Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, has a vision of future greatness for the city. Harry King, a millionaire who has made his fortune from other people’s rubbish, is going to help him achieve this… with appropriate supervision, of course. Dick Simnel, the brains behind this vision – a literal transport of delight, if you can … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 40: Raising Steam
Tag: Terry Pratchett
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 39: Snuff
At the insistence of… his wife, Lady Sybil? Or is it his boss, Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork…? Well, at someone’s insistence, Commander Sir Samuel Vimes is taking a two-week vacation. To sweeten the deal, Sybil and Young Sam, their son, will be coming with him. They are headed for The Ramkin's ancestral country seat. … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 39: Snuff
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 38: I Shall Wear Midnight
Tiffany Aching is working as the only witch in the Chalk (her homeland). Already exhausted from the duties that go with her immense patch, she discovers that there is a growing suspicion towards witches. She also learns that Roland, the son of the Baron whom she befriended all the way back in The Wee Free … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 38: I Shall Wear Midnight
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 37: Unseen Academicals
Ponder Stibbons has taken over a large part of the running of Unseen University, the (for the moment, at least) premier college of magic on the Disc. This is largely because of two things: he can do it; and people don’t mind that he does it. During this time he has discovered that the Wizards … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 37: Unseen Academicals
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 36: Making Money
Moist Von Lipwig has been charged by the Patrician with looking after Ankh-Morpork’s Mint. He goes to his first meeting and then, by a random chain of events, manages to also be placed in charge of Ankh-Morpork’s banking system as well… In Going Postal, we met Moist, the former conman. He was about to be … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 36: Making Money
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 35: Wintersmith
Tiffany Aching is 13 in this novel and is working for/apprenticed to Miss Treason, a witch with an uncommon sense of the dramatic. Miss Treason takes Tiffany to witness the “Dark Morris,” a dance done to herald the “death” of Winter and the coming of Spring. However, at a crucial moment Tiffany interrupts and meets … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 35: Wintersmith
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 34: Thud!
Koom Valley is a fairly unassuming place but it is the site of a series of battles between the Trolls and the Dwarves. The most famous battle was inconclusive and resulted in the disappearance of the kings of both races. Whoever it was that won the battle has been a point of contention ever since … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 34: Thud!
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 33: Going Postal
Confidence trickster Moist Von Lipwig is rescued from being hanged by Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork. He has been saved because the Patrician has an offer for him. He wants Moist to restore the moribund Post Office to its former glory. Trouble is, the Post Office is facing some pretty stiff competition from the Clacks … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 33: Going Postal
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 32: A Hat Full Of Sky
Tiffany is eleven, two years older than she was when we first met her in The Wee Free Men. She’s heading off to her first job, apprenticing as a witch to the mysterious Miss Level. Recommended by Miss Tick, her mentor/advisor from that book, she leaves home for the first time, not quite ready for … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 32: A Hat Full Of Sky
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 31: Monstrous Regiment
Polly Perks cuts her hair and joins the army: she wants to find her brother Paul who joined a year ago but who hasn't been heard from for months. However, the war has been getting closer and her basic training becomes on-the-job as she and the other new recruits discover that they are just about … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 31: Monstrous Regiment
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 30: The Wee Free Men
After the success of The Amazing Maurice And His Educated Rodents (2001) it was inevitable that Terry Pratchett would turn his hand to another Discworld novel for children. Although, given his turnover of books at this time, Maurice could have just been the advance guard for the Tiffany Aching novels that seemed to dominate the … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 30: The Wee Free Men
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 29: Night Watch
His Grace, Commander Samuel Vimes is pursuing Carcer, a cold-hearted killer. However, it’s also the eve of the birth of his first child and the 30th anniversary of the Glorious Revolution Of The Twenty-Fifth of May, a people’s uprising that happened during a brief period of turmoil in the city of Ankh-Morpork’s recent past. During … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 29: Night Watch
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 28: The Amazing Maurice And His Educated Rodents
Way back in Reaper Man, mention was made of a fraudulent ridder of pests by the name of “The Amazing Maurice And His Educated Rodents.” At the time, it was regarded as a humourous aside that riffed on the cynical nature of humanity via the legends of the Pied Piper, but it was a germ … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 28: The Amazing Maurice And His Educated Rodents
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 27: The Last Hero
Way back in 1990, Gollancz showcased the work of artist Josh Kirby with a book filled with his artwork and an accompanying short story by Terry Pratchett. Eric, as it was titled, was a lavish affair that showed off Kirby’s talents as an artist beyond his facility for cover pages. Like a lot of fans, … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 27: The Last Hero
The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 26: Thief Of Time
Susan Sto Helit, daughter of Mort and Ysabell, granddaughter of Death, has taken up a teaching position, discovering that she is rather good at it, too. She has achieved some degree of normality, and even her ability to manipulate reality has become something that she utilises with much less of the disdain and doubt that … Continue reading The Great Discworld Retrospective No. 26: Thief Of Time