjoyable about this collection of short stories, is that it really frames Geralt's thinking and motivations with each short story. There is a cohesive thread that takes the reader from past to present that helps each of the stories stay in line and really without these stories, we wouldn't understand who Geralt is.
After reading it twice, I decided to read each short story in chronological order to see how it differed from the order found in the book. And to be honest, I enjoyed it more. I was honestly confused by jumping around so much that I missed some of the greater parts of each story just trying to find my bearings.
But not all of the short stories are equally enjoyable. To me, the present story (named The Voice of Reason) that cohesively narrates the short stories in sequence is quite dull, but helps wrap up the book as a whole. I found the stories The Witcher, A Grain of Truth, The Lesser Evil, and A Question of Price to be the best in the bunch and are easily returned to for multiple readings. They each hold a distinct and interesting feel and have much to say that gives the world of the Witcher life. The Edge of the World and The Last Wish are both necessary for the overall story, but aren't as re-readable to me.
Finally, the best aspect of Sapkowski's writing comes down to how he narrates the world. When it comes to setting, it's eloquent, vivid, rich, and lived in. When it comes to characters, every single side character and main character are richly designed with dialogue, backstory, and motives that are always interesting and dynamic. And then the philosophy behind the tapestry of storytelling is dark, but painfully real and realized. Sapkowski has lots to say about the nature of humanity, and through the lens of Geralt, it's not all nice.
★★★★ 4 Stars - The Last Wish is a phenomenal introduction to Geralt, Dandelion, and the world of the Witcher. It's fast-paced, personal, and joyously entertaining. While it loses a star for the graphic sexual content, it is a very enjoyable read by itself.
Let me hear from you! If you like what you read, want to hear more thoughts on this book, other reviews, or talk book recommendations and Essential Reading, leave a comment below.
Rating system:
★★★★★ 5 Stars: It was amazing; I loved it. Read this book; it is definitely Essential Reading!
★★★★★* 4.5 Stars: It was fantastic, I really loved almost every aspect of it.
★★★★ 4 Stars: It was very good and worth reading; highly recommend.
★★★★* 3.5 Stars: I enjoyed a lot of aspects of this story, but it was lacking in certain areas.
★★★ 3 Stars: It was good, but could've been better or improved upon significantly.
★★★* 2.5 Stars: I wanted to enjoy it. Certain aspects were good, it was worth finishing, but many issues.
★★ 2 Stars: It was okay, I didn't feel strongly about it.
★ 1 Star: I did not like it. It was not worth finishing or I did not finish it.
*I round up based on the system on Goodreads. Also, there is no 1.5 Stars because it does not seem to have enough differentiation.
