Crossroads Of Ravens

''Crossroads of Ravens'' ( Polish: ''Rozdroże kruków'') is the seventh novel and ninth overall book in the '' Witcher'' series written by Polish fantasy writer Andrzej Sapkowski, first published in Poland on 29 November 2024. It is a prequel to both Sapkowski's ''Witcher Saga'' (1994–1999) and his short story collections – ''Sword of Destiny'' (1992) and ''The Last Wish'' (1993).

Plot

The main character, as in almost all of Sapkowski's other works set in this universe, is the witcher Geralt of Rivia, and ''Crossroads of Ravens'' is a prequel to all canonical works about this character published so far. The plot takes place in Geralt's youth, shortly after he completed his training at witchers stronghold Kaer Morhen and killed his first “monster” – a rapist.

Background and writing

Despite the demand, when asked about the next books, Sapkowski repeated that the ''Witcher Saga'' ended with ''The Lady of the Lake'' (1999), it is a closed story and he does not intend to return to it. ''The Witcher'' later became a global phenomenon thanks to the video game series developed by CD Projekt Red, the first part of which was released in 2007. Additionally, in 2019 Netflix began airing an English-language TV series based on Sapkowski's works set in ''Witcher'' world.

Despite earlier assurances, in 2013 Sapkowski finished writing a new book about Geralt, '' Season of Storms'', with plot set between his short stories from collection ''The Last Wish''. In June 2018, Sapkowski announced that he no longer ruled out writing another part of the saga. He added that he would like to set the action of such a book before the plot of the already published works. On 1 February 2023, during a meeting at the Taipei International Book Exhibition, Sapkowski announced that he plans to write new books set in ''Witcher'' universe, however, he did not provide more details at that time. In August of the same year, during an online meeting with Ukrainian fans, he revealed that he was working intensively on a new book about Geralt, which he will finish writing in about a year. In November 2023, during Comic Con Vienna, he revealed the first details about the upcoming book. In August 2024, in an interview for the magazine ''Chimères'', Sapkowski announced that he had completed work on the book.

According to the agreement with Sapkowski's publisher, SuperNowa, title and cover artwork of the book were to be revealed exclusively by '' Nowa Fantastyka'' magazine in issue 12/2024, the publication date of which was brought forward from December to November 22, 2024. Additionally, this issue of the magazine was also supposed to include a fragment of ''Crossroads of Ravens''. Although ''Nowa Fantastyka'' only posted a censored cover of the December issue on social media and websites, the day before the issue went on sale, one of the distributors of – the magazine publisher – violated the terms of the contract and published the full version, revealing the artwork and the title of the book. On the same day, it was officially confirmed that the ''Crossroads of Ravens'' will be a prequel to the saga, depicting Geralt as a young witcher. A day later, ''Nowa Fantastyka'' published a fragment of the first chapter of the book, as previously announced.

''Crossroads of Ravens'' was published in Poland on 29 November 2024 in a paperback, and on December 1 as e-book. Three days after the book's publication, SuperNowa announced that it would also be published in limited editions with alternative cover artworks – one referring to the Netflix series, and the other three designed by CD Projekt. Two of them were published in hardcover, and the “black hardcover” (Polish: ''czarna twarda'') edition additionally included a bestiary with Michał Niewiara's drawings. An audiobook version is scheduled to go on sale in 2025.

Reception

The publisher did not disclose how many copies of the book were sold, only saying that it “is selling as expected and even better”. Within three days over 20,000 copies were sold on Allegro (the largest Polish e-commerce platform) alone. According to Onet’s estimates, at least 30,000 copies of the book were sold after three days, which was a “staggering” result given the Polish book market. ''Crossroads of Ravens'' was nominated for the 40th Janusz A. Zajdel Award, given to the best Polish fantasy writers. Śląski Klub Fantastyki nominated Sapkowski for the Śląkfa award as the creator of the year, stating that ''Crossroads of Ravens'' is “exactly the story we have been longing for all these years”. As of 20 April 2025, users of the Polish social cataloging website ' gave the book an average rating of 7.3/10, while on English-language Goodreads the average is 4.03/5.

Anna Garas from ''Gry-Online'' praised the book as a work expanding the lore of the world, which in her opinion does so in a much better way than the Netflix works – '' Nightmare of the Wolf'' and '' Blood Origins''. According to her, Sapkowski seems to be telling Netflix’s screenwriters what the real origins of the characters and the world is, making it easier for the reader to forget about the spin-offs. She noted, however, that “''Crossroads of Ravens'' suffers from the same condition that the ''Witcher Saga'' and the '' Hussite Trilogy'' suffered from – towards the end, strange things start to happen”. Michał Jarecki from stated that the author “avoids excess more than ever”, which ultimately makes ''Crossroads of Ravens'' a book that “has a better structure and is more specific, without the slightest signs of beating around the bush”, while Sapkowski “still masterfully builds tension, uses humorous and malicious dialogues”. Polish film critic and book translator Bartosz Czartoryski considered ''Crossroads of Ravens'' to be “probably Sapkowski's most specific and objective work” and “a kind of witcher-y best of”. He also noted that “it's tempting to read the book as a coming-of-age story, an novel about initiation” because it presents Geralt as a person “just learning about life and the difficult art of making choices, often tripping over his own feet” who acquires the characteristics appropriate to the character known from the saga only in the finale. Unlike Garas, Czartoryski considered the ending of the book to be “excellent”.

SuperNowa has been frequently criticized for the poor quality of the paperback edition and the lack of pre-orders for the hardcover edition, which went on sale nearly two weeks later, on 10 December, and is only available in one specific bookstore at prices higher than regular one. Garas stated that the paperback version is “rather cheap edition intended for reading on the train or at the airport”, not a book written by the “titan of Polish fantasy”. Maciej Tomczak from online magazine ''Fahrenheit'' spoke in a similar tone, stating: “The quality of the first edition (...) deserves rather negative attention. Although aesthetic and free of editorial errors, tis more like a pocket-sized cheap paperback publication than a fully professional production.”

Possible sequel

According to Sapkowski, the book will arrive worldwide in early 2025 at the earliest. Shortly before the publication of ''Crossroads of Ravens'', in an interview for the Polish weekly periodical ''Polityka'', Sapkowski announced that it would not be the last book set in the ''Witcher'' universe. Again, he did not provide more details, saying only that “there will be a new book” and “if I set the time horizon to three or four years, it will be without much risk”.

Translations

''Crossroads of Ravens'' is scheduled to be published on September 30, 2025 simultaneously in nineteen languages, including English (translated by David French). In the UK, the book will be published by Gollancz, and in the US by Orbit. Ukrainian and Russian editions are also planned for 2025.

* Arabic:
** Egypt: ''الويتشر: مَفرِق الغِدفان'' (Aser Al-Kotob, 2025)
* Bulgarian: Ciela, 2025
* Croatian: ''Raskrižje gavrana'' ( Egmont, 2025)
* Czech: ''Rozcestí krkavců'' (Leonardo, 2025)
* Dutch: ''Het kruispunt der raven'' (Boekerij, 2025)
* English: ''Crossroads of Ravens''
** United Kingdom: Gollancz, 2025
** United States: Orbit, 2025
* Finnish: ''Korppien tienhaara'' ( WSOY, 2025)
* French: ''La Croisée des corbeaux'' (Bragelonne, 2025)
* German: ''Kreuzweg der Raben'' ( dtv Verlagsgesellschaft, 2025)
* Greek: ''Τα σταυροδρομια των Κορακιων'' (Selini, 2025)
* Hungarian: ''Hollók válaszútja'' (Gabo, 2025)
* Italian: ''Il crocevia dei corvi'' (Casa Editrice Nord, 2025)
* Japanese: Hayakawa Shobō, 2025
* Portugese:
** Portugal: ''A Encruzilhada dos Corvos'' (Edições Saída de Emergência, 2025)
** Brazil: ''Encruzilhada dos Corvos'' (Editora WMF Martins Fontes, 2025)
* Romanian: ''Răscrucea corbilor'' (Nemira, 2025)
* Russian: ''Перекресток воронов'' ( AST Publishing Group, 2025)
* Serbian: ''Raskršće gavranova'' (Čarobna knjiga, 2025)
* Slovak: ''Rázcestie krkavcov'' (Albatros Media Slovakia, 2025)
* Slovenian: ''Razpotje krokarjev'' (Mladinska Knjiga, 2025)
* Swedish: ''Korpens vägskäl'' (Gondol, 2025)
* Ukrainian: ''Роздоріжжя круків'' (Klub Simeĭnoho Dozvillia, 2025)

Notes

References

{{The Witcher
2024 novels
Polish novels
The Witcher
21st-century Polish novels
Polish fantasy novels