Trying to figure out The Witcher books in order? For most readers, the best place to start is The Last Wish, then Sword of Destiny, then the five main saga novels. Season of Storms and Crossroads of Ravens are standalone Witcher books, but they usually make more sense after you already know the core story.
That’s where Witcher reading order gets confusing. The original Polish publication order, the English release history, and the in-universe chronology don’t line up neatly, so the “right” order depends on what you’re actually trying to do. Below, I’ve laid out the best Witcher reading order for most readers, the original publication order, and the chronological order.
Jump to:
- Best Witcher Reading Order
- The Witcher Books in Original Publication Order
- The Witcher Books in Chronological Order
- The Witcher Adaptations
- The Witcher Books FAQ
Best Witcher Reading Order
This is the order I’d recommend if you’re new to the series. It gives you the cleanest introduction to Geralt, Ciri, Yennefer, and the world before you get into the later standalones and prequels.
- The Last Wish — Short Story Collection
- Sword of Destiny — Short Story Collection
- Blood of Elves
- Time of Contempt
- Baptism of Fire
- The Tower of Swallows
- The Lady of the Lake
- Season of Storms — Standalone (Optional)
- Crossroads of Ravens — Standalone Prequel (Optional)
The Last Wish is still the best starting point for most new readers, even though it isn’t first in the original Polish publication order and it isn’t first chronologically either. It does the best job introducing Geralt, the world, and the tone of the series before the bigger saga kicks in.
That also means I would not start with Crossroads of Ravens just because it takes place earlier in the timeline. It’s useful to know where it fits, but it works better once you already have a feel for Geralt and the world he’s walking into.
The Witcher Books in Original Publication Order
This list uses the original Polish publication order, not the English translation release order.
That distinction is where a lot of Witcher reading-order confusion comes from. English-speaking readers usually encountered The Last Wish first, but in the original Polish publication history, Sword of Destiny came first.
- Sword of Destiny (1992) — Short Story Collection
- The Last Wish (1993) — Short Story Collection
- Blood of Elves (1994)
- Time of Contempt (1995)
- Baptism of Fire (1996)
- The Tower of Swallows (1997)
- The Lady of the Lake (1999)
- Season of Storms (2013) — Standalone
- Crossroads of Ravens (2025) — Standalone
Use this list if you want the books in the order Sapkowski originally published them. For most first-time readers, though, I still think The Last Wish is the better actual starting point.
The Witcher Books in Chronological Order
This order works better as a reread than a first read. It may look cleaner on paper, but it changes how Geralt’s world, the major characters, and the bigger saga are introduced.
So while this is the broad story chronology most readers use, I would still go with the recommended order above for your first trip through the series.
- Crossroads of Ravens — Standalone
- The Last Wish — Short Story Collection
- Season of Storms — Standalone
- Sword of Destiny — Short Story Collection
- Blood of Elves
- Time of Contempt
- Baptism of Fire
- The Tower of Swallows
- The Lady of the Lake
Chronological order is useful when you already know the books and want to see how the timeline lines up. It is not the cleanest way to meet this world for the first time.
The Witcher Adaptations
A lot of readers come to The Witcher through the games first, and that’s completely normal. CD Projekt Red turned Sapkowski’s world into a major gaming franchise with The Witcher in 2007, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings in 2011, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt in 2015. The Witcher 3 also got two major expansions, Hearts of Stone in 2015 and Blood and Wine in 2016, and the game side of the franchise later expanded with GWENT and Thronebreaker in 2018, plus GWENT: Rogue Mage in 2022.
Netflix made the series even more mainstream. The live-action show debuted in 2019, followed with additional seasons in 2021, 2023, and 2025, and Netflix currently lists four seasons available to stream. Netflix also announced that Season 5 will be the final chapter of Geralt’s story, so the screen version is still ongoing even though the end is already mapped out.
The franchise has also grown beyond the main show. Netflix released the animated film Nightmare of the Wolf in 2021 and the prequel miniseries Blood Origin in 2022, so there’s now a full mix of games, live-action TV, animation, and spinoffs built around the same world. That said, the books are still the foundation. The games continue the universe in their own way, and the Netflix version adapts it loosely, so the novels are still the best place to get Geralt’s story in its original form.
The Witcher Books FAQ
What order should I read The Witcher books in?
For most readers, start with The Last Wish, then Sword of Destiny, then move into the five main saga novels. After that, read Season of Storms and Crossroads of Ravens if you want more Witcher material.
Why does publication order start with Sword of Destiny if The Last Wish is the best starting point?
Because those are answering two different questions. Sword of Destiny came first in the original Polish publication order, but The Last Wish is still the smoother entry point for most new readers because it introduces Geralt and the world more cleanly.
Do I need to read The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny before Blood of Elves?
Yes, I strongly recommend it. Those two short story collections do a lot of the setup work for the saga, and skipping them makes the start of Blood of Elves feel thinner than it should.
When should I read Season of Storms and Crossroads of Ravens?
For a first read, I’d save both until after the main saga. Season of Storms is a standalone Witcher novel, and Crossroads of Ravens is an earlier Geralt prequel, but neither one is essential before the core books.
Do I need to play the games or watch the Netflix show before reading the books?
No. The books stand on their own. A lot of readers discover The Witcher through the games or the show, but you do not need either one to follow or enjoy the novels.
Looking for more books in order?
If you want more fantasy authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Fantasy Books in Order index.
One thought on “The Witcher Books in Order: Best Reading Order”
I’ve not actually seen the show, so I didn’t know about this, thanks. I have played the games though and am quite familiar with Dandelion.