So I had started watching the Netflix Witcher series when it came out, and I liked the potential of it, but the story was a bit lost on me. It was as if the series writers were trying to squeeze too much in to a short series and I gradually lost interest and didn't finish the season. Then I read a couple tidbits about the books (and the following the books had developed), so decided to pick up the Witcher short stories over the summer. They were great. After finishing the short stories, I immediately picked up the novel trilogy.

The first novel in the trilogy, Blood of Elves, was excellent. The story and world-building was fresh and Sapkowski brought new life and a unique vision to a world of elves, dwarves, humans, folklore, and magic on a grand scale. It's so hard to find truly well-written fantasy and Sapkowski takes us on an adventure through a magical world roiling with racism, hints of genocide, terrorism, political intrigue, magical creatures, assassins, and more stuff I can't recall at the moment. It's a very well-crafted story and was a great read. I'd recommend it for anyone who read Lord of the Rings as a kid or who likes gritty fantasy-type stuff.