What book is The Witcher based on?
The Last Wish, book 1 of The Witcher, by Andrzej Sapkowski (season 1 adapts the two story collections; season 5 will be the last).
The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny are short stories, many retelling fairy tales like Beauty and the Beast, before the novels follow Geralt and Ciri.
- 1This is the book behind The Witcher (Netflix) · season 1 adapts the two story collections; season 5 will be the last
The Last Wish
1993 · Netflix season 1Stories: Geralt meets Yennefer and Jaskier (Dandelion).
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Sword of Destiny
1992 · Netflix season 1Stories: Geralt and Ciri, the child surprise.
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Blood of Elves
1994 · Netflix seasons 2 and 3Ciri trains at Kaer Morhen as war comes.
Buy on Amazon(paid link) - 4
Time of Contempt
1995 · Netflix season 3A coup among the mages scatters everyone.
Buy on Amazon(paid link) - 5
Baptism of Fire
1996 · Netflix season 4Geralt gathers a strange company to find Ciri.
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The Tower of the Swallow
1997 · Netflix season 5, the final season (announced)Ciri on the run, told by the people who met her.
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The Lady of the Lake
1999 · Netflix season 5, the final season (announced)The end of the saga.
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The Witcher boxed set
The story collections and the novels.
What the books give you
Only in the books
Sapkowski's irony and long conversations, and stories the series skipped or changed.
What the screen changes
The series mixes several timelines in season 1 and changes how some characters meet.
Show differences (spoilers)
In the series, Ciri escapes Cintra alone and meets Geralt only at the end of season 1; in the stories Geralt meets her earlier, in the forest of Brokilon.
Editions
- 1
The Last Wish, paperback
Where to start.
See on Amazon(paid link) - 2
The Witcher boxed set
The whole saga.
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The Witcher audiobooks read by Peter Kenny
The English audiobooks.
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More by Andrzej Sapkowski
- 1
Season of Storms
2013 · a standalone Geralt novel set between the early stories
Buy on Amazon(paid link) - 2
The Hussite Trilogy
Starting with The Tower of Fools (2002) · historical fantasy
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If you liked it
- 1
The Lies of Locke Lamora
Scott Lynch · 2006
Buy on Amazon(paid link) - 2
The Blade Itself
Joe Abercrombie · 2006
Buy on Amazon(paid link) - 3
A Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin · 1996 · the HBO series
Buy on Amazon(paid link)
Quick answers
Which book is each movie and series based on?
| Movie or series | Book |
|---|---|
| The Witcher (Netflix) | The Last Wish (1993) · season 1 adapts the two story collections; season 5 will be the last |
In what order should I read The Witcher?
Start with the two story collections, The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, then read the five novels from Blood of Elves to The Lady of the Lake. All are by Andrzej Sapkowski, and the Netflix series follows them in this order.
In what order should I read The Witcher books?
The Last Wish, Sword of Destiny, then the novels: Blood of Elves, Time of Contempt, Baptism of Fire, The Tower of the Swallow and The Lady of the Lake. Season of Storms can be read at any point after the stories.
Why read The Last Wish before Sword of Destiny?
Sword of Destiny was published first in Polish, but The Last Wish contains the earlier stories and sets up Geralt and Yennefer. Most English readers start with The Last Wish.
Is The Witcher based on books or games?
Both come from Andrzej Sapkowski's books. The video games continue the story after the books; the Netflix series adapts the books.