Sword of Destiny: Tales of the Witcher – Now a major Netflix show (The Witcher, #0.75)

by Andrzej Sapkowski

David French (Translator)

Geralt the Witcher - revered and hated - holds the line against the monsters plaguing humanity in the bestselling series that inspired the hit Witcher Netflix show and video games.

Geralt of Rivia is a Witcher, a man whose magic powers and lifelong training have made him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary killer: he hunts the vile fiends that ravage the land and attack the innocent. But not everything monstrous-looking is evil; not everything fair is good . . . and in every fairy tale there is a grain of truth.

Translated by David French.

Andrzej Sapkowski, winner of the World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement award, started an international phenomenon with his Witcher series. In this second collection of short stories, following the adventures of the hit collection The Last Wish, join Geralt as he battles monsters, demons and prejudices alike . . .

• ISBN10: 1473211557
• ISBN13: 9781473211551
• Publish Date: 21 May 2015 (first published 19 May 2015)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Gollancz
• Edition: Digital original
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English

Reviews

[remo]

Segunda entrega de relatos cortos de la saga de The Witcher, que comencé a leer tras disfrutar la primera temporada de la serie de Netflix. Se deja leer, aunque hay muchos monólogos muy engolados que no aportan. Las aventuras, sin embargo, no solo cuentan relatos emocionantes sino que ayudan a describir a los personajes. La serie ha bebido de estos dos tomos indistintamente; no sé qué harán en la segunda temporada, si mezclar aleatoriamente los relatos que quedan (el del mar y las sirenas desde luego quedaría muy bien en la TV) o si directamente saltarán a la saga de las novelas cue comienza tras estos dos tomos de historias cortas.
En general es una lectura de evasión estupenda.

[moraa]

When you know about something it stops being a nightmare. When you know how to fight something, it stops being so threatening.

3.5 stars

Enjoyed it immensely!

Now it's onto the two trilogies which I've heard are dense.

Can't wait to toss and turn in bed!

[thepunktheory]

Full review on my blog coming soon!

It turns out, just like The Last Wish, Sword of Destiny is also a collection of short stories instead of a full-fledged novel.
Naturally, there are some stories I liked better while there were others I found rather boring. Well, actually I enjoyed all of them quite a lot except for one. This already brings me to my first realization about the Witcher series: I don't care too much about Geralt and Yennefer.
The particular story I am not exactly fazed by features Geralt as well as another lovesick wizard who he is supposed to duel in order to decide who gets Yennefer.
In general, I am not a fan of book Yennefer and here's why: we only get to see her through the eyes of a pining Geralt. That annoys me tremendously and I wish we'd got to see more of her on her own or something about her background. I know the books are decidedly focused on Geralt, but the way it is, it bores me. Their relationship is obviously not a good idea and I don't even want to read more on that front.
Furthermore, we first meet Ciri in another one of the short stories. Geralt runs into her in Brokilon forest and she is a certifiable BRAT. Ciri is a spoiled and annoying little bitch and I almost wish Geralt would have smacked some sense into her. Well, I do spot some character development towards the very end, so maybe there is hope for her in some future story. For now, I really don't care about her at all.
We also get to see more of Dandelion aka Jaskier in this book. He is funny and it's always a delight to find a story that features him. I love his dynamic with Geralt and the adventures with both of them are my favorites so far.
While I generally like that the books (at least the first two, I haven't read any further yet) consist of short stories, it also prevents me a little from really sinking into the story. There are some interesting moments but ultimately I am not desperate to pick up the next volume and find out more.

[HekArtemis]

I got teary eyed at the end, what else can be said?

[kimbacaffeinate]

While the Witcher series begins with Blood of Elves, I think reading or listening to these short stories first help add depth and endear you to the characters. I loved seeing more of Dandelion and Yennifer, not to mention Geralt of Rivia.

This collection has love stories, monsters, humor, death and more. A dragon hunt begins our story, and we learn more about dragons and Witchers. We see more of the romance and complications of Yennifer and Geralt. It pains me, yet I want them together.

A retelling of the mermaid tale was by far my favorite and most excellent on audio. I find it fascinating that the Witcher speaks so many languages. It also reaffirmed my respect fear of the deep blue sea! The mimic story was a good one, if not humorous.

Peter Kenny narrates and does so brilliantly. From the characters to the adventures, he enhanced the story and held me captive. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer

[bumblingbookworm]

This review was originally posted on The Bumbling Bookworm

After reading The Last Wish earlier this month, I just had to pick this up ASAP, I was hooked on this world and needed to know more.  And more was what I got!  This was another collection of short stories, and they gave me more of a glimpse into the world.  The dialogue was even better in this one, and it was great to see some old faces and have that connection to the first book of short stories (which was actually written after this one). 

Much like the first book of short stories, I wanted more from this one - short stories are never enough for me!  I'm really intrigued after that ending to get into the series proper, and see where it all goes from there.  I also went out and bought the whole series, so now I can read it at my leisure and not at the mercy of my library!