Posts from Literature.

Yeah, "Guardian of the Swords" is interesting... In his latest book, he almost gathers all his "Haven" series (except for "Ring of Darkness") into a single plot... It's very intricate and interesting, but if you read a lot, it can be a bit tiring. After "War of the Magician: End Game," he plans to finish "A Thousand Years of Croft" and move on to "The Fall of the Gods-2" (working title), where he will finally explain all the plot twists and intrigues of the series, such as the Moon Beast, the New Mages, etc. This might intersect with "Waterfall," the fourth book in the "Ring of Darkness" series.

- This is disgusting! Disgusting and sinful, Master Huvenagel! To use a building that was once a Temple for such a dishonest, inhumane, and repulsive spectacle! Animals feel too, Master Huvenagel! They have their own dignity! It is a crime to incite them against each other for the amusement of the mob for profit!
- Calm down, holy father! And don't interfere with my private enterprise! Besides, today they won't be inciting animals here. Not a single beast! Only people!
- Oh, is that so? Well, then I apologize.
***
- Aha! - cried Kayleigh. - Now I understand! This is what amnesty looks like! They give you a choice: here's a sharp stake, here are the imperial colors. Either a stake in the ass, or colors on your back. And then off to war, to die for the empire.
***
They wander around the country, brazen and insolent, calling themselves destroyers of evil, exterminators of werewolves, and poisoners of ghouls, swindling gullible people out of money, and then moving on to the next town to repeat the scam. They infiltrate the homes of honest, simple people who are unaware of what's happening, and who readily attribute all misfortunes and troubles to spells, unnatural creatures, and vile monsters, or to the actions of sorcerers or evil spirits. Instead of praying to the gods and making rich offerings at the Temple, this simpleton is ready to give his last shirt to a dirty sorcerer, believing that the sorcerer, this godless degenerate, will be able to improve his fate and avert misfortune.
Anonymous. "The Monster, or a Description of a Sorcerer."
***
- A certain Geralt, known as Geralt of Rivia, - he boomed, sizing up the skipper with his gaze. - Is there one on board?
- No.
- It's me. - The Witcher stepped over the bags and bundles, and approached. - I am Geralt, known as Geralt. What's the matter?
***
We know little about love. Love is like a pear. It is sweet and has a certain shape. But try to define the shape of a pear!
Dandelion. Half a Century of Poetry
("Cat-like" - note by SandroXXL)
***
- Your name?
"Oh, what the hell," thought Geralt. "Seven troubles, one answer. I won't lie."
- Geralt.
- Geralt from where?
- Nowhere.
- Not initiated? Not circumcised? - Meva decorated the sand under her feet with red splashes of saliva mixed with blood.
- I don't understand. Oh, no, no. Not initiated... Your Royal Majesty. Meva drew her sword.
- On your knees.
He obeyed, still unable to believe what was happening, and continuing to think about Yennefer and the road he had chosen for her, fearing the swamps and bogs of Ysgith.
The Queen turned to the Violet.
- Pvoivnefi fovmulu. I have no fuobs.
- For unparalleled courage in battle for a just cause, - the Violet proclaimed solemnly, - for demonstrating valor and honor, for loyalty to the crown, I, Meva, by the will of the gods, Queen of Lyria and Rivia, by my right and privilege, knight you. Serve faithfully. Endure this blow, and no more.
Geralt felt a light tap on his shoulder with the blade. He looked into the Queen's light green eyes. Meva spat a thick wad of red saliva, held a handkerchief to her face, and winked at him over the lace.
The Violet approached the monarch and whispered something. The Witcher heard the words: "designation," "Rivian diamonds," "standard," and "honor."
- Spravedlivo, - Meva nodded. She spoke more clearly, overcoming the pain, and stuck her tongue into the gap left where her teeth had been knocked out. - You fought alongside the warriors of Rivia, valiant Geralt from nowhere... So, how about I give you this designation: Geralt of Rivia. Ha-ha!
- Bow, noble knight, - hissed the Violet.
The newly-minted Knight Geralt of Rivia bowed so deeply that Queen Meva, his suzerain, could not see the bitter smile that Geralt of Rivia, the Witcher, could not suppress.

Sapkowski writes really well; he also has a saga about Reynevan, which is also an interesting book, although it doesn't quite reach the level of The Witcher.

"The Saga of Geralt" can only be called that in stories. And then... It's about anyone from his friends. But not about Geralt. And I recommend: "Wrath of the Dragon" (look here: www.drakia.com) "The Technician of Great Kiev" by V. Vasiliev "The Chronicles of Amber" by R. Zelazny

"The Witcher Saga" can only be called a saga in stories.
And further... It's about anyone from his friends. But not about Geralt.

And I recommend:
"The Dragon's Fury" (look here: www.drakia.com)
"The Technician of Great Kyiv" by V. Vasiliev
"The Chronicles of Amber" by R. Zelazny

I didn't understand you... what work are you talking about??? What can't be called a saga?
The Chronicles of Amber is a wonderful book, but towards the end, he started writing something tedious.

Added 1 minute ago
I recommend: The Adventures of Garret, a series of books by Glen Cook.

I'll try again to support Evgeny's idea...:), it's worth reading:

Once upon a time, Space and Time met and started an argument: which of them is more valuable to the Universe.
“Everything that exists in the world exists within me,” says Space. “Without me, there is no movement, and without movement, it is impossible to determine what was in the past, what is in the present, and what will be in the future. Therefore, Time exists because of me.”
“You are right, I am the essence of movement,” replies Time. “But you are just emptiness, a frightening abyss. Time can be measured, explained. But how do you measure infinity? How do you explain it? Space without time is nothing.”
“By flowing through this nothingness, you turn into something,” Space retorts. “Planets are born within me, and reason lives within me. If I didn't exist, the stars would merge into one mass and devour each other. If I didn't have these cosmic scales, the rays of the Sun would burn all matter in the Universe to ashes, and the Universe itself would shrink into a single atom, which would remain in absolute stillness. And then your last hour will come. And there will be nowhere for you to rush.”
Time gathers its thoughts and says:
“You cannot merge into a single point, even if you wanted to. To do this, you would have to free yourself from the energy of Time, which you are not capable of. The light of a Star dissipates within me before it reaches the surface of distant planets. The light of thought fades under the power of centuries. All matter is born only to fade into oblivion. Only time expands the boundaries of space, and only time can collapse them.”
Space and Time argue, but they cannot come to a single opinion. Perhaps because there is no such single opinion in the entire Universe, just as there is no eternal truth and absolute beginning.
There is only Time and Space, driven by each other into an irreversible infinity..

eXeCuToR, "The Witcher Saga" in my understanding:
"The Witcher" (Polish: Wiedzmin), a collection of short stories (1986)
"The Last Wish" (Polish: Ostatnie Zyczenie), a collection of short stories (1990)
"Sword of Destiny" (Polish: Miecz Przeznaczenia), a collection of short stories (1992)
The rest, IMHO, is not quite right.
That's why the RPG "The Witcher" won't appeal to those who don't like the short stories about Geralt. But that's already off-topic.

Yes, of course, it's not the same. One is a peaceful, calm story, while the other is a confrontation with emotional drama. But in my opinion, stories and novellas are inseparable. You can find a point of contention in everything; it's like saying that it's not the same anymore... Everything here is normal and interconnected. And the fact that Sapkowski paid more attention to other characters only further reveals the character of the witcher; his worldview changes throughout all the stories, and later he admits that he stopped being a witcher. And it's foolish to separate all of this.

I really love to read! It’s true that I don’t have much time for it, and that’s entirely my fault; I won’t lie, but school keeps me very busy.

I love reading; I used to read a lot, but then the interesting books ran out. Then I started reading on a КПК, but it broke. Now, after a few years, I've bought myself a new КПК, and I'm reading a lot again :)
Everything is in electronic format, of course.
Here are a couple of stories by one of my favorite authors: Sheckley.

I'm currently reading Akunin... I liked the "Genres" series. (I'm just starting to get acquainted with it, but I already think it's pretty good. Although "Children's Book," in my opinion, wasn't entirely successful – in terms of its suitability for children).
I'm reading about Fandorin (and his descendants) with pleasure – it's very unusual and interesting!

I really like fantasy. Varik's books introduce Knack, a story about dragons and his diblo. Tolkien is also great with The Lord of the Rings. Gareth is incredibly interesting. R.Zhelyazny's Amber series is awesome. And everything else that's interesting. I started reading "The Master and Margarita" today, and it's cool.

I read a lot, but only at night. During the day, I don't have time – either I'm on the computer, or with friends, or studying. But at night, I read for 3-4 hours, so I go to bed very late. I read everything... I've read authors whose names I've seen in this thread.
I've read Fandorin, and it's not bad. If someone liked it, I recommend reading "Pelagia." It's a very interesting detective story, and it's better written than the Fandorin books.
But mostly I read fantasy and classic science fiction – Harrison, Sheckley, Zhelazny, and many others. Of the fantasy books I've read recently, I really liked (I completely agree with L$K(joke)) Gareth. It's a series of excellent fantasy detective novels (about 9 books) with metallic titles; literally, each title contains different metals.
I don't like reading in public places, so I have Sudoku for those situations. I solve Sudoku everywhere, at any time of day, and in any quantity xD.

Since we're talking about Zhelazny, he's a great author. "Night in the Lonely October" is a fantastic book. Amber is also good, but as the narrative shifts to Merlin, it becomes clear that 10 books is a bit too much, and the author has exhausted this idea. Sheckley is also a very good author. I've read him before, but I only truly appreciated him recently after reading the short story collections "The Gun That Wouldn't Fire," "Pilgrimage to Earth," and the stories "Ticket to Trantor" and "Mind Swap." Locke, what stories did you recommend? Andrzej Sapkowski is a very good writer. I still haven't been able to play "The Witcher" game, but just like the book had a great plot, the game doesn't disappoint either. I've seen some excerpts, and the plot there is also captivating. Sapkowski also wrote the "The Saga of Reinvan," which is also good. I also love fantasy. I would recommend George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" to anyone interested in this genre; he writes very well. I also recommend reading Mikhail Uspensky's "Where We Are Not," he's quite a humorist. It's also fantasy, by the way. And of course, Terry Pratchett, he has a huge series of books about a certain flat world, and they are all written with excellent humor and are captivating.

Wow, Ex! He really died... or did he?
Evidence for:
1) The journey down the river – according to some traditions, those who passed into the other world were buried this way.
2) The inclusion of ghosts at the end of the book is not accidental.
3) Ciri's monologue, saying that Geralt and Yennefer got married, and everyone was at the wedding: Cahir, Angulema, Regis, Milva, etc.
4) Ciri's escape to another world indicates that nothing was holding her back in the previous one.
5) Finally, this idea of "something ends, something begins," but we can dismiss it; who knows what was meant here – the beginning of life for other generations, other perspectives... or perhaps the continuation of life in another world? After all, the journey down the river and that unicorn evoke certain thoughts.
Evidence against:
1) Yennefer was still alive.
2) What's the point of the unicorn?
3) The story "Something Ends, Something Begins" (or "The Wedding of the Sorceress"). However, we shouldn't take this "joke" into consideration, as it contains serious inconsistencies not only with the entire saga but especially with the last book: the meeting with Galahad clearly contradicts the beginning of "The Lady of the Lake." And why would Ciri, who had dreamed of peace all her life, suddenly feel drawn to travel? Sapkowski usually made very smooth transitions and explained changes in the characters' souls directly or indirectly, but here it's all unclear...
4) The game, "allegedly" a continuation of the book, was developed with Sapkowski's participation. Well, we can dismiss that too.
It seems to me that Sapkowski didn't even want to reveal whether the Witcher died or not, letting people think about it and decide for themselves.
What do you think?