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storyorc's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A DELIGHT. Pratchett makes an art of subverting expectations not just in the narrative but at a sentence level. The setting is an enthralling exercise in contradiction; its common people act like your neighbours but there's dragons in the air and the city feels sprawling and alive yet every detail introduced pays off later. For a style with such flourish it hides an incredible economical skeleton.
What elevates this from amusing to making me want to pick up another Discworld novel is the moments of brutal insight on the nature of humanity and humanity at scale that Pratchett dots through his hijinks. Many I agree with, a few I don't, and some I hope to see expanded upon in his other works. The characters straddle the aspirational-relatable line wonderfully and all have a distinct set of traits. Except wit - very few get through the novel without delivering a few zingers. The worst thing about this book is that it makes you want to be that annoying friend who won't stop sharing quotes of what they're reading.
Wonse getting killed by luck of the narrative and the dragons flying away to spare the characters some of the messy fallout of doing things by the book felt like a slight cop-out to me but that could just be because I liked him despite the... everything. I was disappointed the Patrician regained control in the end since it's always nicer to have the little people vs the power rather than vs themselves but it probably would have been too glamourous and tidy for the tone if they'd defeated the power hierarchy as well as a dragon .
What elevates this from amusing to making me want to pick up another Discworld novel is the moments of brutal insight on the nature of humanity and humanity at scale that Pratchett dots through his hijinks. Many I agree with, a few I don't, and some I hope to see expanded upon in his other works. The characters straddle the aspirational-relatable line wonderfully and all have a distinct set of traits. Except wit - very few get through the novel without delivering a few zingers. The worst thing about this book is that it makes you want to be that annoying friend who won't stop sharing quotes of what they're reading.
Content Warnings
Minor: Transphobia
Transphobia is not explicit, just a few jokes based on a daughter having a penis or similar which speak for the time the book was written. Author is generally regarded as pro-trans on the whole.
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