Blood of Elves

A fantasy novel typically features magic as well as a magic system, meaning that magic has clear “rules.” Yennefer’s explanation of magic as Chaos, Art, and Science is an example. Fantasies also tend to center around a main quest; instead of an external adventure, the protagonists in Blood of Elves have internal journeys. Ciri’s “quest” in this novel is her education, Geralt’s is to embrace Ciri as family and destiny, and Yennefer’s is her vulnerability. Fantasy novels frequently take place in the vaguely medieval setting that the Witcher saga employs; this not only harkens to some of the fairy tales and myths that the fantasy genre emerged from, but it also creates distance between the contemporary world and the world of the novel, imbuing the latter with a sense of mystery. Species other than humans are commonplace in fantasy novels, and Sapkowski creates a world boiling over with humans’ fear and distrust (to the point of overt Racial Tensions Between Humans and Nonhumans) of anyone and anything that is not human. Monsters fall under humanity’s scrutiny, as do elves, dwarves, witchers, and mages. A common