The Last Wish

The Last Wish, by Andrzej Sapkowski, is a collection of short stories in the fantasy genre, although it borrows heavily from the folk and fairy tale tradition, as well. The collection was first published in Polish in 1993, although several stories had previously been published as part of a separate collection in 1990. Along with a series of short story collections and novels, The Last Wish is part of the Witcher saga. Subtitled Introducing the Witcher, this collection takes place before the rest of the saga of Geralt of Rivia, the eponymous Witcher.

The Last Wish was first translated into English in 2007 by Danusia Stok. This guide uses the Kindle version of the Orbit Books edition.

Plot Summary

The collection consists of six novella-length stories and seven interstitial chapters forming a seventh, expository story titled “The Voice of Reason.”

In the first full chapter, “The Witcher,” Geralt arrives in Wyzim in response to an advertisement for witchers and sorcerers. 14 years ago, the then-prince’s infant daughter died; however, seven years later, she rose from the grave as a monstrous striga and has been terrorizing the town ever since. A sorcerer told her father, now the king, that the striga spell is not permanent; the king is looking for someone who can restore his daughter rather than kill her. Geralt lures the striga from her tomb and locks himself inside until dawn, at which point the striga reverts to a 14-year-old girl.

“A Grain of Truth” is modeled loosely on “Beauty and the Beast.” Nivellen, the son of a wealthy thief, had to take over his father’s gang when his father died in a revenge attack. He was still young, so the other gang members quickly took over and ramped up their antics to heinous proportions, at one point forcing Nivellen to rape a priestess. In retribution, she cursed him to look like a monster. Now, Nivellen lives with what Geralt initially believes to be a rusalka, a sea creature who dislikes humans. However, the creature is in fact a vampiric bruxa attempting to turn Nivellen fully into a monster so they can rule the forest together. Geralt and Nivellen defeat the bruxa, and Nivellen returns to human form.

In “The Lesser Evil,” loosely based on “Snow White,” Geralt randomly runs into Stregobor, a wizard he once knew. The wizard is hiding from Renfri, a brutal assassin. While Renfri was a child, Stregobor identified her as a mutant; guided by the prophecy of a magic mirror, Renfri’s stepmother ordered her death. Renfri escaped and took revenge on everyone involved—only Stregobor remains on her list. She and her gang plan to hold the townspeople hostage until Stregobor leaves his protected tower to face Renfri. Geralt discovers the plan and defeats Renfri and her gang. However, his actions horrify the townspeople, so they exile; from that point forward, he becomes known as “The Butcher of Blaviken.”

In “A Question of Price,” Geralt attends the 15th birthday dinner Pavetta, the princess of Cintra. At the dinner, the queen explains in vague terms that he is there to ensure that her daughter’s intended marriage alliance takes place. Just before midnight, a knight named Urcheon, cursed to look like a hedgehog, arrives to claim Pavetta as his own—he has the right to do so under the Law of Surprise because he saved Pavetta’s father years prior. Pavetta shocks everyone by willingly accepting, and it turns out she and Urcheon had already been secretly dating. Pavetta’s love lifts Urcheon’s curse. This causes pandemonium. Geralt saves Urcheon in the chaos; as payment, he requests to take their child to raise as a witcher.

In “The Edge of the World,” Geralt and his companion Dandelion travel to the outskirts of human civilization looking for work. A small village asks them to get rid of a devil. However, the devil turns out to be working for elves in the nearby mountains. The elves capture Dandelion and Geralt and explain: As humans spread, they slowly and irreparably changed the landscape, which is starving the elves, who can no longer live off the land their own way; as a result, the devil was learning human farming methods for them. The elves are about to execute Geralt and Dandelion to cover their tracks when Lille, the village’s secret prophetess, saves them.

The final full chapter, “The Last Wish,” begins with an encounter with a djinn that leaves Dandelion gravely injured. Geralt takes him to see the sorceress Yennefer in a nearby town. Yennefer heals Dandelion, but as payment, demands they capture the djinn. Geralt objects, but Yennefer puts him under a spell and makes him attack several town councilors as revenge for their attacks on her character. She attempts to capture the djinn, which fights back and begins destroying the town. Geralt realizes he can use the djinn’s wishes, so he uses his last wish to save Yennefer. Their fates are bound together.

“The Voice of Reason” takes place immediately following the events of “The Witcher” and introduces the reader to the character of Geralt and the temple priestess, Nenneke, who has been a close friend of his for many years. It ends with a glimpse of Geralt’s ominous future.