A review by goobur
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

There’s something so deliciously compelling about how The Last Wish weaves its tales. With its world systems being based on the power of emotion and stories, it creates an incredibly intuitive avenue for the reader to easily understand what is occurring without the author bogging things down with overwrought exposition. Characters give brief, vague explanations of world mechanics and you’ll be nodding your head going, “Yes, of course, that makes sense.” Maybe Sapkowski has the internal logic of the world all thought out, maybe he doesn’t; frankly, it's irrelevant, as all that matters is that it makes intuitive sense to the reader—which it does. It shows a level of understanding and respect from the author to the reader about what’s actually important in stories: the events, their thematic undertones, and how both of those culminate into emotional resonance for the audience. Not every little detail, lore, or word must be revealed, the world can simply exist while the reader peers into it, obtains their own implications, and that is it.