The Tower of Swallows by Andrzej Sapkowski is the fourth book in the Witcher series. It is a great follow up to Baptism of Fire and a great deviant from the norm.
The book opens up following a consequential battle and we see the outcome. Ciri is wounded and being treated by an old man living alone in the swamplands that are inhabitable. She heals up and recalls the battle that has led her to this moment in time.
We also follow Geralt of Rivia and crew in their search for Ciri. They keep searching for Ciri but get caught up in their own adventures and they end up in the middle of the battle. Geralt is starting to let others in and trust them and not doing what we expect him to do. He is becoming more and human as the trials and tribulations pile up.
What I loved about the novel was its different take. Usually the story unfolds in a normal timely sequence but not in this novel. An important battle has taken place and we know the results but not what took place. Throughout the whole story we are eager to find out how Ciri escaped and what exactly happened to her former crew.
There are a lot of time skips depending on who is telling the story. Some characters are recalling moments from a few days ago and others are telling it a year later. I loved it and it brought a new element to the novel. It made this one very different from the previous installments. I highly recommend this novel and can’t wait to read the last one in the series!