This was so good book!
However it wasn't as easy to read as other. It was more of a slow pace for me with this one!
Im more of a series fan for this type of story.

Like most, my first experience with Geralt of Rivia was through the video games. Without a doubt, the Witcher 3 is one of the best games I've ever played. It followed that I would be hooked with the Netflix adaptation... the first season was good, the second season was fantastic. And having a chance to revisit the stories through reading the original source was wonderful. Blood of Elves is a terrific book, and it's a shame it took me so long to get into the novels. With many more left to read, will get on to the next as soon as possible. 4.5 out of 5,.

I started Blood of Elves a while ago, then went back to read the books set prior to this adventure. While I enjoyed returning to this world, there were a few elements stopping it from being a five-star read.

The strongest part of the book was the first half, where there is consistency with the storylines and the characters are merging to the same place. Although my favourite parts are following Geralt on an adventure, these individual segments felt separated from time – it could be difficult to place them.

In a similar way, while I enjoyed the interaction between Ciri and Yennefer, the flash-back scenes disconnected me from the world; I didn’t need that level of detail about how their relationship unfolded.

The jumps in time and the switch in narrations did cause Blood of Elves to lose consistency. It takes you away from the story while you figure out where and when, which undermined moments in the book. It’s not complicated, only a little jarring at times.

So saying, it’s an enjoyable read. There are humorous moments (gruff Witchers dealing with an adolescent girl and Geralt threatening to throw Dandilion out of a window), several training montages as Ciri learns and some engaging fights – although not as much as I expected.

The previous books with more of a focus on Geralt have been stronger, but I still liked this. I love the world created, the complexities of the characters and different abilities as well as solid and engaging writing.

I haven't seen the Netflix adaptation but I was intrigued all the same and jumped at the chance to read the first book in the series. Unfortunately, it turns out that there are two short story collections before this one which really impacted my reading experience. That was entirely my fault though!

I'm one of the many who have played the Witcher Wild Hunt game, and found my way into Geralt's world via the PlayStation. I read this book )and The Last Wish) before watching the Netflix series, as I always like to do if I plan to read and watch..

I'm not actually a fan of fantasy novels, but I love the characters, and indeed I love them even more in the book(s) than I do in the game. Of course, that's how it's supposed to work.

This is a great novel, and I will definitely read the rest of the series.

Technically the third book in The Witcher series, but the first full length novel.

This isn't an action packed book, but a low character driven tale that builds up the world and the characters arcs. I enjoy the world building and getting a good base for book series like this, so for me I loved the detail of the world and the characters.

Although Geralt is our protagonist, we realise that this is Ciri's story. We get insight into her childhood and when she's taken in by Geralt, developing the early relationships she had with other characters.

The prose in my opinion is far more sophisticated than some fantasy novels, and Andrzej Sapkowski's creating is deeply compelling and one you become very involved in. It raises the complexities of racism, sexism, colonialism and other socio-political issues that can be reflected into the real world. This novel is very much the beginning of the overall story, with not a great deal of plot, but a fun and comfortable read to get to know the characters well and get yourself familiar with the world and how it works. Loved it!

I'm so disappointed but I just couldn't get into this story. I really struggled with the authors writing style and found myself almost slogging through the book. DNF at 10%

I guess I'm only gonna The Witcher as a TV show, I cannot get through these books for the life of me. The writing style is not to my liking at all and I refuse to waste time reading a book I'm not enjoying. See you on the screen my dear Witcher.

The Witcher 3 is one of my favourite video games, so I've wanted to read the books for a while now. This was a great first book in the Witcher book series. It was great to learn more about the world and the characters are so well written. I definitely recommend checking this out.

Quite lovely, and very like the series, except the series was based on the short stories in The Last Wish. Shame, but I have now bought that and am up to date. This is really only a novella, very short and spiky, and ends on a terrible cliffhanger, like an episode in a television series, so don't expect it to be a full length novel. If you are buying these, it will be expensive to get the full story. Nothing wrong with that, just a warning. They are addictive, so you'll be dipping into your pocket. All said, a good, ripping read. Recommended.

Thank you NetGalley for a complimentary copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

I went into this book knowing nothing about the games or the show. I've never read any of the previous books. Blood of Elves was very intriguing and the world building was imaginative. I was confused about the characters because I lacked background, but that's my fault. I would like to try this book again after reading the others. I definitely see why this is so popular and numerous people love it.

I had read this book many years ago and thought i might enjoy a reread. I definitely did not remember as much about this book as i thought i did which meant i was almost going in to it with fresh eyes.
Very enjoyable however i do think it might be a bit confusing for new readers, at least in the beginning.

3 for neutral, unfortunately this book was not for me! I tried on a few occasions and just couldn’t get into it and don’t want to rate something unfairly. Will update if able to finish at a later date!

I have played this game series, and watched the new TV series so I decided to read the book series aswell. It is good, sometimes a little confusing but once you get your head around the characters it becomes easier to understand.

Firstly, I want to give a huge thank you to NetGalley and Gollancz and Orion Books for providing me with the opportunity to read this and a huge apology for the delay in posting my review.

Prior to reading The Blood of Elves, I prepared myself by reading the The Last Wish, the collection of short stories on which the Netflix series is based. The Blood of Elves forms the first of the The Witcher Saga by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. These books are not new to the world of Fantasy and actually date back to the mid 1990s, but they are much newer in English following their recent translation.


This story focuses primarily on Geralt of Rivia, a Witcher (enhanced mercenaries who fight monsters for money) and Princess Cirilla of Cintra, known as Ciri. Ciri has been destined to be Geralt's ward since before she was born (The Last Wish provides more detail on this,) and has elvish blood in her veins, giving her powers that are beyond the understanding of the the Witchers.

Geralt turns to the sorceresses Trish Merigold and Yennifer for assistance in training and guiding young Ciri, who is being hunted by many for reasons unknown at the start of the story.

The book itself tells the story well, including appearances by the Bard Dandilion and moments of humour, but is told in such a way that it feels more like a collection of short stories than a complete story.

Whilst this style of telling is well placed to provide coverage of the world-building, political environment and Witchers' background and training, it still feels a little disjointed and the ending does feel sudden, with an obvious direction to read the next book in the series.

Overall, a good read and it definitely encourages you to dig further into the series.

Blood of Elves is a novel in the world of The Witcher and part of a series. If you are familiar with the games or the Netflix show then the characters will already be familiar. In this regard it's not too easy to judge how the author manages to bring his characters to life as I am already acquainted with them thought the media previously described, this book doesn't seem to deviate in anyway so no real surprises.

The writing is comfortable considering it is translated from Polish and only occasionally stalls the reader with modernism that seem out of place in a fantasy/historic setting. The world of The Witcher is rich in lore and the author conveys information very well thorough without feeling feeling like a lesson or info dump. The plot centers around The Witcher character and his charge Ciri who is destined to become a Witcher, her heritage and apparent other abilities makes her a 'most wanted person' by a number of factions and therein lies the plot.

The book is enjoyable enough I think mainly due to the interesting world they inhabit, the intrigue around who wants Ciri and why, but ultimately this isn't a book you should be reading if you haven't ready the previous books or are not familiar with the storyline from the games etc. My only complaint would be that this feels like a chapter from a larger work (which it is) and doesn't actually have enough happening to feel like it had a 'Beginning, Middle then End' .

In summary: Enjoyable without actually being terribly satisfying.

Even if I saw the Netflix show it was the first novel I read featuring the Witcher.
It's not a fast paced book but once you are hooked it's an engrossing and entertaining read.
I loved the character development, the great world building and the well crafted plot.
I want to read the other novel in this series.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Please note that this book is not for me - I have read the book, However I had to DNF and because i do not like to give negative reviews I will not review this book fully - there is no specific reason for not liking this book. I found it a struggle to read and did not enjoy trying to force myself to read this book.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused and thank you for the opportunity to read this book

Blood of Elves feels like a detailed introduction to the world of The Witcher.

A lot happens and it jumps from past/ present and the different characters. I did find it hard to keep track of the jumps. As the changes can happen anytime.

Blood of Elves has a lot of characters I felt my opinion of the character were based more off the show than the book.  The book I didn't get a real feel for them. Maybe if I had read the short stories before Blood Elves than I might have got a better idea of them.

The one thing that is done amazingly well is the action/fight scenes. Especially fight scene with Geralt of Rivia, he can kick butt.

One thing that took me by surprise was the bit of humour dotted throughout the book. My favourite moment that I found funny was the dear friend letter that Yennefer ent to Geralt. It's such a great women response.

Blood of Elves has some great quotes, below are a couple of my favourite;

"A Woman accentuates her beauty for her own self-esteem."

"To be neutral does not mean to be indifferent or insensitive. You don't have to kill your feelings. It's enough to kill hatred within yourself."

"I know you're almost forty, look almost thirty, think you're just over twenty and act as though you're barely ten."
My favourite aspects of Blood of Elves

Action scenes
The mystery behind the hunt for Ciri.
Magic
Ciri training.
My least favourite aspects of Blood of Elves

multiple plots and jumping character
No emotional connection to any of the characters.
My rating for Blood of Elves is 3.5 out of 5

Unfortunately I'd DNFd this book for now. The writing style didn't grip me at all, nor did the story, and for those reasons I've decided to put it down in favour of things which are absorbing my attention. Perhaps I expected too much of this book series after enjoying the Netflix show.