Thread by @yenofrivia, I decided to make a thread of my random thoughts during my [...]

I decided to make a thread of my random thoughts during my re-reading of The Witcher Saga. I am a bit late with that as I got to the Sword of Destiny already but let's see!

The Bounds of Reason: absolute gem. Yennefer casting spells with her leg is something I need to see on the show. It was also an amazing dig into Yen and Geralt's priorities as well as a teaser that their unknow destiny is about to come for them. And Borch - always in my heart.

The Shred of Ice: this is a very special story for me. It can easily be considered shallow love drama but it is much more. I think it was one of the best digs into both Geralt's and Yen's personalities, their needs and nature of their relationship. Conversations are dramatic but-

they tapped on the things that people in relationships often have in the back of their minds but refuse to acknowledge them even to themselves. Small things, small doubts, small truths. Another very important thing is Geralt's internal journey through those events-

His slow discovery that maybe he is more than this emotionless mutant, his surprise when feelings flood him and this inner fight between believing wether he is an empty vessel echoing others feelings or a heart beating in its own.

Eternal Flame: Dudu! This one is just pure fun, a break from drama and pain. I think the spirit of this short story is something that games captured very well. I felt Novigrad here very similarly to the Wild Hunt and it felt good.

A Little Sacrifice: Somehow very melancholic. It shows unrequired love in such an organic way, Essi's description is really on point. But in the end, putting romantics aside, what is love if not a little sacrifice?

PS mention of Ebbing quadruplets Mitzi, Gritzi, Putzi and Juan Pablo Vassermiller somehow always makes me laugh hysterically.

It somehow always strikes me how Sapkowski breaks this happy ending mirage we usually have when character's arc ends. He has this thing of giving you one line description of some character's real ending which is usually tragic and throws you off guard.

Sword of Destiny: Geralt and Ciri's first meering. Their banter is the most entertaining and wholesome thing. This opens this completly new side of Geralt and Ciri is just her best self.

“You lackey! I am a princess, as you said yourself!”
“You're nothing but a stupid little brat.”
“I am a princess!”
“Princesses don't wander all alone in the woods. Princesses don't sniffle.”
“I'll order that your head be chopped off! Hers too.”
Heart-warming, isn't it

Geralt telling bedtime stories is my weak spot.

All happiness and stuff but Brokilon and Geralt's bitter thoughts about its future and how people treat it is a big mood considering our own approach to the environment and current tragedy of Amazon forest.

Something More: Belleteyn! Oh how I wish celebrations like these didn't die. I suppose now we have festivals??? Anyway I love pure magic of nature-driven celebrations and I am beyond happy we are probably getting that in the show

Belleteyn!
Breaths and sighs began their ballet; lightning flashed before their eyes; the scent of lilac and gooseberry enveloped them. The King and the Queen of May, was it the expression of a sacrilegious joke? Of oblivion?
It's Belleteyn, the night of May!

A piercing groan from Yen or from Geralt; black curls covering their eyes and mouths; trembling fingers entwined in their tightly-grasped hands. A cry; black lashes, damp;
a groan.
Then silence. An eternity of silence.
Belleteyn... The fires on the horizon...

Geralt is so tragically trying to fight his destiny which keeps smacking him right in the face.

“You don't fear the return of the Nilfgaardians? Now they know the
path through the mountains...”
“Well of course, we live in fear. But what can we do? Sit down and cry? Tremble?
One must keep on living. Come what may. Whatever fate has in store for us, we can't avoid it.”

I remember reading the ending of SoD for the first time, the bit where Geralt reads the names of the Sodden heroes. I was so sure that the last, 14th name will be THE name. I remember being so terribly sad and angry. Good times.

Starting Blood of Elves. Small delay here as I left my copy home. Few pages in and Cahir just appeared as nameless demon and wow it strikes me how things will evolve. Maybe it's an unpopular take but after my last read of the saga he was my fav in hanza. Let's see how it goes now

Truly love this Yen & Jaskier encounter. Very rare and meaningful moment showing her warmer side. Also Jaskier in danger is so relatable.

Wild Triss appeared at Kaer Morhen. Idk... Truly. I read her perspective and it almost seems like Sapkowski wanted to make her as much humanly flawed as possible and he took it too far to the point where it is hard to enjoy her. I have complicated feelings towards Triss.

But what I really enjoyed about Triss was how she reacted to Ciri being a girl growing up surrounded by old, oblivious men. And how she stood up to them about their ways with her.

Ciri's training is a delight. And all the tropes that will be so important later are here, small details, small mentions.
"You mistake stars reflected in the pond for the night sky."

You know, I hope the show will give us at least a taste of these heated, drilling, violently building up discussions like the one they had one evening in Kaer Morhen, when Triss was digging in the Witchers' indifference towards war. Geralt's Drama Queen self shows then. Loved it.

"He was forced down to the ground, thrown on his knees and back. He fell.
But he did not let go of Ciri.
The magician approached them slowly. She heard the girl whisper and
sniff. Geralt too was whispering. She could not make out the words.
But she
understood their meaning."

The saga of Triss upset stomach begins.

You know, reading Blood of Elves just hits you with how evident and huge part of that story is racism. Yet there is this sad part of the fandom that just jumps right into this shit and calls themselves "fans". Disappointing.

Yennefer's "My dear friend" letter is peak Yennefer mood. I love that woman with my whole heart.

How I said that Novigrad from games nicely met my expectations from books then Oxenfurt is rather disappointing. I know it is that way because of Radovid but my heart breaks still.

Blood of Elves is rather overwhelming if you think about it in retrospect. Almost all of the main players are introduced and you don't even know how important they will become so during 1st read you may just pay them not enough attention and be confused later.

Peak Geralt of Rivia energy right there

Ciri and Yennefer in Nenneke's sanctuary is one of the most wholesome and exciting moments. And this growth from lack of trust and reserve to actual familial love and care. To mother and daughter.

“My hand’s trained to hold a sword! That’s why!”
“Nonsense. Geralt has been brandishing his sword for his whole life and
his fingers are agile and… mmmm… very gentle.”

Look,,,,

Btw Yen calling Ciri "ugly one" sounds a bit harsh... Like in Polish it is "Brzydulka" which has the same meaning but denoted with warm and cute vibe to it. But tbh I cannot think of any better English word choice anyway

So I started Baptism of Fire yesterday.
Everyone going about Thanedd and it makes me so excited to read about this messy banquet again. I think i is in my top 3 events in he saga for sure.

Also Milva appeared! How I love that girl. I think she is often underappreciated by fandom when in fact she may be the most relatable person in the hanza. I hope we will get to see her one day.

Got sidetracked by uni but i'm back on my rereading shit.

Lodge met for the first time. There is some sense in it but from the point of view of our protagonists they are not our friends. Still nice to read about this wild variety of very fascinating women. I hope if the show gets many seasons they will have time to expand their stories

Btw I wonder how the show will play with this manner of introducing only glimpses and half-informations in the saga. Obviously it must work differently in the visual media but they may play with it in some way. I always loved this indirect building up, leaving us to guess.

So Jaskier is once again a relatable king. Running to jump on his horse when someone is trying to kill him and in the fever of the moment and just lack of skill he falls on his ass from the other side of the horse.

Also wild Cahir from the coffin just appeared. Look the evolution of his relationship with Geralt from Tanedd to the Battle on the Bridge is amazing. I love this dynamic and I can't wait to relive this again.

I don't post much here bc it is just this moment of pure wholesome fun. Zoltan and his pack are there and they all just met Regis. Mandrake night begins and I'm all in for that.

What doss Geralt do when he is tied up and believes he's about to die in the morning??? Obviously spending his last precious moment thinking about Yennefer

Got to the Fish Soup excellence. Geralt is making such a spectacle of himself, he is my favourite drama queen. And this is one of these scenes where Hanza thrives and shows its full colours.

Geralt:

Hanza:

Geralt:

Jaskier: ffs Geralt come and peel the vegetables

Geralt:
Geralt: fine

Lmao when Fringilla comes to the lodge meeting and bonds the most with Triss. Wonder what they have in common. ...

Btw Philippa was at Sodden Hill. So WHERE IS HER CASTING I ASK

When Fringilla actually helps Yen and makes me think that I have no idea what was the aim of this relationship. Also Sabrina is so fucking annoying, she only yells. I forgot about that.

Overall I realised that I remembered The Lodge much differently from my previous reads through. I seriously dislike most of them, probably would thirst over most of them. Weirdly enough I'm mostly curious about Francesca and Fringilla in the show.

I came back to my re-read and finished Baptism of Fire. It is hard to decide if this is my fave part or The Time of Contempt. I love what Hansa brings to us here, what variety they are and how perfectly they compliment each other. How i would die for all of them.

I love Yen being Yen, fierce and unapologetic, always driven towards her goals. I love Geralt accepting help from others. I love Milva and the rough humanity she represents. I love them all. And the Battle of the Bridge is epic, heartbreaking, emotional. One of my fav moments.

I realized my tweets about Time of Contempt never appeared here???? Anyway I finished reread of Baptism of Fire which is a top tier with ToC for me. I will go through ToC bookmarks to add some stuff about it here. Sorry for the mess

The eels solution from the show is a bit confusing considering that we have Rience and other mentions about mages kicked out of magical academies. I'm curious if they'll ever come back to that or was this only used for Yen's journey and doesn't matter anymore.

Rita and Yen. That's it.

Okay when Ciri runs away from Gros Velen to find Geralt and whole trio is finally together + Thanedd banquet are ones of the most wholesome moments in the saga. All the love, the family together, Yen & Geralt being such foolishly in love, Ciri's visions. Look I love that.

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