Sword of Destiny: Tales of the Witcher – Now a major Netflix show

I was extremely pleased with 'The Last Wish', and I think 'Sword of Destiny' is even better. We are introduced to Ciri in this collection of stories, and the doubt, the emotion, the intensity which is conveyed so well in the brilliant Netflix Witcher series is immediately visible here.With as much wisdom and intelligence as action and drama, Sapkowksi has not only created some of the greatest characters in all fantasy, but some of the most moving stories.I can't wait to read 'Blood of Elves' and start the saga proper.

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Much like The Last Wish before, Sword of Destiny is a collection of short stories following a talented witcher called Geralt of Rivia. Although you can start the series with Blood of Elves which is where the full-length novels commence, I can't recommend enough that even though a handful of these short stories are hit-and-miss, that they will add considerable depth to the future narrative arcs.The Last Wish featured mostly isolated stories with the Witcher tackling a certain monstrosity for a set payment. He travels around the world to where his peculiar killing and magic techniques are needed to tackle a problem and individuals will hire him. In the first book, apart from a couple of brief interludes, there were no recurring characters. It was solely about a certain adventure at one end of the world and then another a thousand miles away. Sword of Destiny features a handful of main characters from the series who become more fleshed out as there presence recurs. Geralt's friend and lady loving bard Dandelion, his mysterious sorceress love interest Yennefer and a potential child of destiny called Ciri. If you've played The Witcher computer games I imagine you a familiar with these characters, the sort of missions set and the monsters the Witcher is assigned to eradicate, and how beautiful and vast this created world is.I found the stories in The Last Wish more consistent but two or three of my favourites are from this entry. If you decide to read the short story collections first I'd truly recommend starting with The Last Wish and not Sword of Destiny. Two stories in The Witcher #1, one including Yennefer and one including a Queen and a Princess, add huge depth to the action and events that occur in this collection, especially with certain relationship complexities.The Witcher tales are exciting and addictive to say that a story can be finished within about half an hour. Sapkowski doesn't dumb down the world and there are a plethora of complex characters and demons throughout these pages. My favourite story is here is The Bounds of Reason and it features about twenty-five different well-crafted characters who set off on a mission to kill a wounded dragon. I found this narrative exceptional, unpredictable, thrilling with a hell of a twist at the end. This sets Sword of Destiny up brilliantly. This constructed world does feature typical fantasy tropes but nothing feels forced. It all feels enticing and original. I'm not looking forward to seeing more of the Elves in the next book!I won't go into the details of the stories too much as it might approach spoiler territory. I will confirm that these tales feature many fantasy races as well as mermaids and underwater warriors, showdowns with sorcerers, a group trying to trace a doppleganger, and also meeting Ciri. It features monster hunting of course but not as much and as frequent as The Last Wish. Each The Last Wish story played like a level on the Witcher games. These are less standalone and cleverly building up for the full narrative which will start with Blood of Elves.I adored The Bounds of Reason, A Little Sacrifice and Sword of Destiny. Eternal Flame and A Share of Ice were very average. The final story Something More I really struggled with initially. It follows two timelines as Geralt in a fevered state and I sometimes got confused where and when we were. If it was a full-length story I wouldn't have finished it but I did and I'm glad I fought through as the ending is highly satisfying with setting up what can possible happen in the next outings.I decided to read all of the Witcher books before the TV series is released and I am glad that I have taken on this venture. I've read the first two books within four days and I can't wait to move on further. I often struggle with short stories but I can recommend these highly. The Bound of Reason is one of the top two finest short stories I've ever read alongside Sebastian De Castell - The Fox and the Bowman.

If you have read the other Andrzej Sapkowski books then you will really enjoy this one too. Or it can be read separately and still be enjoyed! It is another book of short stories from the author, following on from The Last Wish and leading you on to the mail story line throughout the other three books involving Ciri. Having read all of the others before this one I found it to really tie the stories together and found it a really enjoyable read. Even if it did continue my hating of Yennefer!I am not going to give any of the story away but I would recommend these books to anyone interested in fantasy novels and can promise you that you will not be disappointed by the Witcher stories. They have some really good characters involved and there is plenty of unexpected twists throughout the whole saga. I haven't played the games as yet but the more I read these books the more I am tempted to buy them and give them a go, if they are anywhere close to being as good as the books then they should be really epic games.If you are new to the author, I would recommend starting with The Last Wish, then the Sword of Destiny, followed by the other 3 in order. This gives you the story chronologically and should cover the whole story. As far as I know, they have released another book in the series a few months ago that I haven't got round to getting yet but am very excited by the prospect of carrying on the story.

I think I was drawn to the first book in this series, The Last Wish, by the novelty. There is noting new about twisted fairytales, but the way Sapkowski so thoroughly subverts and turns the genre on its head is really quite unique. The writing (or perhaps the translation) was a little clunky and the structure felt overly constructed. This book, the second in the series, is much more story driven. It is still episodic, but they hang together in a more meaningful way, I started to get pulled along by the flow of the story arc.Geralt continues his search for purpose in a world that despises him, amongst those who see him only as a tool for killing to used for their own end. There are some absolutely cracking short stories in here, and great character development. We start to get more invested in the main characters, but some of the minor characters, that only stick around for a single chapter are so beautifully drawn, Essi Draven, the feisty love lorn bard, and Villentretemerth, really stood out. The world that the author creates for these characters to inhabit it complex and coherent, immersing yourself in it and unravelling its mysteries is a real buzz.As soon as I had finished this book I downloaded the next - two books on, I haven't stopped yet, they keep getting better and better.

A beautiful collection of short stories that digs deeper into Geralt, Yennefer, and the lore fans love. Some tales are light and fun, others hit hard emotionally—especially “A Little Sacrifice” and “Something More.” Introduces Ciri in such a meaningful way it gave me chills. A must-read for fans of the game, and a reminder that these characters are more than just monsters and magic.

' a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary murderer' advertises the description of the book. I don't know who wrote that sad sales pitch, but 'The Witcher' is neither an assassin, nor a murderer, so ignore it. Ignore the Mills & Boon book cover as well, because 'The Witcher' has white hair. Seriously, this book deserves better.Anyway, on to the actual book.Read this Witcher book before the others. I read book 1 to 3, then this one. Only to find this one is set before the events of the main series - books 1 to 5(?) - I wish I'd known that before starting reading.Books 1 to 3 (and maybe 4 and 5 too, I haven't read them yet) are all one epic story, split over several books, and flow one into to the next almost seamlessly.This book is a collection of short stories, all set prior to 'Book 1'. The stories themselves are a mixed bunch - varied length and quality - but several provide some very important background for the Book 1 - 5(?) epic. Because there are several short stories here there is a lot less of the lengthy geopolitical exposition you get in the multi book epic - the stories are far 'more personal' by necessity. That said, you still get the philosophising and moralising.Of the stories in this book: one is quite predictable, one is very sad (brought a tear to my eye anyway), one is very clever (unexpectedly thought provoking), one is very confusing (maybe deliberately so because of the nature of the story it is telling) ..... and so on ...... but all are well worth reading. Read it before 'Book 1', and don't skip any of the stories. You won't regret it.

Became a fan from Witcher 2 & 3 on the PlayStation. Loved the Netflix series so picked up the books. They didn’t disappoint

Secondo libro di short stories nella saga di Geralt, successivo a the last wish e che precede blood of elves, che è il primo romanzo.Fortemente consigliato a tutti gli amanti dell'heroic fantasy. Geralt ha più di qualcosa in comune con Elric di Melniboné, il che è un gran complimento. Decisamente atipico e fuori dai canoni del fantasy tradizionale. Sono storie brevi slegate tra di loro, ma nella loro successione seguono un filo logico e cronologico; la figura di Geralt viene delineata non attraverso decrizioni ma tramite il racconto diretto degli accadimenti. E' un espediente interessante. Ne viene fuori un quadro a tratti scarno ma sicuramente vivo e potente. L'ultimo racconto è meraviglioso.Che altro dire, va letto.

Very nice quality! Worth it.

Je continue ma lecture de cette série de livres pour avoir au moins atteint le tome 1 correspondant à la sérié télé qui va sortir et toujours autant de plaisir: on retrouve tous nos personnages, avec leurs défauts qui s'affichent au grand jour, et on s'approche petit à petit de l'intrigue principale qui va ressortir.On retrouve moins les rapports aux contes de fées du précédent tome et on attaque directement avec beaucoup de personnages autour de l'attaque d'un dragon, le temps pour l'auteur de se moquer de certains tropes classiques de ces personnages.On retrouve aussi beaucoup de dialogues, personnellement j'ai trouvé ces parties très drôles. On en apprend un peu plus sur les witchers et un peu tous les personnages. Le seul qui m'agace est Dandelion, trop caricatural sans doute.La fin nous prépare au roman suivant qui commence la trilogie associant Geralt et Ciri. Et j'ai déjà commencé ce premier tome qui nous en apprend encore un peu plus sur qui sont les witchers.Bref, je recommande sans hésiter pour les amateurs de fantasy grim dark et qui attendent un peu d'humour en prime autour.

Gran libro, apasiona hasta el final , y sobre todo a mi joven hijo , espero continuar comprando lis que faltan pronto

Assim como o primeiro livro, "Sword of Destiny" é um livro de contos, sem ter necessariamente uma linearidade temporal entre eles. Apesar de ainda não ter chegado nos volumes principais, acredito que os que tenham melhor relação com a história posteriormente são "Sword of Destiny" e "Something More" (os dois últimos) - que inclusive já apareceram na 1° temporada da série, mesmo tendo também aparecido na série "The Bounds of Reason".Li na versão para Kindle e não encontrei nenhum erro ou algo para não recomendar.Com relação ao conteúdo, gostei bastante! Lerei os próximos para saber também a relação com os jogos!