The love/hate relationship I have with the Witcher books is quite serious, but Crossroads of Ravens has done wonders to lessen the hate and balance the overall standings out. This standalone novel shows a different side of Geralt than we’ve seen before, a more naive side perhaps, and in doing so shine a completely different light on the life of a Witcher and the demons that haunt them.

Before he was the White Wolf or the Butcher of Blaviken, Geralt of Rivia was simply a fresh graduate of Kaer Morhen, stepping into a world that neither understands nor welcomes his kind. And when an act of naive heroism goes gravely wrong, Geralt is only saved from the noose by Preston Holt, a grizzled witcher with a buried past and an agenda of his own. Under Holt’s guiding hand, Geralt begins to learn what it truly means to walk the Path – to protect a world that fears him, and to survive in it on his own terms. But as the line between right and wrong begins to blue, Geralt myst decide to become the monster everyone expects, or something else entirely. This is the story of how legends are made – and what they cost.

This standalone marks the beginning of the Witcher novels chronologically, making it the perfect book for new fans to the Witcher world to get into. Given the popularity of the Netflix show and the video games, it should come as no surprise that there are readers out there looking to get into the series for the first time (as I did earlier this year). Crossroads of Ravens is an excellent novel from a character building and background point of view, showing a young Geralt ready to tackle the world, even if he doesn’t understand what that will entail and what he will have to give up in the process. As a new reader, I highly recommend starting with Crossroads of Ravens, then moving into Season of Storms, The Last Wish, and Sword of Destiny. While there is an experience to be had reading in publishing order, I find myself in the position where I dislike the novel series, and so to help anyone else endeavouring to start their journey into these books, I feel this path will be the more pleasurable to take. Of course, that is purely my opinion.

As for the book, Crossroads of Raven provides many compelling tales of monster fighting, mistakes, man-made problems, and moral dilemmas for Geralt to navigate. This eighteen-year-old witcher has a lot to learn, and more often than not he is finding out in the heat of the moment or once he has had to act differently than he intended. It shows a more juvenile side to Geralt that I can appreciate, and it helps to show that witchers are still prone to making human decisions given their young assumptions of how the world works. But Crossroads of Ravens isn’t just about his beginnings, and in fact it does a lot more than simply provide lessons. There is a darkness to the characters, history and vengeance and past horrors, bu there are also moments of light, moments of guilt and repentence. This makes the fantasy world feel so much more grounded and realistic than what I have been inferring it to be. This is stil the storyworld that sold millions, and the foundations of some incredible spinoffs and projects.

Crossroads of Ravens is definitely one of the better books in my mind when it comes to the Witcher series. It has the dark fantasy detail, the actions and consequences that underline all interactions Geralt faces in the books, and serves as a fantastic opening to his story. You can see his character evolve as he learns, experiences, and is forced to withstand the happenings of the novel. You can also see that righteous good leave him, instead filled by a murky, self-respecting moral that questions the need, the impact, and the purpose of his occupation. He doesn’t do all good, but he doesn’t go bad, and he certainly doesn’t forget. As far as Spooktober recommendations go, Crossroads of Ravens fits in perfectly, providing that dose of dark adult fantasy detail and light horror. It is also a great book to read in October, and one I hope many fans of adult fantasy and the Witcher series get to soon.