The Time of Contempt

I love these books the best way I can describe the Witcher World in one sentence is to say that they are a cross between Game of Thrones and Harry Potter. They have all the political conflict between Kings and regions like Game of Thrones and all of the magic and sorcery of Harry Potter. As you get further into the novels they really leave you on some incredible cliffhangers and the story of Ciri, Yennefer and Geralt is Simply Amazing. The Deep connections between the three of them are what makes these books what they are and it truly makes one see that a child does not have to be your own for you to love them care for them and protect them like you would your own child. To the best of my knowledge these books were written long before Harry Potter and it may be that JK Rowling actually took some of her ideas from the books about The Witcher. I don’t know that for a fact but I do see some correlations there, that might lead one to believe that she at least may have gotten some of her ideas and Concepts from The Witcher novels. Yes some of the same fantasy elements are there that you see in a lot of fantasy books werewolves, vampires, Sorcerers, witches. However being that the author is Polish and has a lot of deep polish folklore to drawn on, these books are very different from anything you would find from a British or American Author. I highly recommend them. Please don’t let yourself be fooled thinking that these books were written after the video games they were written long before that and that’s what makes The Witcher 3 video game in particular one of the best videogames of all time. The story that was taken from these novels. Do yourself a favor and read the first two Witcher short story collections and the five novels you won’t regret it.

I purchased and started reading the Witcher novels shortly after beating the Witcher 3 video game, and to be one hundred percent honet, I’m glad that I had unintentionally wait until after I had beaten the game. Granted, I put a TON of hours into that game alone, not to mention it’s predecessors, but to sit back and read the original material in which it was based off of – that was wonderful in more ways that I can describe. There were so many references to material from the books in the game themselves, and while I hadn’t previously understood them entirely, the books easily cleared everything up about it, explaining them all in great or at least sufficient detail. That said, I’m glad again that I started reading them -after- playing the games because otherwise they wouldn’t have held as much significance to me or made me laugh quite as much. Each book is well worth the read on itself for any solid Witcher fan, and as well for any general fiction fan looking for a great series to pick up, even if they don’t quite understand the Witcherverse before diving in.

The plot starts to ramp up in this book. More action, more political intrigue, more magic. However, there is decisively less witchering. I can see why people are divided on the short stories vs. the novels. The former focuses on Geralt and his profession while war politics are forefront to the latter with Ciri receiving the most screen time.

Regardless, I enjoy all of them for their respective offerings so far. While Geralt is unsurprisingly my favorite character, I find myself looking forward to the chapters on Ciri. Her story is fascinating and will clearly remain central for the rest of the series.

With the title Baptism of Fire, I expect the next installment to only be grander. Sapkowski has written something special here with his intricate plots, complex characters, and a little bit of social critique. I’m looking forward to the direction Geralt and Ciri take next.

I enjoyed this book more than Blood of Elves, which set the foundation for this series, but still found it complex. The author introduces a multitude of minor characters from various countries into his stories; who then disappear into the ether, never to be heard from again. This makes for confusion. However, his main characters are well-developed and engaging. In this second book, Geralt is once again slaying monsters and re-connects with Yennefer, who is on her way to a Conclave of Mages on the Isle of Thanedd. Their meeting is initiated by Ciri’s flight from a journey to a school for enchantresses at which Yennefer is intending to place her. Ciri wishes to return to Geralt, rather than to be trained in the magic arts. All three eventually arrive at the Isle, only to discover that the Conclave erupts into chaos, as various factions’ spies and sorcerers fight for supremacy after the Nilfgaardian conquests. Conspiracies abound and affiliations are broken. Geralt is badly wounded. Yennefer and Ciri are separated, when Ciri utilizes the portal in the tower to evade capture.
This book is centred on Ciri, her escape across a desert and her subsequent introduction into the Rats; a renegade group of young outcasts with swift horses and sharp swords. A small, much-feared rebel group; the children of the time of contempt.
War is imminent. Ciri is the child of Destiny.
I would add – I intend to print out a coloured map of the Northern countries in order to follow the progress of the various characters from one province to another, as I have not played the computer games and require a visual aid to follow the many journeys and invasions contained in the plot.

Time of Contempt is second book to the Witcher Saga by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. These books form an ongoing fantasy story, they are not stand alone so if you are new to the series this is not the book to start with. I highly recommend reading them in this order with the two short story collections first which originally written for magazines before starting the saga:

1 –

The Last Wish

2 –

Sword of Destiny

3 –

Blood of Elves (The Witcher Book 1)

Onto the review! Time of Contempt carries on straight off the back of the first book with a large war potentially brewing between the Nilfgaardian Empire and several other kingdoms while at the same time the humans and elves are fighting amongst themselves over years of bitter race hatred. In the midst of these growing tensions the Witcher Geralt and the sorceress Yennifer do their best to protect Ciri, a young girl who is the focus of a prophecy who is being chased by factions of all sides who want to use her for their own gain.

Time of Contempt is a relatively slow burn reading wise, much like Blood of Elves it takes it’s time building up the world and characters. As a fan who got into the books through the video games I enjoy that a lot as I am getting a bit more of an in-depth view into relationships between the characters and the ever shifting world. Geralt is a great character but I have found the focus on both Ciri and Yennifer far more interesting thus far. This is not to say there is not a lot of action as there certainly are moments with some pretty good build up especially towards the latter half of the book, though I can’t say much without spoiling anything but there are some interesting scenarios that happen as the story builds.

The entire book is very well written, though it feels occasionally a little stilted probably due to the nature of the translation from Polish it works very well with the content I have found. It’s pretty easy to read and clear with a mixture of emotional and funny moments spread throughout. It has the same issue as Blood of Elves though that while being a full novel still feels at times like several short stories with an ongoing story stapled together. Some of the breaks between chapters or story arcs aren’t as smooth as i’d like and it finishes just kind of randomly but it’s a small gripe to an otherwise enjoyable read, I recommend the series thus far. Looking forward to the next book

Baptism of Fire

+ Interesting characters.
+ Great setting and scenarios.
+ Well written.

– Ends kind of out of nowhere, some story arc breaks jump around a lot.