Another day, another Witcher novel to immerse myself in. Sword of Destiny is another short story collection within Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher world set at the eve of the main overarching story plot, Blood of Elves. I cannot say much more on that matter as I have not read Blood of Elves, but with how Sword of Destiny plays out, I cannot wait to see how the main story will unfold.

Geralt is a witcher, a man whose magic powers, enhanced by long training and a mysterious elixir, have made him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary murderer: his targets are the multifarious monsters and vile fiends that ravage the land and attack the innocent. This is a collection of short stories, following the adventures of the hit collection The Last Wish. Join Geralt as he battles monsters, demons and prejudices alike…

A pretty succinct description for what is a riveting, lush, adventurous run-in with many creatures, beasts, and monsters – not all of which are non-human. Sword of Destiny is, as I can now attest, one of the books that supports The Witcher season one on Netflix, and I am happy to have read it given my appreciation for some of the stories. With every tale, more and more humanity would come through from Geralt, and the overarching themes and sentiments are crafted with an expert hand, making the emotionless Witcher who can’t feel anything more human and more emotional than many assume.

I love the further development of characters from The Last Wish, especially Dandelion and Yennefer, and the introduction of Princess Cirilla whom is a key character from this point on if my memory and foresight serve me right. I really liked Ciri as a character in the show, and I am excited to see how Ciri affects Geralt’s interactions and decisions in the books to come. I am also excited for some fully-fledged novels. I admit, I have been getting a little sick of the short story format given my want to see more long-lasting story arcs, some stronger connections forged between characters, and more insight into how Geralt is and came to be. I want to follow him and his little band through full story arcs that take full novels to hash out the conflicts, dilemmas, monster-fighting action, and relationship developments. I don’t know if I will be able to read another short story collection so soon in the line-up, which has me glad that Season of Storms is last in order.

The fantasy world continues to develop, with lush settings, fun details, and varied characters and conflicts coming into Geralt’s life. I think my favourite story in this collection was A Little Sacrifice, though I enjoyed Sword of Destiny and Something More with Ciri’s inclusion and dynamic with Geralt. The seaside setting of A Little Sacrifice mixed with the colourful characters, fishy dalliances, and more serious internal conflicts for Geralt made it stand out to me.

I highly recommend reading Sword of Destiny after The Last Wish, not just because they are in the right order chronologically, but because they do wonders in building and complicating Geralt’s image. Is he a soulless witcher? Is he a broken man hiding behind a silver sword? Is he bound to his promises and sworn surprises? Or is he, quite simply, a man in a world that is changing, and he is not sure where he stands in it all? Pick up Sword of Destiny and the Witcher series as a whole as soon as you can! It is a pleasure to read, a feat of adult fantasy writing, and a great display of character building.