The Time of Contempt - Andrzej Sapkowski

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⭐ 9.0/10

(Originally written by Tim)

This book is 7 chapters. I thought the first 2 were amazing, the middle 3 were tough to get through, and I could not put the book down for the final 2.

I think the chapters I like are clearly where Ciri is involved, especially when she is interacting with Geralt. The wolf protecting a growing cub never fails, and I love seeing her grow and realize her powers. The end of this book is all her and it was very exciting, felt like a completely different book in all the best ways.

The middle chapters had some intrigue but I found it incredibly hard to follow. So many names and factions and double crossing I just couldn't keep it straight. I actually think if there was a map in this book that would help a ton, I need a visual to connect each character and their faction. There is this epic political showdown with all the witches in one place and it fell a bit flat because I couldn't remember any of the motivations.

Overall I really liked this book, best one so far, but I worry that understanding the political dynamics will be important going forward. These are some cool characters, and taking a character with a code and stretching it to their limits is always effective for me.

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