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crystalm17's review against another edition
4.0
Read for the Witcher-a-thon June 2020 reading challenge.
Prompt: Battle of Sodden Hill (Group book: read any book in the Witcher saga)
The only downside, and the reason the book lost a star, was that the dialogue between Geralt and Yennefer never seemed to flow quite right. Big, wordy speeches pretty much every conversation.
Prompt: Battle of Sodden Hill (Group book: read any book in the Witcher saga)
The only downside, and the reason the book lost a star, was that the dialogue between Geralt and Yennefer never seemed to flow quite right. Big, wordy speeches pretty much every conversation.
makennakjacobs's review against another edition
4.5
This was a solid continuation of The Witcher. The episodic construction felt more unified than the last collection because there was a focus on destiny here; Geralt finally found Ciri. I felt like Dandelion/Jaskier got to shine more here too. It was nice that we didn't have to have long brutal descriptions of violence; it was there, but usually just off-page, so the world was believable without us having to wade through all the blood.
shellytw's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
5.0
lizziecassandra's review against another edition
3.5
The writing and construction of the text continues to impress. Incredible character composition and a fascinating world to delve into further.
jon_o88's review against another edition
4.0
Another great book! Much in the same vein as 'The last wish' in it's short-story telling style. Though over time as you read more of these short stories and piece everything together roughly in it's right place (chronologically) it all moulds together and feels like a big novel anyway.
As the title kind of suggests, this book focuses a lot on destiny. Do you believe in it? Can you escape it? What are the repercussions for trying? Geralt grapples with all of these questions.
A new character is introduced and adds a relationship dynamic to the series that was previously unexplored while support characters that have already been introduced are slowly getting more fully fleshed out.
Looking forward to 'Blood of Elves'!
As the title kind of suggests, this book focuses a lot on destiny. Do you believe in it? Can you escape it? What are the repercussions for trying? Geralt grapples with all of these questions.
A new character is introduced and adds a relationship dynamic to the series that was previously unexplored while support characters that have already been introduced are slowly getting more fully fleshed out.
Looking forward to 'Blood of Elves'!
_anthony_'s review against another edition
4.0
4.5, very different from more traditional fantasy stories but that's a good thing. Interested to watch the Netflix series and to read the third book!
duckabroad's review against another edition
4.0
All great projects have to start somewhere, and for Sapkowski, the beginning of writing The Witcher Saga started with Sword of Destiny. And it’s easy to see why this first work led to so many more. The prose and the narrative constructions may be a bit rough around the edges at times, but the stories in this collection are still solid. There’s no direct flow or connection from one story to the next, but they work like puzzle pieces fitted together to create a picture of so many great characters, places, and themes. But while Sword of Destiny is the starting point of Sapkowski’s writings about Geralt the witcher, it’s not where others should start to read the series. That would be The Last Wish.
Sapkowski published The Last Wish a year after Sword of Destiny, and both works are similar in many ways beyond both being short story collections. However, The Last Wish shows a level of writing quality that’s absent at times in Sword of Destiny while also providing background details that make Sword of Destiny less difficult to wade into for someone new to the world of witchers. My opinion: It’s best to start with The Last Wish first and follow up with Sword of Destiny second, but it’s not absolutely necessary. Final grade: B/B-, and a solid four starts.
Sapkowski published The Last Wish a year after Sword of Destiny, and both works are similar in many ways beyond both being short story collections. However, The Last Wish shows a level of writing quality that’s absent at times in Sword of Destiny while also providing background details that make Sword of Destiny less difficult to wade into for someone new to the world of witchers. My opinion: It’s best to start with The Last Wish first and follow up with Sword of Destiny second, but it’s not absolutely necessary. Final grade: B/B-, and a solid four starts.
pandwen's review against another edition
2.0
It was Fine. but it was defiantly dated. the little mermaid story was probably the worst offender for things that frustrated me but if you like the short story format for fantasy it is still well written, particularly in a niche that is not often explored even if its not quite my style. this book had me putting it down many a time and if it wasn't for the dramatic change that is promised in the next book (being the first true book of the series) I would probably stop here... still not 100%sure I wont.
agathe_athena's review against another edition
3.0
More short stories of various adventures of The Witcher. These are mostly concerned with his romantic ties with Yennefer, but also his ties of destiny to Ciri. They are tales of various magical creatures that often take a new slant on the usual myths.
Again, these are straight-forward, action adventure fantasy stories. I am bored by the “star-crossed lovers” plot-line between Geralt and Yennefer, but did enjoy the destiny plot-line between Geralt and Yennefer. I enjoy the world-building and the twists that are given to the usual stories of magical creatures, but am sad by the shallow treatment of women.
Again, these are straight-forward, action adventure fantasy stories. I am bored by the “star-crossed lovers” plot-line between Geralt and Yennefer, but did enjoy the destiny plot-line between Geralt and Yennefer. I enjoy the world-building and the twists that are given to the usual stories of magical creatures, but am sad by the shallow treatment of women.