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zmeiat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
The blatant male-gazey treatment of the female characters aside, the fantasy was decent. Not very unique, but good nonetheless, with interesting worldbuilding and very endearing bromance between Geralt and Jaskier/Dandelion.
The writting was easy on the eyes and full of action and honestly, what else do you need?
But Andrzej Sapkowski should probably frequent some courses on womens writting and take notes, because everytime a character of "the weaker sex" was introduced i broke into a cold sweat.
The writting was easy on the eyes and full of action and honestly, what else do you need?
But Andrzej Sapkowski should probably frequent some courses on womens writting and take notes, because everytime a character of "the weaker sex" was introduced i broke into a cold sweat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism and Violence
Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism and Infertility
singalana's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Jotkin arvioijat ovat nostaneet esille sen, että Sapkowskin tekstistä paistaa läpi seksistisiä asenteita. No, koska kirja alkaa seksikohtauksella, jossa toinen osapuoli on ilmeisesti melko nuori, en yhtään ihmettele mistä nämä mielipiteet kumpuavat. Mielestäni naishahmojen nuoruus on jopa silmiinpistävää, ja heihin viitataan usein sanalla “tyttö”, eikä nainen. Kirjan hirviöt ovat lähes poikkeuksetta naispuolisia. Ja jos kirjan naishahmot pelastetaan hirviön kynsistä, heidän odotetaan osoittavan asiaankuuluvaa kiitollisuutta.
Kirjan rakenne on melkoisen sekava. Viimeinen toivomus koostuu useasta Noituri-tarinasta. Sen sijaan että ne olisi esitetty kokonaisena ja peräkkäin, ne on pilkottu toistensa lomaan kummallisena sillisalaattina. Tämä ehkä toimii sarjassa, mutta kirjassa lukijan täytyy olla todella hereillä.
Sapkowski lainailee elementtejä kansantaruista ja saduista. Tämä tuntuu hieman jopa laiskalta, sillä odotin, että kirjassa olisi enemmän keskitytty hirviöihin ja ylipäätänsäkin toimintaan. Sen sijaan Viimeinen toivomus on erittäin dialogipainotteinen. Voitaisiin jopa sanoa, että kirja on monologipainotteinen. Äänikirjaformaatissa se jollain tasolla toimii, koska mitä muutakaan äänikirja on, kun jonkun tyypin kertoman tarinan kuuntelemista. Yleisesti ottaen pidän silti enemmän siitä, että dialogi, toiminta ja kuvailu on enemmän tasapainossa.
Sapkowski lainailee elementtejä kansantaruista ja saduista. Tämä tuntuu hieman jopa laiskalta, sillä odotin, että kirjassa olisi enemmän keskitytty hirviöihin ja ylipäätänsäkin toimintaan. Sen sijaan Viimeinen toivomus on erittäin dialogipainotteinen. Voitaisiin jopa sanoa, että kirja on monologipainotteinen. Äänikirjaformaatissa se jollain tasolla toimii, koska mitä muutakaan äänikirja on, kun jonkun tyypin kertoman tarinan kuuntelemista. Yleisesti ottaen pidän silti enemmän siitä, että dialogi, toiminta ja kuvailu on enemmän tasapainossa.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Rape, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
wishbea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Minor: Incest and Infertility
mslotwin's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.25
Im rating it a 3.25 because for a long time a didn’t understand what was going on and that’s my bad. I think I would enjoy it more if before I would just go on Witcher wiki fandom and saw on overview of the stories. Honestly some parts of the world building were great and insanely creative and complex BUT I think there was a bit too much name making/ building. A lot of the plants, the cities had names which came up like once in the book and I imagine in the second part they also wouldn’t be mentioned, which for me personally isn’t really necessary and kind of made me enjoy the book less. I also am not a fan of short stories which again is a me problem mainly because there is a lot of switching the setting/ time period and I get lost pretty easily. I am torn between the book, but I think there is a big chance that I’ll enjoy the second book. A LOT MORE. I also have to mention like the misogynistic comments were crazy bro like I hated how often there were mentions of idk sex with women comments about their bodies or some icky descriptions. I hated how often the first thing when a women character showed up was her ripe boobs and hips. LIKE EWWWW. Jail.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
sunn_bleach's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
"The Last Wish" is a compilation of short stories with a small framing device of Geralt recovering from the trauma of a hunt that almost went wrong. I read this because I needed something light after "Book of the New Sun", and I've wanted to see where it all began regarding the video games.
It's easy to see how this adapted perfectly to games, as each short story acts as a standalone quest much like what's in a standard epic fantasy game. But otherwise, I find this very difficult to go back to, and I would only recommend it for someone like me who's interested in the background of The Witcher series rather than these actually being good. The games sanded off much of the roughness of the 90s, fixed the writing issues, adapted the best ideas, and forewent much of the poorly-aged aspect, like how every woman is either stupid or must be assaulted, like the insipid "realism" people point to in defense of Game of Thrones. It's not "real", it's just crass, and you should read an actual history book.
Overall a meh experience. The translator problems are real; Geralt pirouettes more than a Bolshoi Ballet prima, and everyone is always locking eyes with each other while sneering. The fractured fairytales approach is so ingrained in modern pop culture (and wasn't new back then) that I find it difficult to care or find subversive.
There's a small part of me that would read "Sword of Destiny" as the next short story compilation, but I could also be fine with leaving my book experience of The Witcher here and sticking to the games, which are simply better in every respect.
It's easy to see how this adapted perfectly to games, as each short story acts as a standalone quest much like what's in a standard epic fantasy game. But otherwise, I find this very difficult to go back to, and I would only recommend it for someone like me who's interested in the background of The Witcher series rather than these actually being good. The games sanded off much of the roughness of the 90s, fixed the writing issues, adapted the best ideas, and forewent much of the poorly-aged aspect, like how every woman is either stupid or must be assaulted, like the insipid "realism" people point to in defense of Game of Thrones. It's not "real", it's just crass, and you should read an actual history book.
Overall a meh experience. The translator problems are real; Geralt pirouettes more than a Bolshoi Ballet prima, and everyone is always locking eyes with each other while sneering. The fractured fairytales approach is so ingrained in modern pop culture (and wasn't new back then) that I find it difficult to care or find subversive.
There's a small part of me that would read "Sword of Destiny" as the next short story compilation, but I could also be fine with leaving my book experience of The Witcher here and sticking to the games, which are simply better in every respect.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Vomit and War
kathfoxh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Minor: Rape
anotherwomack's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The excessive undertones of misogyny dampened my experience. Every woman in this story was a monster of some sort and needed to be k!lled or subdued. Most of the time, they were this way as a result of SA or other abhorrent actions by men in their lives. The only two exceptions were the priestess and the prophetess - the former was a healer, the latter saved the day but literally said zero words.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Murder
nyx_reads's review against another edition
Too much inappropriate content.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Sexual harassment
divinereader's review against another edition
Disgusted by the author's misogyny and constant SA references, just wasn't that good either
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail