The last wish

The character writing at times felt very clunky; it felt a lot like they were over-explaining and giving more exposition than would make sense for the characters described. The narrative surrounding the short stories felt quite weak, to the point where I think I would have enjoyed another short story in its place, and have all the stories be unconnected from one another. I might edit/update this once I read the first book of the Witcher series, and say if I think it's worth reading before it.

A few somewhat conmected short stories; enough to whet ones appetite for heavier fare. Aside from being influenced by Eastern European folklore instead of Western, comfortable and familiar.

I tried the TV series and didn't like it at all. I usually like the book of something a lot better. The Witcher / Last Wish was no exception.

Such a breath of fresh air, seeing a different world (Slavic), and so many amazing people and creatures. I loved this book.

Je tiens d'abord à remercier @des_mots_et_des_pages_ pour cette recommandation de Janvier 2024 de mon 12 livres 12 amis.

Ce premier tome de la saga est très introductif. Il nous permet à travers de différentes nouvelles de découvrir les différents personnages de la saga : Geralt, Yennefer et l'incroyable Jaskier ; mais aussi de commencer des trames de l'histoire à suivre, notamment autour de l'enfant surprise.

Si vous n'êtes pas du tout familier avec l'univers, il va falloir se faire à tout le bestiaire présent, mais je ne pense pas que ce soit quelque chose de complexe.

J'allais dire que l'on s'attache vite aux personnages, mais je le suis déjà depuis longtemps avec le jeu et la série. D'ailleurs pour ceux qui ont vu cette dernière, la première saison correspond à ce premier livre, alors oui j'ai écouté en boucle les chansons de Jaskier qui est sans conteste mon personnage préféré.

Si vous ne vous êtes pas encore lancé dans l'aventure du boucher de Blaviken, qu'attendez vous ?

J'ai apprécié ce recueil de nouvelles malgré tout de même quelques imperfections, notamment le style d'écriture qui pouvait être un peu lourd par moment dans les tournures ou les mots employés. Et l'autre défaut c'est le final des nouvelles qui semblent parfois tomber comme un cheveux sur la soupe (en gros ça se dénoue un peu trop facilement et rapidement). Mais ne vous détrompez pas, j'ai apprécié ma lecture. En particulier le fait que l'auteur se soit inspiré de différents folklores et contes anciens pour les détourner et écrire ces nouvelles. Pour ma part, je connaissais déjà l'adaptation en série télé donc je n'étais pas perdue dans cet univers, mais je me mets à la place de quelqu'un qui découvre "Le Sorceleur" et je me dis que ce format de nouvelles organisées sans chronologie doit en dérouter plus d'un. Néanmoins, les deux œuvres sont différentes. Il y a des choses dans le bouquin qui ne sont pas dans la série et vice versa. Ce recueil de nouvelles aborde 3 événements charnières de la vie de Geralt : Le massacre de Blaviken ("Le Moindre Mal"), les circonstances de l'héritage de l'enfant surprise ("Une Question de Prix") et la première rencontre de Geralt avec Yennefer ("Le Dernier Voeu"). Donc c'est plutôt pas mal de les avoir dès le premier tome pour comprendre la psychologie du personnage de Geralt, car il faut bien ça pour le comprendre, monsieur n'est pas très bavard ni expressif. Au final, ce premier tome est une bonne mise en bouche pour entrer dans l'univers du Sorceleur. L'auteur ne prend pas trop le lecteur pour un abruti, il ne s'amuse pas à décrire tout son univers, on est directement plongé dans l'histoire et on suit Geralt dans des aventures qu'il a déjà vécu. D'ailleurs c'est intéressant ce fil rouge avec la nouvelle "la voix de la raison" qui entrecoupe tout le recueil et permet à Geralt de raconter des histoires du passé et d'introduire les nouvelles qui suivent.

After living with Geralt and crew through 3 games and a couple TV seasons, it was nice to finally read this collection of stories. The writing often felt a bit awkward, but I'm here to flesh out stories I've heard elsewhere or find other stories in between. This did the job well enough that I'll keep rolling.

Wow, I loved this book. The show follows it very well, although I really wish we got to meet Nivellen!! The translation of this book is incredible, the narration is beautiful, and I can't wait to read the rest of the series.

Also I know this won't last, but wow was I pleasantly surprised to read a fantasy book written by a man that didn't contain any sexual violence cough cough George R. R. Martin take a leaf from this book please

The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski


Why I picked this book up?

I binge-watched The Witcher yesterday on Netflix. It had been on my watchlist for a while. I wanted to read the books first and then watch the series.

What do I think of it?
Having watched the series, I can see the changes they made in translating portions of this book to the screen. Series 1 seems to be taken from this book.

I think I'll read the rest of the series too.

A good start to the Witcher series. If you like the Netflix show, you will like this. Most of season 1 came from the stories in this collection. I've only played the game briefly, so I don't know how the storylines stack up there. I knew I would like the "story" and premise, having enjoyed the Netflix series, but was worried about the writing - being translated an all. But it was quite enjoyable and I think I would've liked it even if I hadn't seen the TV show first. A decent amount of world-building without paragraph upon paragraph of the history of things. Highly recommended. I have the next two waiting for me, but might switch it up to something else before starting them.

Like many others, I am reading this by being spurred on by the new Netflix series, based on The Witcher books. I have played The Witcher computer RPG a bit and have been enjoying that as well. This book is 0.5 in the series, in that it is a collection of short stories that precede the first book, [b:Blood of Elves|6043781|Blood of Elves (Witcher, #1)|Andrzej Sapkowski|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1443278828l/6043781.SY75.jpg|1877722] (which I have on audiobook and will start soon). While not a big fan of short stories, each was pretty interesting. I especially enjoyed the start of Chapter 4, where Geralt is carrying on a sort of internal conversation. A nice change of pace from the usual straight forward storytelling of the rest of them.

The Last Wish introduces Yennefer, who I've met in one of the twisting story lines of the series. She doesn't seem very nice! But I guess we see her plenty more in the novels to come. And in the later computer games.

That's been my big problem! Mixing the various media has got me all the more confused as far as timelines go, especially given that I guess the series is particularly twisted (I have only watched the first two episodes so far). And with this book being short stories from all over the timeline, it is a bit dizzying.

But I enjoyed them. Geralt seems a particularly deprecating hero, with some limits to his powers. And the recurring cast of characters around him in the stories make me want to read more. So it is on to book 1!

The video games did a great job of bringing these pages to life. If you liked The Wild Hunt, you'll like these books.