The Witcher books by Andrzej Sapkowski are not only among the most acclaimed fantasy novels of all time: they have long served as the starting point for numerous reinterpretations and adaptations—from CD Projekt RED’s video game series to tabletop games and role-playing games, up to the celebrated Netflix television series of the same name.
In forty years, the saga has sold more than 35 million copies worldwide and has been published in over 40 languages across 80 countries.
The first appearance of the Witcher Geralt of Rivia, born from Sapkowski’s pen, dates back to the mid-1980s. In the following years his books, published in Poland starting in 1990, gained wide resonance around the world, also capturing the Italian audience, which first encountered The Witcher saga in 2010 thanks to Nord Editrice (with translation by Raffaella Belletti).
And it is precisely to communicate more effectively with Italian fans of the saga that Nord created a website (sapkowski.editricenord.it) and a newsletter dedicated to the imagery born from Sapkowski’s imagination (with a double gift for those who subscribe to it).
The saga, moreover, (reissued in bookstores with a new graphic design, a collectible hardcover edition), has been enriched with a new volume: Il crocevia dei corvi (translation by Raffaella Belletti) and, more recently, with an essential guide to discover the entire universe created by the Polish writer. L’atlante del mondo di The Witcher by Stéphane Arson and Andrzej Sapkowski (Nord, illustrated by Maéna Paillet and translated by Giuseppe Maugeri) maps out the most famous locations on the Continent, from Kaer Morhen to Novigrad, with almost 50 maps and color graphics.
Il guardiano degli innocenti
La spada del destino
Il Sangue degli Elfi
Il tempo della guerra
Il battesimo del fuoco
La Torre della Rondine
La Signora del Lago
La stagione delle tempeste
La strada senza ritorno
Il crocevia dei corvi
L’atlante del mondo di The Witcher
To celebrate this cult series, we trace the origins of The Witcher saga and the books in chronological order, before turning to the television adaptation.
Andrzej Sapkowski e i suoi libri
Sapkowski was born in the city of Łódź, in Poland, in 1948. Always a fan of fantasy literature, after studying economics he turned to writing thanks to the literary competition held by the magazine Fantastyka in the mid-1980s.
Sapkowski’s short story, titled Wiedźmin (The Witcher), attracted readers and prompted the author to delve deeper into the story of Geralt of Rivia with other tales. Thus arose a series of stories that would later flow into the collections that reached bookstores: La spada del destino and Il guardiano degli innocenti .
Sapkowski’s books were published in Poland in 1990 and in Italy in 2010 by Nord. Today the saga is translated into forty-two languages, following the author’s request to translate his work directly from Polish, without intermediary steps, in order to preserve the nuances of his writing.
The books of The Witcher total nine volumes (two short story collections and seven novels), which sketch the adventures of the Witcher Geralt, between fearsome monsters, wars and prophecies. In 2017 another short story collection of Sapkowski’s fantasy writing, published in 2012, titled La strada senza ritorno (The Road Without Return) was translated into Italian.
I libri di The Witcher (in ordine cronologico)
The protagonist of the The Witcher books (published in Italy by Nord, translated by Raffaella Belletti) is Geralt of Rivia, nicknamed the White Wolf: torn from his family as a child, Geralt undergoes the “Herbs’ Rite,” a ritual that changes him deeply, turning him into a powerful and swift Witcher.
Thanks to his magical abilities, his resilience, and his strength, Geralt has become an unstoppable and lethal mercenary, hired by the highest bidder to kill monsters and complete other dangerous missions. The Witcher is formidable, detached and elusive: as he grows, in fact, Geralt understands that he cannot trust men, who are often more ruthless than the monsters he is paid to kill. Nevertheless, the Witcher is not a mercenary without scruples: Geralt holds a clear sense of what is right and wrong, and he always does his best to fulfill his assignments without betraying his code.
Published in 1993, the short-story collection Il guardiano degli innocenti (Ostatnie życzenie, literally “the Last Wish”) shows Geralt gravely wounded. Taking advantage of his vulnerability, some knights set out to seek him, knowing they have a chance to eliminate him once and for all. To survive, Geralt turns to Nenneke, a healer and priestess of the temple of the goddess Melitele, the only person who, at the same time, can help him track down Yennefer, the beautiful sorceress who has stolen his heart.
In the saga’s second volume, La spada del destino, containing six stories, Geralt joins a group of men assembled to face a formidable gray dragon, a creature both dangerous and formidable, untouchable under the Witcher’s code. Nevertheless, Geralt joins the expedition to have the chance to meet his beloved Yennefer again, hoping not to lose her forever…
Continuing with the The Witcher books, we reach the saga’s first novel: Il Sangue degli Elfi, set at the end of the Nilfgaardian War. The sole surviving member of Cintra’s royal family is the young Cirilla, the queen’s granddaughter and heir to the throne. While under Geralt’s protection, the girl displays extraordinary psychic abilities, which leave no doubt: Ciri is the “Fire of Cintra,” fated to save peoples from ruin. It will be up to Geralt, then, to protect her on the journey to Ellander, where the princess will learn to control her powers. But a hired killer is already on their trail…
Also in The Time of War the Witcher Geralt is on the trail of three hitmen hired to kill Princess Ciri, the only one capable of restoring peace among the peoples of the land, thwarting the cruel Nilfgaardian emperor’s schemes. Ciri must arrive safe and sound on the island of Thanedd to meet the other wizards: but even on the island the princess will not be safe from Nilfgaard’s spies.
Il battesimo del fuoco, the fifth book of The Witcher saga, begins precisely with Geralt’s desperate search for Princess Ciri, who vanished during the Thanedd uprising. To find her, the Witcher entrusts himself to Milva, a skilled spy of the dryads. Wounded and still weak, Geralt can do nothing else but travel with Milva toward the imperial city, where it is rumored that Ciri is being held prisoner. But the road to Nilfgaard is full of perils and traps…
During the Autumn Equinox, omens of misfortune appear in the sky in the form of the Wild Hunt riders, bearers of death: soon after, Ciri is found gravely wounded by the old Vysogota of Corvo, who comes to her aid. Among the delirium of fever, the old man realizes that the girl is none other than Princess Ciri, the one who will save peoples from war. With Geralt still pursuing his young charge, La Torre della Rondine is one of The Witcher books that most dwells on the character of Ciri, describing her flight from those charged with killing her.
Dopo essere fuggita attraverso il portale della Torre della Rondine, Ciri si trova nel territorio degli elfi, che la ribattezzano “La Signora del Lago“, titolo anche del settimo libro della saga. Sebbene sia accudita, la principessa si rende conto di non essere una semplice ospite: è prigioniera degli elfi! La fanciulla cerca un modo per scappare, mentre Geralt è ancora sulle sue tracce, circondato da nemici che si nascondono nell’ombra…
Il libro, pubblicato in originale nel 1999, conclude cronologicamente le vicende della saga di The Witcher.
Published in 2013, fourteen years after the saga’s concluding novel, The Season of Storms is set prior to Geralt’s meeting with Princess Ciri. The Witcher has been arrested on a false accusation of theft and extortion; he is imprisoned by the charming Lytta “Coral” Neyd, the same woman who arranges his release by paying the bail. Defenseless and alone, the series’ protagonist can only comply with Corallo’s requests, hoping to recover his gear. But what does the mage want from him?
After nine years of silence, Andrzej Sapkowski returns to bookstores with a new adventure for Geralt… in which readers will discover the origins of the Witcher, his training and the choices that shaped his path. Il crocevia dei corvi, in fact, is set many years before the best-known challenges, when Geralt is still a boy, freshly graduated from the Kaer Morhen academy. Alone and in difficulty, the future White Wolf is helped and guided by Preston Holt, whose motives, however, are not so clear… A decision awaits Geralt: to become the monster everyone accuses him of being or something never before known.
Le celebrazioni per i 40 anni di The Witcher
Lauded for its moral complexity, political depth, and subversion of traditional fantasy archetypes, Sapkowski’s work has earned significant recognition both nationally and internationally. Forty years after its initial release, publishers around the world will launch a series of initiatives throughout 2026. In various countries, anniversary activities will include new, special and collectible editions, new graphic redesigns, celebratory events, and local campaigns aimed at bringing new readers to the saga while rewarding long-time fans.
In Italy, Nord will celebrate the anniversary with the editions The Witcher Collector’s Edition (in bookstores from September 25) and The Witcher – L’ultimo desiderio (in bookstores from October 23). The Witcher Collector’s Edition brings together the saga’s nine titles in three deluxe volumes, with covers illustrated by Paolo Barbieri and a new foreword by Matteo Strukul. The Witcher – L’ultimo desiderio is the illustrated edition of the first encounter between Geralt of Rivia and Yennefer of Vengerberg, taken from Il guardiano degli innocenti, the volume that sparked the legend (with illustrations by Mikaël Bourgouin).
“This year we celebrate an extraordinary milestone: the 40 years since the publication of the first Witcher short story, the beginning of a saga that has managed to win over millions of readers worldwide. Even in our country, Geralt of Rivia’s adventures have left a deep mark, giving rise to a community of fans that keeps growing from generation to generation. We are proud to be part of the family of international publishers of The Witcher. This anniversary is an opportunity to celebrate the past, but also to look forward with enthusiasm to the future, certain that Sapkowski’s universe will continue to surprise us with new stories and new emotions to share,” explained Marco Tarò, CEO of Nord.
“When I wrote the first Witcher short story, titled The Witcher, I had no long-term plan. I simply wanted to tell a good story. I didn’t expect Geralt to go so far beyond Poland. Forty years later, I am grateful that readers continue to return to these books,” emphasized Sapkowski himself.
The Witcher: the Netflix series
Announced in May 2017, the Netflix adaptation of The Witcher, conceived and written by Lauren S. Hissrich, was released in December 2019. The Polish-American series, based on Sapkowski’s books (and not on the video games), sees the author himself collaborating in the project’s creative team.
To play the role of Geralt is British actor Henry Cavill (already known for his roles in Superman and in Mission: Impossible). The cast is completed by Freya Allan (Ciri), Anya Chalotra (Yennefer) and Anna Shaffer (Triss Merigold).
The first season, comprising eight episodes, achieved strong success, and was quickly renewed by Netflix for a follow-up. In 2021 and 2023 followed the second and the third season. It was announced in 2024 that a fourth and a fifth season would follow (the series’ finale), but with a major change: Liam Hemsworth taking over the role of Geralt of Rivia from Henry Cavill.
The actor stated: “As a fan of The Witcher, I’m over the moon for the opportunity to portray Geralt of Rivia. Henry Cavill has been an incredible Geralt and I’m honored that he’s handing me the reins to wield the White Wolf’s blades for the next chapter of his adventure.”
In the teaser released by Netflix in May 2024, we get a “first look” at Liam Hemsworth in his new role.
Beyond a film (and a TV series) by Polish director Marek Brodzki titled Wiedźmin, released in theaters in 2001, there exist two Netflix-produced films dedicated to The Witcher saga.
The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf is an animated feature released in 2021 and directed by Kwang Il Han: released between the first and second seasons of the TV series, it is a spin-off that tells the story of Geralt’s mentor, the Witcher Vesemir.
Meanwhile, in 2025 Kang Hei Chul directed the animated film The Witcher – Le sirene degli abissi, drawn from the fourth short story in the volume The Sword of Destiny.
