Quotes from The Last Wish

Andrzej Sapkowski ·  384 pages

Rating: (65.7K votes)


“People," Geralt turned his head, "like to invent monsters and monstrosities. Then they seem less monstrous themselves. When they get blind-drunk, cheat, steal, beat their wives, starve an old woman, when they kill a trapped fox with an axe or riddle the last existing unicorn with arrows, they like to think that the Bane entering cottages at daybreak is more monstrous than they are. They feel better then. They find it easier to live.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Lesser, greater, middling, it's all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. I'm not a pious hermit, I haven't done only good in my life. But if I'm to choose between one evil and another, then I prefer not to choose at all.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“I manage because I have to. Because I've no other way out. Because I've overcome the vanity and pride of being different, I've understood that they are a pitiful defense against being different. Because I've understood that the sun shines differently when something changes. The sun shines differently, but it will continue to shine, and jumping at it with a hoe isn't going to do anything.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“People”—Geralt turned his head—“like to invent monsters and monstrosities. Then they seem less monstrous themselves.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Świat się zmienia, słońce zachodzi, a wódka się kończy.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish



“A mother, you son-of-a-bitch, is sacred!”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Only Evil and Greater Evil exist and beyond them, in the shadows, lurks True Evil. True Evil, Geralt, is something you can barely imagine, even if you believe nothing can still surprise you. And sometimes True Evil seizes you by the throat and demands that you choose between it and another, slightly lesser, Evil.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Evil is evil, Stregobor,” said the witcher seriously as he got up. “Lesser, greater, middling, it's all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. I’m not a pious hermit. I haven't done only good in my life. But if I’m to choose between one evil and another, then I prefer not to choose at all.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“They weren't lying. They firmly believed it all. Which doesn't change the facts.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“I need this conversation. They say silence is golden. Maybe it is, although I'm not sure it's worth that much. It has its price certainly; you have to pay for it.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish



“Nonsense," said the witcher. "And what's more, it doesn't rhyme. All decent predictions rhyme.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“There's a grain of truth in every fairy tale,”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“I don't believe in Melitele, don't believe in the existence of other gods either, but I respect your choice, your sacrifice. Your belief. Because your faith and sacrifice, the price you're paying for your silence, will make you better, a greater being. Or, at least, it could. But my faithlessness can do nothing. It's powerless.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“No. I’ve no time to waste. Winter’s coming.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“As usual, cats and children noticed him first.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish



“All around, everywhere you look, is dullness and uncertainty. Even something born of beauty soon leads to boredom and banality, commonplace, the human ritual, the tedious rhythm of life.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“(...) Ale, między nami, nie rób przy niej tego, co ostatnim razem, podczas kolacji.
- Idzie ci o to, że rzuciłem widelcem w szczura?
- Nie. Idzie mi o to, że trafiłeś, chociaż było ciemno.
- Myślałem, że to będzie zabawne.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Destiny has many faces. Mine is beautiful on the outside and hideous on the inside. She has stretched her bloody talons toward me—”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“They say silence is golden. Maybe it is, although I’m not sure it's worth that much. It has its price certainly; you have to pay for it.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Make use of the opportunity to have a bath yourself. I can not only guess the age and breed of your horse, but also its color, by the smell.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish



“The Witcher had a knife to his throat. He was wallowing in a wooden tub, brimfull with soapsuds, his head thrown agains the slippery rim. The bitter taste of soap lingered in his mouth as the knife, blunt as a doorknob, scraped his Adam's apple painfully and moved towards his chin with a grating sound.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Aridea quite often turned to the Mirror—’ ‘With the usual question, I take it,’ interrupted Geralt. ‘“Who is the fairest of them all?” I know; all Nehalenia’s Mirrors are either polite or broken.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Evil is Evil. Lesser, greater, middling… Makes no difference. The degree is arbitary. The definition’s blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another… I’d rather not choose at all.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Listen, Geralt—"

"No. You won't win me over with your reasons nor convince me that Eltibad wasn't a murdering madman, so let's get back to the monster threatening you. You'd better understand that, after the introduction you've given me, I don't like the story. But I'll hear you out."

"Without interrupting with spiteful comments?"

"That I can't promise.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Then, four years later I received news from Aridea. She’d tracked down the little one, who was living in Mahakam with seven gnomes whom she’d managed to convince it was more profitable to rob merchants on the roads than to pollute their lungs with dust from the mines.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish



“I thought I was choosing the lesser evil. I chose the lesser evil. Lesser evil! I’m Geralt! Witcher…I’m the Butcher of Blaviken—”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“During his life, the witcher had met thieves who looked like town councilors, councilors who looked like beggars, harlots who looked like princesses, princesses who looked like calving cows and kings who looked like thieves. But Stregobor always looked as, according to every rule and notion, a wizard should look. He was tall, thin and stooping, with enormous bushy gray eyebrows and a long, crooked nose. To top it off, he wore a black, trailing robe with improbably wide sleeves, and wielded a long staff capped with a crystal knob.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Don’t be embarrassed,’ she said, throwing an armful of clothing on the hook. ‘I don’t faint at the sight of a naked man. Triss Merigold, a friend, says if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


“Jeśli dobrze rozumiem - powiedział - mam stanąć do pojedynku, bo jeżeli odmówię, to mnie powieszą. Jeśli będę walczył, to mam pozwolić, by przeciwnik mnie okaleczył, bo jeśli ja go zranię, to mnie połamią kołem. Same radosne alternatywy. A może zaoszczędzić wam kłopotów? Huknę głową o pień sosny i sam się obezwładnię.”
― Andrzej Sapkowski, quote from The Last Wish


About the author

Andrzej Sapkowski
Born place: in Łódź, Poland
Born date June 21, 1948
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“Most people don't seem to appreciate a person as honest as me. So don't ask me how George Washington ever got to be president.”
― Jeff Kinney, quote from Diary of a Wimpey Kid: Roderick Rules


“I want to cry and hit my head off the wall—and scream until I pass out, but I gave that up for Lent.”
― Jenni Fagan, quote from The Panopticon


“Let it be known that the Circle is about to be cast. All who enter the Circle may do so in perfect love and perfect trust.”
― C.J. Archer, quote from The Paranormal 13


“Not knowing… that could be as hard to handle as despair.”
― Eileen Wilks, quote from Mortal Danger


“But I hardly hear anyone, because Trevor is kissing me and whispering, over and over, "I love you, Chas. I love you, I love you, I love you.”
― Kristan Higgins, quote from Just One of the Guys


Interesting books

Sabbath's Theater
(7.1K)
Sabbath's Theater
by Philip Roth
The Seeress of Kell
(36.4K)
The Seeress of Kell
by David Eddings
The Rainbow
(16.5K)
The Rainbow
by D.H. Lawrence
Vampire Mountain
(27K)
Vampire Mountain
by Darren Shan
Gregor and the Marks of Secret
(27.3K)
Gregor and the Marks...
by Suzanne Collins
Shiloh
(65.4K)
Shiloh
by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.