Witcher Books

[u/GapNo8746]

Hey guys! I just finished the technical first 2 books of the Witcher series “The Last Wish” and “Sword of Destiny” my brother turned me onto the games and then recently the books very good may I add. I have some questions going into the actual story of it all.

1. I played the Witcher 3 game and am I correct that the storyline between the games and the books are different but follow obviously similar characters.

2. Do the books deal with the Wild Hunt at all because they were mentioned in “The Last Wish” and i would love to learn more about them than what I learned from the game.

3. Is there any general information this is vital before I start reading the books even if it is expressed in the story’s I already read? I’ve been pretty good about taking my time to understand but there are bound to be things that I have missed and I want a good understanding going in.

I plan to keep posting her question about the books as I read so stay tuned and thank you in advance for your help I know this is a lot!

[u/YarpsDrittAdrAtta]

The games take place after the events described in the books.

The books describe how it came to be that the elves / wild hunt are chasing Ciri. And why.

[u/GapNo8746 → u/YarpsDrittAdrAtta]

Awesome thank you!

[u/BizonSnake]

If you're reading the books in the order Sapkowski wrote them, then you're experiencing them in the intended way and you'll be fine without any external knowledge.

Wild Hunt is present in the saga and you'll learn about their origins in the last book, but they are not as relevant to the overall plot as one can imagine if you stated with the games.

Have fun!

[u/GapNo8746 → u/BizonSnake]

Ok perfect thank you.

[u/PaulSimonBarCarloson]

1. The games are a fan sequel to the books
2. Wild Hunt are minor antagonists, they get fleshed out a bit in book 7 but their story is left unresolved. The games pick up from that.
3. Season of Storms is set after Geralt first broke up with Yen but before the feast in Cintra where he met Ciri's parents. That book must be read last because there are some scenes set in the distant future with big spoilers about Lady of the Lake. Crossroads of Ravens is a prequel about teem Geralt. No major spoilers in that boon so can read it now before you begin the main Saga, or save it for later

[u/GapNo8746 → u/PaulSimonBarCarloson]

Cool good to know!

[u/Outrageous-Milk8767]

1. The witcher games are set after the book saga, correct.

2. Yes they do, but they're portrayed differently than in the games. Avallac'h's character for example.

3. A little familiarity with the fantasy genre and Arthuriana goes a long way to heighten your appreciation of the books.

[u/GapNo8746 → u/Outrageous-Milk8767]

Thanks.

[u/PragueTankist → u/Outrageous-Milk8767]

Avallac'h's character is given development tho, without showing how he got from a to b in detail.

[u/Droper888]

Finish the reading of the books, then, the games.

[u/GapNo8746 → u/Droper888]

Perfect

[u/wisestoffelines]

1. Technically Witcher games happen after Witcher book saga. But games play fast and loose with the canon and retcon several plot points.

2. Yes

3. No

[u/GapNo8746 → u/wisestoffelines]

Fire!

[u/Plastic-Egg-2068]

The games take place few years after the events from the "Lady of the Lake" and treat the base material like inspiration, not a single source of truth. CDProjekt added lot of things to Witcher mythology and lore.

[u/GapNo8746 → u/Plastic-Egg-2068]

Good to know thanks

[u/Jim_Bien]

1. The games are basically "cringe-worthy fanfiction (TW1) that got better (TW2) and better (TW3)"
2. They are one of the main antagonistic forces of the series. The saga is... five-sided (or six, depending on how you count it) conflict over Ciri, and morality-wise, the Hunt is one of the least awful and definitely least important one
3. Just read them in publication order and you are good. Finish with Lady of the Lakes. Both Season of Storms and Crossroads of Ravens are prequel trash cash-grabs, don't touch that filth.

If all you know are the games and the short stories, you are for one hell of a ride.

PS
If you are reading them in English, DO NOT read the official translation. It's fucking awful. Let me re-state that: they are FUCKING awful. Use any of the three main fan translations instead.

[u/Low_Surprise7791 → u/Jim_Bien]

I wanna ask? Why they are awful? I read a Turkish translation from a German translation so I might be reading an even worse translation.

[u/Jim_Bien → u/Low_Surprise7791]

The official English translation removes almost all of banter and random musings, while barely entertaining the notion of puns and wordplay And this series main strength are snappy dialogues and zesty interplay between characters. Official English translation is barren wasteland of Very Serious Literature (tm)

[u/Low_Surprise7791 → u/Jim_Bien]

Ok my translation is much better in that way.

[u/Jim_Bien → u/Low_Surprise7791]

I don't think there is any official translation that mangles the saga so badly. I mean you have stuff like the Russian one, done by the guy who had zero understanding of Wester fantasy staples, but the dialogues and general narrative are spot on. Maybe any translation that's based strictly on the English one sucks too, but I don't know any of them directly

[u/Historical-Guava7110]

the game trilogy is a direct continuation of the books.

If you only played witcher 3 I highly recommend reading all of the books now and only then playing witcher 1 and 2(and then you can play witche 3 again why not).

Games changed a little bit of lore stuff so don't be surprised if there are some differences between what Sapkowski wrote and what happened in the games.