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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
27,489 global ratings
5 star
66%
4 star
21%
3 star
9%
2 star
2%
1 star
2%
The Last Wish

The Last Wish

byAndrzej Sapkowski
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Top positive review

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a
4.0 out of 5 starsMy Honest Book Review
Reviewed in Australia on 20 January 2020
The Last Wish is a collection of short stories about the Witcher – Geralt of Rivia. It is the first book of the Witcher series and is simultaneously based on during Geralt’s recuperation from injury and recounting the stories that provide foundations for integral story threads throughout the whole series. The stories themselves are well-written and translated and as such, the story flows effortlessly. My only draw-down on this collection is that having watched the series and played the video games, I did feel this was a re-read rather than a first read but that is a me-issue not a book-issue.

For more reviews like this one, check out @myhonestbookreview on Instagram
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2 people found this helpful

Top critical review

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Van
3.0 out of 5 starsAn OK read
Reviewed in Australia on 27 December 2019
Alright book of short stories as an introduction to the Witcher series. As an avid reader of this genre I was disappointed with the Amazon cost when purchasing this on Kindle. There are a lot of books out there, better quality than this and three times longer for a similar price. Would have given it another star if I didn't feel that Amazon were trying to make money off the game and Netflix series
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11 people found this helpful

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From Australia

Tony M
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent content, easy to read, but not a literary masterpiece
Reviewed in Australia on 6 July 2020
Verified Purchase
I like folk stories. I like adventure. I love dialogue. And I love excellent turn of phrase. This book aces three out of the four. Fun read. Its hard to put down and I find the content incredibly interesting; particularly because it reminds me of the stories my parents would tell when I was a child. Its just not written that well. But hey, if you want entertainment, its a great start.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Start To A Series
Reviewed in Australia on 29 July 2016
Verified Purchase
After playing all 3 games i have been putting aside reading the books for to long, so glad i decided to read them and this is a great book to hook you and reel you into the story, would definetly recommend to anyone who loves fantasy novels.
One person found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good start to the series
Reviewed in Australia on 6 January 2020
Verified Purchase
Great book! I've never read Fantasy before and thought it was well written. Enjoyed how the mini stories all connected so well.
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Dax
4.0 out of 5 stars Great series
Reviewed in Australia on 6 February 2020
Verified Purchase
Great series for those that haven't read the books yet.
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User
5.0 out of 5 stars Aweosme
Reviewed in Australia on 21 October 2018
Verified Purchase
Great book
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marcus t
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Reviewed in Australia on 26 July 2017
Verified Purchase
Great book to learn the back story of Geralt of Riva. Looking forward to the next book in the series
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Lachlan
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Australia on 8 July 2018
Verified Purchase
Great book
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Susan P.
5.0 out of 5 stars Witcher also on Netflix
Reviewed in Australia on 24 March 2021
Verified Purchase
Great book
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From other countries

R. Clarke
5.0 out of 5 stars Bite sized legends
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 June 2018
Verified Purchase
Although I read fantasy, I first encountered Geralt of Rivia in the video game, The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt and as I explored this gaming world, I was inspired to discover Andrzej Sapkowski's books – starting with this first collection.

The last story in the book deservedly took third place in a magazine competition and sowed the first seed that created a universe. I enjoyed these original stories, discovering Geralt’s origins in pre-game events. (And these stories are echoed in-game.}

The collection is assembled to reflect the chronology of Geralt’s life, although we have yet to learn many things – and I look forward to reading more books. Sapkowski creates a brilliant and exemplary framing structure for these stories that gives them more impact – and adds to the unfolding plotlines that I know develop. (This is a writing technique that I need to learn.)

Some amazing and complex characters are introduced, including the sorceress, Yennefer, whose life is woven into a complicated relationship with Geralt that opens great possibilities. And then there is Dandelion, the bard whose tales and exploits are something else amusingly different. These are origin stories perhaps before the Witcher-universe had fully-formed, but the characters are relatable.

The tales are rooted in heroic deeds – even if Dandelion has a habit of re-telling them differently. The author demonstrates that he has been inspired by folklore. However, while the echoed fairy stories have a germ of truth, this is a grimmer tradition than Grimm, in a cutthroat environment. There are the Slavic monsters that a reader might expect but other mythologies play their part, adding to a rich tapestry.

The world rings with the realism of bloody steel and fangs, the smells of soiled streets and tempting food. The era doesn’t feel not static, even across so few stories. The times are changing and so are the people. Evolving? Maybe not - but sowing many seeds. This is a medieval world of superstition and persecution – and riven by discrimination that resonates today. Witch-burnings are inevitable, and nothing is black-and-white. Not all monsters are obvious or what they seem.

Is my interpretation coloured by exploring the game-world? Perhaps, but these are the roots of the legend that is Geralt of Rivia. I look forward to discovering how the writing evolved, and how the world of The Witcher builds in later stories and novels. This was definitely the place to start on my quest to enjoy how Sapkowski grew from a very good writer into a master craftsman.

Story – five stars
Setting/World-building – five stars
Authenticity – five stars
Characters – five stars
Structure – five stars
Readability – five stars
Editing – five stars
80 people found this helpful
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Stitch Witch
4.0 out of 5 stars Is it sexist?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 January 2020
Verified Purchase
I have just finished the second book in this series and feel able to comment properly about the one thing that initially bugged me.

People are quite defensive and annoyed when you bring up sexism in fantasy books, but for those of us who look at things at more than face value, then here are some thoughts on how the author deals with female characters.

In the beginning, I felt that yes, there was quite a lot of sexism - I don't mean BY the characters (which was obviously acceptable in Medieval times), but in how the characters are portrayed. It's very much a case of reading the book from a male heterosexual perspective - constant descriptions about women's 'assets', shirts being ripped open, and most of them there for some kind of sexual purpose. Plus there weren't any admirable female characters. Yennefer who some suggest is a 'strong female' was in my opinion just a self-interested lunatic. That may not be the case later in the stories (if she survives) but in books 1 and 2 she's not likeable at all. Even Queen Calanthe is questionable early on. It's not simply that they are flawed, but they don't have anything particularly nuanced about them.

So why did I keep reading if I found that annoying? Well because I love the genre and these stories were good fun and the stereotypes weren't really limited to women, in fact many of the males are no deeper than characters in fairytales. I thought the translation was brilliant - lot's of wit and fluent dialogue. In fact I wouldn't have known they weren't originally written in the English language. Plus there was intelligent messages in drawing the readers attention to the treatment of different 'races' and how we treat nature.

In terms of the sexism, more interesting female characters are introduced into book 2, and there are more references to them bucking the trend or - even better - their sexuality not being referred to at all. Geralt himself is a pretty decent, open-minded character and reverent towards the women in powerful positions, often more so than the men.

And that's the main reason why the books are so good, because Geralt is a great character, but he's not a cliched 'hero' who turns up to save the day in every story. People in the stories are always trying to figure him out, but very little is revealed of inner thoughts, you build a picture from his actions and words. His infatuation with Yennefer is irritating (but that's because she's irritating in my opinion) though it's part of what makes him multi-dimensional.

So I would recommend these stories if you are a fan of the genre and make allowance for the simplistic nature of the characters early on, as they become more complicated later
13 people found this helpful
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