"Blood of Elves" by Andrzej Sapkowski, summary

The fantasy novel "Blood of Elves" was published in 1994. The plot centers on the rescue of Princess Cirilla of Cintra, who is being hunted by the royal secret services, the Nilfgaardian intelligence service, and rebellious sorcerers. The girl possesses a rare gift from the Source, which threatens to destroy the established order.

The novel won Poland’s Janusz Seidel Prize in 1994 and the prestigious David Gemmell Award in the UK in 2009. Based on the saga, the Polish studio CD Projekt RED released a world-renowned video game series, and the streaming service Netflix created a television series.

This book opens the Witcher novel pentalogy, being the third installment in the series following the short story collections The Last Wish and The Sword of Destiny. It is followed by the novels Hour of Contempt, Baptism of Fire, The Tower of the Swallow, The Lady of the Lake, and the prequel Season of Storms.

Ballad under the Oak and Ambush in the Pigsty

The troubadour Dandelion sings ballads beneath the canopy of the ancient oak tree of Bleobheris. The audience debates heatedly over the fate of the surviving princess of Cintra, while the poet secretly retreats to Maman Lantjeri’s brothel. There, the sorcerer Rience overtakes him, demanding the child’s whereabouts. The fugitive is bound in a dark barn and hung from a beam over a bucket of lime. The interrogation is interrupted by Yennefer, who has entered the barn through the broken doors. The sorceress kills the mercenary’s henchmen and shouts, "Don’t shake, Dandelion." Rience escapes through a portal, his face scorched by a spell.

Winter in a mountain citadel

In the fall, Geralt brings Ciri to the dilapidated fortress of Kaer Morhen. The child is drilled by the senior witchers — Vesemir, Eskel, Lambert, and Koyon. Training takes place on poles and balancing beams. Triss Merigold soon arrives to help. The sorceress forces the witchers to ease the load, give the girl milk, and sew a proper dress. The magical nature of the girl’s abilities is revealed. During the winter festival of Midinvaern, Ciri drinks the White Seagull tincture and prophesies in a strange voice: "Va’esse deireadh aep eigean." An icy numbness sets in. Triss realizes her own impotence before the medium’s power.

The road through the forest and the ruins of Shaerrawedd

In the spring, Geralt, Ciri, and Triss leave the castle. The sorceress falls ill with a stomach ailment and loses her strength. On the road, the travelers join a royal convoy under the command of Commissar Wilfried Wenck and the dwarf Yarpen Zigrin. The convoy carries cobblestones, disguised as valuable cargo, serving as bait. In the ruins of the elven palace of Shaerrawedd, Geralt shows Ciri blooming roses and explains the meaning of neutrality. The girl plucks a flower. A battle with a Scoia’tael partisan detachment breaks out in a clearing. In the melee, the hulking Paulie Dahlberg, Commissar Wenck, and the elven attacker are killed. Geralt throws a bloody rose onto her body, saying, "Forgive us."

Dangerous waters of Pontar

Geralt is hired as a guard on a river barge belonging to the Malatius and Grok Company. Fog thickens on the river. Linus Pitt, a professor at the Oxenfurt Academy, proves to the witcher the impossibility of aquatic monsters existing in the polluted delta. Suddenly, a ten-legged toadfish emerges from the depths. The monster drags under the water the Temerian guards who attempted to arrest the witcher for a reward from Rience. Geralt rescues a boy who has fallen overboard. The monster swims to the bottom with a torn-off piece of the witcher’s boot.

Secrets of Redanian Intelligence

Dandelion makes his way through the streets of Oxenfurt. Spies deliver the troubadour to the rector’s office, where he meets with Dijkstra, the head of the Redanian secret service, and the sorceress Philippa Eilhart. Dijkstra demands a meeting with the witcher. The poet escapes through an attic window, enlisting the help of the medical student Shani.

The Battle in Port Alley

Shani leads Geralt and Dandelion to the above-water hut of the healer Myrman. Through the healer, they manage to lure Rience out, who agrees to come for a large fee. In a dark alley, the witcher is attacked by four assassins — the Michelet brothers. Geralt eliminates all four in a fast-paced fencing match. Rience opens a teleporter for escape. The witcher almost catches up with the renegade, but Philippa Eilhart’s magic binds the hunter from behind. The sorceress allows the enemy to escape through a fiery oval. She finishes off the wounded Tublanc Michelet, who managed to whisper the name of his employer, and coldly tells the witcher, "Your destiny is in her hands, witcher."

Within the walls of the Temple of Melitele

With the arrival of summer, Ciri studies magic at the sanctuary of the goddess Melitele in Ellander under the strict supervision of Yennefer. The novice Yarre secretly shows the princess maps. The girl masters spells and controls psychokinesis, shattering an old wooden barn with energy. Yennefer and Ciri develop a genuine attachment. In the morning, they both mount their horses and ride off to face the approaching war. Gatebirds screech over the temple, and High Priestess Nenneke bids farewell to the riders with the parting words: "The Hour of the Sword and the Axe is coming."