6. Baptism of Fire (The Witcher Saga #3)
It didn’t take long to get to the splitting hairs portion of the list, but here we are. Baptism of Fire is an integral piece of The Witcher Saga which functions as the start of Geralt of Rivia’s final epic journey to find Ciri after the calamitous events at the Isle of Thanedd in The Time of Contempt. Despite being a fantastic book, it doesn’t quite sing at times in the same way as the other novels thanks to the way the plotlines are balanced.
Geralt’s story is a highlight of Baptism of Fire, as we see him meet various companions who join his hansa, or party, on a Continent-spanning quest to find the missing Ciri. We get to know characters like the archer Milva and the charmingly fun vampire Regis, as well as spend lots of time with old favorites like Dandelion. The interactions between Geralt’s companions results in lots of expressive dialogue and ideological debates. Topping it all off is a great climax where Geralt is actually dubbed a knight by the queen of Rivia for his valor, which is an important moment in the series.
The other highlight of Baptism of Fire is the formation of the Lodge of Sorceresses, which gives all our favorite sorceresses plenty of time to shine. However, things start to come apart a bit where Ciri is concerned. She spends most of Baptism of Fire with the Rats and does very little, at least compared to Geralt. Really, everything with Ciri is set-up for the following book, and while it works just fine, it also makes Baptism of Fire feel a little less well-rounded than other entries in the series.