Andrzej Sapkowski

Andrzej Sapkowski is a Polish fantasy novelist known for his "The Witcher" book series. His books have been translated into over 20 languages.

Sapkowski studied economics at the University of Łódź. Prior to becoming an author, he worked as a senior sales representative for a foreign trade company. He started his literary career as a translator, in particular, of science fiction. He says he wrote his first short story, "The Witcher" (translated to "The Hexer" or "Spellmaker") on a whim, in order to enter a contest by Polish science fiction and fantasy magazine Fantastyka. The story was published in Fantastyka in 1986 and was enormously successful both with readers and critics. Sapkowski has created a cycle of tales based on the world of "The Witcher," comprising three collections of short stories and five novels. This cycle and his other works have made him one of the best-known fantasy authors in Poland.

The main character of "The Witcher" is Geralt of Rivia, a monster hunter trained for this since childhood. Geralt exists in a morally ambiguous universe, yet manages to maintain his own coherent code of ethics. At the same time cynical and noble, Geralt has been compared to Raymond Chandler's signature character Philip Marlowe. The world in which these adventures take place is heavily influenced by Slavic mythology.

In 2019, "The Witcher" was adapted into an English-language TV series of the same name by Netflix. The television series stars Anya Chalotra, Freya Allan, and Henry Cavill.