Geralt has just left Kaer Morhen and is short on judgment. In his first weeks on the road he kills a deserter to protect a peasant and his daughter and ends up sentenced to hang in Neuhold. An older witcher, Preston Holt, steps in, and the book follows Geralt's first year of contracts with Holt looking over his shoulder.
What this adds if you've played the games
Here Geralt is younger than you'll ever see him, long before Blaviken, Yennefer or Ciri. It shows what a witcher's first year after Kaer Morhen looked like, and it says more about the old school's history than any of the other books. It doesn't connect to the games' plots and it's slighter than the saga, mostly one fight after another, so it's optional. Read it last, when you know the older Geralt well enough to enjoy the contrast.
Where it fits
- Read beforeThe Last Wish
Shows Geralt in his first year out of Kaer Morhen, well before any story in The Last Wish. It spoils nothing, but it's more fun once you know the older Geralt.
Editions
Orion Publishing Group, Limited paperback
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