The Last Wish is a fantastical and rich collection of short stories!

There are six short stories and another one that is split into seven parts ("The Voice of Reason"), serving the purpose of introducing the next story in the narrative.

I enjoyed our protagonist, Geralt of Rivia very much, finding his stories and his past very compelling. He has a very distinct personality and an unusual way of dealing with people and his problems.

Geralt is a Witcher. Witchers are essentially beast hunters and "magical problem solvers". However, people, in general, don't regard them very well. Geralt, in particular, is known for being exceptionally powerful, efficient and brutal! It is interesting to see how much of his reputation is true to his actions and intentions and how much comes from dramatic story-telling.

Both minor and characters that I suspect will become very important in the subsequent books are introduced to us. From the entire cast, the one I liked the most was Nenneke: her sense of humour, the way she scolded Geralt and the way she put people in their place with only her imposing attitude. The only other character that we get to know better, and I believe will be more present in the next books, is Dandelion, that serves almost like a sidekick for Geralt in a couple of stories. I liked how loyal he was to Geralt and his sense of humour, but his ability to be inappropriate often got them in trouble (he was so annoying at times). In the last story

("The Last Wish"), Yennefer, someone that I knew previously has significance in Geralt's life,

is introduced. While I overall liked the beginning of the arc for these two characters, I was put off by a couple of aspects... I am hoping that future books will explain better some of the things that happened.

This World is very complex and, because we are always changing places in each story (except for "The Voice of Reason") and meeting new characters, I found myself confused. Plus, the edition I read has no world map, so I didn't have a good grasp on the geography and political borders. Nonetheless, what we get to see and explore only left me eager to read more and know more about the world, its history and its lore.

Each story focuses on a new problem Geralt has to solve, some reading as retellings of well-known fairy tales, and by the end of each one we understand how important that episode of his life is and how it relates to is current situation in "The Voice of Reason".

I liked the stories equally, so I am not rating them individually. Overall, I give this book a very solid 4* and do recommend to every fantasy lover and person that played the game adaptation!

Can't wait to read the next volume :)