All 8 books in The Witcher Saga, ranked worst to best
By Daniel Roman
1. The Lady of the Lake (The Witcher Saga #5)
If I’m being honest, I didn’t expect to put The Lady of the Lake in the number one spot when I started this list. But one of the beautiful things about The Witcher Saga is that the more you think about it, the more layers reveal themselves; nowhere is that truer than with The Lady of the Lake, the final volume in the mainline story of Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer of Vengerberg.
The Lady of the Lake is a weird book. While Sapkowski hints throughout the series that there might be meta layers beyond the story we’re reading (such as in Baptism of Fire when we glimpse a storyteller telling this tale to a young Nimue, from Arthurian Legend), it’s not until The Lady of the Lake that the author really pulls back the curtain. The multiverse elements coming into the series at the eleventh hour could easily have made it awful; indeed, they do make it much harder to digest than usual.
But Sapkowski manages to pull it off because Ciri’s ability to traverse space and time has been so clearly laid out already. This isn’t some random plot device thrown in at the finish line, but instead a natural side effect of a magical ability which has been at the heart of the novel series since the start. It may not be for everyone, and it may feel a bit jarring on the first read, but once you get adjusted it becomes clear that The Lady of the Lake is the kind of heady fantasy book that people could study for years.
It helps that the plotlines, setting, and character work in The Lady of the Lake are top notch. After stringing us along with questions for books on end, Sapkwoski finally doles out answers. We find out why the Wild Hunt is after Ciri, and what importance she truly holds for elf kind. We see Geralt and his hansa spend time in the magical Duchy of Toussaint before setting out on their final quest together. It’s a well-wrought book, even if there are some weird quirks.
What solidifies The Lady of the Lake’s place at the top of the list is its climax. The main resolution of the series sees Geralt’s hansa confront multiple villains who have remained at large for most of the book series in one of the best written, most heartwrenching sequences of the entire Witcher Saga. The fact that Sapkowski capstones it with a reveal about the true motives of Emperor Emhyr var Emries of Nilfgaard just drives home how much of a solid ending it is.
But then we find out it isn’t actually the ending at all, as Sapkowski reveals Geralt’s unexpected fate in the novel’s final pages. The pogrom which Geralt becomes embroiled in at the end of The Lady of the Lake subverts expectations to deliver a shocking, yet thematically appropriate end for the character. And since The Lady of the Lake is all about the meta storytelling, Sapkowski can ambiguously weave Geralt of Rivia into the realm of myth right alongside legends like King Arthur of Camelot. It still has its issues — it will never not bug me that Yen and Triss act so outrageous in those final pages — but overall The Lady of the Lake stands as a singular achievement in Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher Saga.
How do these rankings feel for you? Would you change any? Let us know in the comments!
The Witcher season 3 volume 1 is streaming now on Netflix. Volume 2 will conclude the season on July 27.
Next. The Witcher finally hits its stride with fantastic third season. dark
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