The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

February 12th, 2020 Kimberly Review 16 Comments

12th Feb
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski
The Last Wish
by Andrzej Sapkowski
Narrator: Peter Kenny
Length: 10 hours and 17 minutes
Genres: Fantasy
Source: Purchase
Purchase*: Amazon | Audible *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star
Narration: 4.5 cups Speed: 1.3x

Geralt of Rivia is a witcher. A cunning sorcerer. A merciless assassin. And a cold-blooded killer. His sole purpose: to destroy the monsters that plague the world. But not everything monstrous-looking is evil and not everything fair is good... and in every fairy tale there is a grain of truth.

A collection of short stories introducing Geralt of Rivia, to be followed by the first novel in the actual series, The Blood of Elves. Note that, while The Last Wish was published after The Sword of Destiny, the stories contained in The Last Wish take place first chronologically, and many of the individual stories were published before The Sword of Destiny.

fantasy magical well written EPIC

After devouring The Witcher on Netflix, I began the audiobooks and they are fantastic! These shorts are entertaining and offer us glimpses of the world and characters that make up the world of the Witcher trilogy.

I am following the recommended order per the author and publisher.

The Last Wish written by Andrzej Sapkowski and narrated by Peter Kenny made me appreciate the care Netflix took with the series. While Geralt of Rivia is a lot more vocal in the audiobook, I completely pictured him as Henry Cavill. (not a bad thing at all. Hmm)

(Image credit: Netflix)

The Last Wish is a series of short stories or adventures as Geralt of Rivia battles monsters, travels the countryside and meets all walks of creatures from Fae to monsters. We see him sit with the Queen, fall for a sorceress, and deal with the effects of his own transformation.

The author shares retellings of some famous fairytales and enlightens us with stories involving a strigoi, rusalka, and jinn. Even though I had just watched the first season, I found the story, characters, and narration refreshing.

Readers and listeners will find a pleasant mix. Some tales offered humor and others will make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end. These are the tales one tells around a campfire intended to scare.

Andrzej Sapkowski is a brilliant storyteller and I can easily see why this series became a video game and now a series.

Recommended Series Order

  • The Last Wish (short story collection)
  • Sword of Destiny (short story collection)
  • Blood of Elves (Witcher #1)
  • Time of Contempt (Witcher #2)
  • Baptism of Fire (Witcher #3)
  • The Tower of Swallows (Witcher #4)
  • Lady of the Lake (Witcher #5)
  • Season of Storms

Peter Kenny did a fantastic job with the narration capturing the characters and creatures we met along the way.

Now you ask me why should I listen or read it, I watched it? Ah, my friend listen for the details and the untold stories. While Henry does a brilliant job capturing Geralt of Rivia, I truly appreciated getting his inner thoughts, understanding his conflicts and there is a theme here. Geralt very much wants to feel and I think you will be surprised at what you discover.

Fans of fantasy, retellings, and lore will enjoy this story. I am excited to move onto Sword of Destiny.

The Last Wish written by Andrzej Sapkowski and narrated by Peter Kenny delivered with its stories of monsters, heroes and fantasy. #audiobook #TheWitcher Share on X

Cool Tidbit: There are so many editions and translations of this series on Goodreads that the easiest way to find my edition was by using the ASIN/ISBN code.

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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. BlueSky | Facebook | Instagram

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16 Responses to “The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski”

  2. Olivia Roach

    I have been seeing everyone watching the series so I was very curious to know what you would make of the book. I am surprised it is short stories! But it sounds like that form really works well for this book. 🙂

  3. MarthaE

    I am glad you enjoyed the listen too. I haven’t watched the series but my ratings on the audio were similar to yours.
    I have Sword of Destiny in my TBR.
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

  5. Lynn

    Great review! I recently bought The Last Wish but I have been a little hesitant to pick it up because of a couple reviews saying it was boring after watching the show. You’ve made me want to read it again!

  9. Stormi Johnson

    I was so confused through the Netflix show I almost quit but it had nice eye candy to keep me going and I didn’t dislike it but I think trying the books might help me understand things better, or at least that is what I am hoping as I have this one on hold.

    Stormi Johnson recently posted: Review of The Last Sister

    • Kimberly

      It had 3 timelines to introduce key characters. Next season it will be a linear timeline. Yes, the stories make it easier. I admit when I watched, it wasn’t until the second episode that I realized we had different timelines.

  12. Sophia Rose

    I do mean to watch the TV adaption, but good to know that the books of short stories enhance the experience. Love Henry Cavill in anything. 🙂

    • Kimberly

      Funny story, I didn’t realize who he was until my son told me. I could eat dinner with most celebrities and not recognize them or worse…not know their names!!?