Known famously as the Polish Tolkien, Andrzej Sapkowski was anything but a writer initially. A travelling salesman dealing in furs with a degree in economics, he spoke many languages. A voracious reader, he loved fantasy. One fine day in 1985, he entered a short story competition. Thus was born Wiedzmin, later translated as The Witcher, which the writer later claimed was created at the request of his son. And the rest, as they say, is history—or, to be more precise, fantasy.
With The Witcher gaining unprecedented fandom, Sapkowski soon followed with a couple more, Sword of Destiny (1992) and The Last Wish (1993). With ample support, Polish publishers SuperNowa commissioned Blood of Elves, the first book in the Witcher saga in 1994. Soon, the author was turning out one book annually and by 1999, the series was complete. However, the books were released in English only 2007 onwards.
To sum up the vast series in one short paragraph: The story follows a man named Geralt who is a Witcher—someone with supernatural abilities and trained to battle beasts. These witchers are somewhere in the realm of good and bad, black and white. They are regarded with both awe and disgust. Geralt is set to protect Ciri, a princess, whose country has been conquered and destroyed. The series boasts just about everything you may want from an engaging read—drama, sex, politics, and even comedy.
It’s a world full of ancient European history with monsters, myth and magic. Surprisingly, science also makes its presence felt from time to time, and there is a lot of overlap between magic and science. Unlike a similar series—Game of Thrones—this one does not draw heavily from action. It is rather about magic and the conflicts it throws up. Evil takes many forms here and monsters hide in plain sight. The central characters are expertly fleshed out—Geralt, the pragmatic mercenary who though existing in a morally ambiguous world, holds on to his own personal code of ethics and is also charmingly socially awkward, and Ciri, the young orphan-princess battling her inner demons.
The two are linked by destiny. Ciri becomes a witcher-in-training under the charismatic Geralt while trying to fight forces that want to use her as a pawn. She can rival Arya Stark in her journey to becoming a self-possessed young woman from a precocious child. At the same time, Geralt unwittingly becomes her guardian angel, keeping her safe and preparing her to fight her demons.
From enduring friendships, mature relationships, to bonds with opposites, the series has everything in generous doses, while at the same time not over-burdened. Needless to say, the sword-wielding action and grotesque monsters soon spawned a film, two television series and a trilogy of video games. Suddenly one couldn’t get enough of the Witcher. After all who doesn’t like watching the games between mortals and ghouls, mages, witchers, sorcerers, vampires, elves , dwarves, princesses and what have you. Also, the fact that the dimpled Superman Henry Cavill plays Geralt of Rivia in the Netflix version probably has aided to the popularity of the book.
The series has left readers hungry for more. In fact, many have come up with request to start a series on the hunky Geralt alone. From Geralt’s silver sword, to Dandelion, a poet friend of Geralt, Yennifer, a sorceress with whom Geralt has a troubled relationship, and Triss, also a sorceress and a friend of Geralt, the story of Geralt alone can be developed into a larger novel, many feel. While it still remains to be seen whether the now 71-year-old former fur salesman will churn out more magical reads, one can always live in hope.