Witcher Buddy Read discussion
The Last Wish, First Reading Chunk Chat :D
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Oh, I really liked the curse! That anybody can cast is, if they feel really strongly about something, but still they have to say it out loud. Ostrit didn't mean it, he was just angry, but I like that it was sort of like 'once you say something, you can't take it back'
I did like that in the end Foltest finally acknowledges that maybe letting the Witcher kill his daughter is the best choice if the curse can't be broken. The whole sister thing was weird, but he truly did care for his daughter and one way or another wanted her at peace.
Long post ahead: with spoilers. :-)Was anyone else taken aback by how the opening Voice of Reason chapter was a scene with a man, presumably the Witcher, in bed with a girl? I was glad that the next Voice of Reason chapter picked up where this first one left off. It helped explain it for me. :-)
I wasn't too clear on why Ostrit wanted the striga to stay just as she was. It's been seven years, and Foltest is still alive. Ostrit's hope that the striga would eventually kill him didn't seem very realistic to me. Or did I miss something?
As far as biting Adda at the end of his fight with her goes, I'm not too clear on what it means that Geralt is a Witcher. So I just assumed that he didn't JUST bite her, that he put some sort of magic into his bite to complete her transformation from striga to the princess. (I could be wrong, but that's my view of it.)
The trance that was talked about in the second Voice of Reason chapter. . . I'm hoping we'll learn why Geralt is so against it in a later chapter or story (or book). Because his belief that he's immune to Trance didn't ring quite true for me.
I'd love to know if any of you have a different - or even the same - take on all of the above points.
I did NOT notice that the stories so far have been dialogue heavy. I did notice that we haven't really been told very much about the world or the magic system. But the way these first three stories went, I totally didn't mind. Even though we were dumped into the middle of an ongoing story, it didn't FEEL like we were "lost" for long. I'm guessing that this is a tribute to Andrzej Sapkowski's writing style (and Danusia Stok's translation), how seamless things feel. :-)
Was anyone else taken aback by how the opening Voice of Reason chapter was a scene with a man, presumably the Witcher, in bed with a girl?
I think this Is simply implying that Geralt is a bit of a womaniser...
Also, I believe Ostrid wasn't relying on the Striga to kill Foltest but instead, that his people would eventually have enough of his stubbornness in trying to cure his daughter, and ultimately overthrow him.
Really enjoyed this first chunk and eager to read more. The business with the curse though, i found that a little confusing, did his anger cause the curse? It took a few pages to get into the writing style and dialogues, all in all though a promising start.
Hope everyone else is enjoying it too.
I kind of felt bad for Ostrit, getting killed. I'm interested to learn more about the world though! The bit of information we get about the temple is intriguing.
Rico wrote: "Really enjoyed this first chunk and eager to read more. The business with the curse though, i found that a little confusing, did his anger cause the curse? ..."
I got the sense that Ostrit must have said something - like, I don't know, "Curses on you!" or some such - back then.
Thanks Jen I wanted to clarify. Hope you enjoy the next chapters.
Josh wrote: "I think this Is simply implying that Geralt is a bit of a womaniser...Also, I believe Ostrid wasn't relying on the Striga to kill Foltest but instead, that his people would eventually have enough of his stubbornness in trying to cure his daughter, and ultimately overthrow him."
Interesting points. I didn't get the sense that Geralt is a womanizer at all. And your thought on why Ostrit wanted Adda to remain a striga makes more sense, but again, it's been seven years and the people don't seem to have risen up against Foltest, so I'm still thinking Ostrit was not the brightest of bulbs. ;-)
I definitely didn't think he was a womanizer while reading it. Especially since they hinted later that he basically thought iola was yennefer. Then he was pretty concerned that nenneke would get Iola in trouble for sleeping with him.
As a side note I'm really enjoying this unique writing style and geralt as a whole. I haven't read enough books with morally gray main characters but I'm really liking it. The fact that he's super tough and he knows it but yet you still find him smiling with other characters is a nice touch. Usually authors make the touch characters too stoic and often boring. Geralt almost seems to have a sense of humor so far and I can't wait to see his personality develop more.
Meekachii wrote: "Geralt almost seems to have a sense of humor so far and I can't wait to see his personality develop more."I read ahead a bit and love the humor! I've laughed three times so far. ;-)
The one line in this first reading chunk that made me laugh was on page 42 in the Voice of Reason chapter that precedes "A Grain of Truth."
Melitele was, after all, the patroness of fertility and birth; she was the guardian of midwives. And a woman in labor has to scream. Apart from the usual cries -- usually promising never to give herself to any bloody man ever again in her life -- a woman in labor has to call upon some godhead for help, and Melitele was perfect.(The bold line is my emphasis; that's the line that surprised a laugh out of me.) :-)
I got up to date with the audio book and I'm really enjoying it! I'm excited to delve more into the stories. And super excited that my copy was delivered today! I've never read a series where you start off with just short stories so it will be interesting getting through all the short stories then moving onto novels.
Did anyone else get the vibe that it was kind of similar to Beowulf and Supernatural? I love the vibe of the paranormal this story is running with! Definitely entertaining and I feel like it's not represented enough in literature quite like this!
Charity wrote: "Did anyone else get the vibe that it was kind of similar to Beowulf and Supernatural? I love the vibe of the paranormal this story is running with! Definitely entertaining and I feel like it's not ..."I didn't think about Beowulf, but now that you mention that ... YES!
Josh wrote: "Was anyone else taken aback by how the opening Voice of Reason chapter was a scene with a man, presumably the Witcher, in bed with a girl?
I think this Is simply implying that Geralt is a bit of..."
Carol I agree in reference to Ostrit I think he was hoping for an over throw also. He was hoping eventually they wouldn't be able take her killing so many people and having to worry who would be next.
Meekachii wrote: "I definitely didn't think he was a womanizer while reading it. Especially since they hinted later that he basically thought iola was yennefer. Then he was pretty concerned that nenneke would get Io..."I agree, I am interested to find out who Yenefer is. Must be someone who maybe he was in love with or had strong feelings for?
Meekachii wrote: "As a side note I'm really enjoying this unique writing style and geralt as a whole. I haven't read enough books with morally gray main characters but I'm really liking it. The fact that he's super ..."He does seem to have sense of humor I like the conversation between him and the Priestess. They seem to have a good relationship.
Hey all! I feel the formula we've got going here is working nicely in accordance to the reading schedule, e.g. We read the alloted section and talk about it over the week whilst we read the next section. A big thank you to Elliot for that! (( a little spoiler about video game Geralt below ))
(view spoiler)
Also, I agree with those who have stated that Geralt bit the princess/striga as a last ditch effort to break the curse that held the girl. By inflicting pain on her, the anger which the Striga thrived on was replaced by the pain and fear of the princess. Ultimately returning her to a young girl.
and relating to what I said about Geralt being a womaniser, I agree with Wendy, that he was once in love with Yenefer (and probably still is), but finds himself trying and to find what he had with her with other women.
Josh wrote: "I agree with those who have stated that Geralt bit the princess/striga as a last ditch effort to break the curse that held the girl. By inflicting pain on her, the anger which the Striga thrived on was replaced by the pain and fear of the princess. Ultimately returning her to a young girl."Thanks for explaining, because I was so confused about that part, but even more confused by the author leaving that question unanswered.
I'm also wondering why it seems people can't help but confess things to Geralt. Velerad, Ostrit, and Foltest tell Geralt everything even though they've only known him for like five minutes lol.
I didn't know much about this series before going in and it has a much darker, grittier feel than I was expecting. This story about the striga was really interesting and gave us a glimpse into the world. I agree that it feels like we've been thrown into the middle of an ongoing story, but I think because these are short stories it works well! This section has me intrigued to see what comes next!
I'm a bit ahead of the reading plans, because I simply cannot stop reading this novel! I agree with Jade in that it is so dark and gritty, more so than I expected! I like that there's not much introduction necessary, I feel like I simply learn about Geralt and the world as everything happens and that is enough! I also love how flawed he is, while also very much a character you can really appreciate!
Totally agree Merel, so easy to get into this story and learn as you read. Some fantasy can be a bit daunting especially the first books.
I am in love with this series already. It's so different from other fantasy I've read. My introduction to Witcher was through playing Wild Hunt, and I'm impressed with how well the game matches the tone of the books. They truly feel like part of the same world. Anyone else currently playing the game?
Nicole wrote: "I am in love with this series already. It's so different from other fantasy I've read. My introduction to Witcher was through playing Wild Hunt, and I'm impressed with how well the game matches the..."I've played the game a couple of months ago, and it's one of my fave games ever.. And so far, the book is pretty good too <3
Playing the game Nicole! Its such a good game. I love how well it matches the tone and how Geralts character is the same. Really loving this series.
I played it too last year and my plan is to play it again this summer hopefully. I like the world so much! It would be nice to have read all the novels it might make the game even more enjoyable
Really loved this beginning story! You're right, Sapkowski is really good at showing multiple sides of the story, as I actually felt quite a bit of sympathy for Foltest. I know someone above mentioned Geralt biting Adda, and I believe this was just a way to shock her with pain to make her more human nature come out. He had her arms pinned to the ground and was bleeding from his neck, so that was really the only other option. I understand now that in the opening sex scene he believed the lady was Yennefer, as I was sort of confused at first why the author would start with a sex scene with no context at all. I've read ahead quite a bit and am really enjoying it!
I've only played The Witcher 3, but will definitely be going back and playing through the first 2 once I'm done with the series :D
Bit late tot the party, took a while for my book the get here.I was really happy that you mentioned that the Voice of Reason parts were present day! Pretty sure I would have been confused otherwise haha. The first chapter was a bit weird, with the whole sex thing. It made me wonder if the whole book was going to be like that xD
I loved the striga story. My boyfriend has played the Witcher games and he has mentioned how most of the characters are morally grey and I could totally understand what he meant by this when I read the story. Foltest seems to really love his sister and daughter which made me feel so many things because I can't support incest but I kinda did? The curse part is really interesting, imagine if you could curse someone without even wanting to or knowing it!
The second Voice of Reason part made me really curious about Geralt and what has been going on and what might be happening. I wonder if he lied about the Trance thing or if there is more to it...
Overall I really enjoyed this first chunk. The story is easy to get into, even though we jump around in time quite a bit. I hope that we get to see Geralt on some more adventures and travel around the world :) The book also made me really excited to play the game at some point! Every time I read about a character or a place I ask my bf if he recognises it. I might try the game after reading the books!
I'm a little late starting as well. I started it yesterday and I'm halfway through. At first I was confused, I wasn't expecting stories. After I read a couple, I was completely hooked. I love Geralt! He is such a great character.
Spoilers for the designated reading points ahead, so if you haven’t finished reading up to where a Grain of Truth starts, don’t read this! Also, if you’re new to the group, the designated reading sections are in earlier thread titled Witcher Buddy Reading Info :)
Alrighty, what are everyone’s thoughts so far?
When I first started reading Witcher, I was surprised by the large amount of dialogue. It took me some getting used to, but this time around I’m LOVING it. Listening to the audio books has been fun too, because sometimes it can be a bit confusing keeping track of who is who when people are referred to as “the man” or “the pockmarked man” 😆
Something I find Sapkowski does really well is show you multiple sides. In the short story of The Witcher, you kinda feel for Foltest even though he *cough* gets it on with his sister. But he clearly wants to help his daughter and cease her suffering, which I always found to be a sign of compassion. But then we hear from Ostrit, who loved the king’s sister Adda. It almost seems fitting that the striga kills him since he caused the curse, but the curse was an accident! 😩 Idk how you all feel about it, but it hit me even harder this time around.