Finished reading the Witcher saga and what a story. There were some parts that were a bit of a slog for me but when it really picked it up I was way into it. I wish there had been a map or an index of characters and their affiliations though because there were so many names and locations and I had a hard time keeping track of them all, especially since some only showed up several books after their first appearance. There were a lot of different frame stories used throughout, and while some weren’t that effective, I think they overall were a good decision.
Lady of the Lake has some really fantastic moments especially in the climax at Strygga Castle and the events immediately leading up to it, and of course Dandelion’s almost execution by his Little Weasel. But there were also parts that frustrated me, and I didn’t get satisfying answers to. I also found the choice to have Ciri go to ‘our’ world to be strange and out of place, but I can forgive it. The major character deaths were devastating; I really, really wished at least one of the three companions lived. Milva’s in particular felt unfair to me. Regis was my favorite, but I kind of expected him to bite the dust.
The final chapter has me feeling conflicted. There were things I liked about it, but others that felt unfair and more for the sake of it. I wish the prophecy Ciri spoke about Geralt’s death was mentioned early in the story (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t). It would have been really fun to see him fearing ‘three teeth’ only for the twist at the end that it was a trident. It also feels shitty because you mean to tell me that that was what took Geralt down? A pitchfork thrown at him, when he’s survived so much shit and would ordinarily be capable of deflecting or avoiding it? Incredibly funny though that he gave up being a Witcher only to moments later retrieve his sword, as is always the case. I love that he got to be with Yennefer and they got married after, though, because they deserve to finally be insane together after having the most chaotic, toxic on/off relationship for ages.
I wasn’t expecting the series to wrap up with an “and everyone lived happily ever after and evil was vanquished” ending but I do find it a bit upsetting that there’s no real indication of how things will go, if they will improve or not. The last few chapters show the sorceresses still scheming, rulers still feuding, and oppression and hostility still in full force. I mean Geralt got injured protecting dwarves during a pogrom. I just didn’t get the impression that there was hope for the people of this world; Geralt himself was extremely jaded, which was so disheartening, even if it’s to be expected. If there was more optimism that things would get better, I’d have been more satisfied, even if it was still very ambiguous. Unbeatable human spirit and all that. The Witcher isn’t even grimdark imo, so I was just surprised.
The last thing I’ll bring up is that I didn’t see the reveal of the emperor’s true identity coming. I was blindsided and realized that all the pieces were there, I was just having trouble putting them together because I had ruled that character out for various reasons. Very fucked up situation but you have to wonder how much of it was Vilgefortz’ doing. I was satisfied with how it was resolved. Theres a lot of characters with fucked up morals that are cool to explore, even if I want to gut them like fish.
All in all a very enjoyable series and I’m hoping that as I look into more background info I’ll get some more clarity on some things but definitely worth a read if you like fantasy that’s dark but not grimdark I had a lot of fun with it.
