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teokajlibroj's review against another edition
2.0
I don't enjoy Discworld anymore. I know it's practically sacrilege to disrespect such a classic, but all the charm is gone. There's hardly any jokes left, the characters are flat, the plots are repetitive and even Vimes annoys me.
I got sick of the constant reminders that Vimes is a good old fashioned copper and always did the right thing. He struck me as really hypocritical in this book. Pratchett constantly reminds us that Vimes is straight as an arrow, yet shows us that Vimes believes he is above the law. He follows the book except when it doesn't suit him. He is supposed to be honest, yet casually turns a blind eye to corruption and police brutality in the force (yet Pratchett somehow makes the inspector sent to stop this, seem like a meddling bureaucrat).
He gives a big speech about doing the right thing and the importance of always following the law, then goes and drugs a thousand to citizens (to stop a riot), hijacks vehicles and closes roads just so he can get home quicker (an abuse of power he would rail against if anyone else did it). He supposedly stands up for the ordinary people yet he thinks of them as nothing but idiots, an unthinking mob.
Every book starts with him expressing a prejudice against a species (in this case vampires) but he completely accepts them by the end of the book. The problem is that nothing happened in between. There was no character arc or growth, no insight to change his mind, it's like he just forgot.
Pratchett is often praised for his depiction of race relations, but I find it very shallow. This book could be summed up as "trolls and dwarves don't like each other, but they probably should." There's no great insight, no lesson, nothing that will make anyone view race relations in our world in a new light. Pratchett's message is basically "Hey, why don't you try not to be racist?"
I could go on and on about other flaws (but I'll probably save it for a blog post) like how the other characters just feel like filler and only exist to tell Vimes messages, or how poor the female characters in general are or how Sybil is just a stereotypical nagging wife who does nothing except make Sam food or what was Pratchett thinking when he wrote "jerk syndrome" (I don't know if that was supposed to be comedy or insight because it was neither.).
I got sick of the constant reminders that Vimes is a good old fashioned copper and always did the right thing. He struck me as really hypocritical in this book. Pratchett constantly reminds us that Vimes is straight as an arrow, yet shows us that Vimes believes he is above the law. He follows the book except when it doesn't suit him. He is supposed to be honest, yet casually turns a blind eye to corruption and police brutality in the force (yet Pratchett somehow makes the inspector sent to stop this, seem like a meddling bureaucrat).
He gives a big speech about doing the right thing and the importance of always following the law, then goes and drugs a thousand to citizens (to stop a riot), hijacks vehicles and closes roads just so he can get home quicker (an abuse of power he would rail against if anyone else did it). He supposedly stands up for the ordinary people yet he thinks of them as nothing but idiots, an unthinking mob.
Every book starts with him expressing a prejudice against a species (in this case vampires) but he completely accepts them by the end of the book. The problem is that nothing happened in between. There was no character arc or growth, no insight to change his mind, it's like he just forgot.
Pratchett is often praised for his depiction of race relations, but I find it very shallow. This book could be summed up as "trolls and dwarves don't like each other, but they probably should." There's no great insight, no lesson, nothing that will make anyone view race relations in our world in a new light. Pratchett's message is basically "Hey, why don't you try not to be racist?"
I could go on and on about other flaws (but I'll probably save it for a blog post) like how the other characters just feel like filler and only exist to tell Vimes messages, or how poor the female characters in general are or how Sybil is just a stereotypical nagging wife who does nothing except make Sam food or what was Pratchett thinking when he wrote "jerk syndrome" (I don't know if that was supposed to be comedy or insight because it was neither.).
billiesgotbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
leirben's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
canaanmerchant's review against another edition
5.0
This is my favorite book focusing on my favorite character of my favorite series.
Thud! has the perfect blend of the humor and noirish intrigue combined with one of the best arguments for pluralism made in fiction.
Every character is able to execute perfectly and Vimes especially transforms into something special while searching the Ankh-Morpork's figurative and literal underworld.
Thud! has the perfect blend of the humor and noirish intrigue combined with one of the best arguments for pluralism made in fiction.
Every character is able to execute perfectly and Vimes especially transforms into something special while searching the Ankh-Morpork's figurative and literal underworld.
thebookdragon666's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
tdsump's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
strategineer's review against another edition
5.0
Thud! by Terry Pratchett tells the story of Sam Vimes, head of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, and his fellow coppers trying to solve a dwarf's murder. The upcoming anniversary of the thousands years old Battle of Koom Valley is keeping tension high between the dwarves and the trolls; making it harder for the constables of the Watch to keep the peace and solve the crime.
Thud! is a Terry Pratchett novel through and through. There's ample comedy interlaced with impactful action scenes with just a little bit of drama sprinkled in. This time around, it's a little grittier and darker than usual.
It would be a lot simpler [...] if this was a story. A sword is pulled out of a stone or a magic ring is flung into the depths of the sea, and with general rejoicing the world turns.
But this was real life. The world didn't turn, it just went into a spin.
Thud! is about prejudice. The main plot as well as every sub plot has something to say about prejudice, how it can cloud our judgement and prevent us from doing the right thing and treating everyone with the respect they deserve.
The choice to have the protagonist be a prototypical white man in a position of power is great because I would have had a hard time taking the novel seriously if Terry Pratchett, a very white man, had chosen to tell this story from the perspective of a minority.
Sam Vimes is an honest man doing the best he can but sometimes that's just not good enough. So, for me, throughout the novel, he flip-flopped between being the hero I was rooting for and the antihero I loved to hate.
Minor story spoilers
An example of this is when Sam Vimes suffers a particularly heinous attack from a few deep dwarves. He feels extremely angry and frustrated about this (rightfully so) but unfortunately he expresses that anger by mistreating other dwarves who had nothing to do with the attack.
This hits home for me because it's something we see time and time again in our own world.
For example, post-911, Muslims around the world suffered from an increase in hate crimes against them. This is a tragedy because the actions of a few extremists (completely divorced from Islam) led to all this hate being directed towards the wrong people. Another more recent example of this was post-COVID, there was a similar increase in hate crimes towards Asian people who, obviously, had nothing to do with COVID, other than suffering because of it like everyone else.
So when Vimes starts getting pissed at dwarves in the same way, it felt real.
Thud! is filled with situations like this; touching on issues like discrimination in the workplace, police brutality, racism, etc. that lend a weight to the story that isn't usually present in other Discworld novels. I'm really into it!
Thud! was published right after Going Postal (which is my favorite Discworld novel I've read so far) and they seem to share quite a bit of DNA. With Going Postal dealing with capitalism, toxic corporate culture, bureaucracy (and more!) instead of the topics covered in Thud!.
If you like Going Postal, you might like Thud! (and vice-versa). I love both tremendously.
As of right now, Thud! has taken my second favorite Terry Pratchett novel slot; bumping Thief of Time down to a respectable third place.
You can't go wrong with Terry Pratchett. He's just so consistently good at what he does, and I love his work because of it.
Thud! is a Terry Pratchett novel through and through. There's ample comedy interlaced with impactful action scenes with just a little bit of drama sprinkled in. This time around, it's a little grittier and darker than usual.
It would be a lot simpler [...] if this was a story. A sword is pulled out of a stone or a magic ring is flung into the depths of the sea, and with general rejoicing the world turns.
But this was real life. The world didn't turn, it just went into a spin.
Thud! is about prejudice. The main plot as well as every sub plot has something to say about prejudice, how it can cloud our judgement and prevent us from doing the right thing and treating everyone with the respect they deserve.
The choice to have the protagonist be a prototypical white man in a position of power is great because I would have had a hard time taking the novel seriously if Terry Pratchett, a very white man, had chosen to tell this story from the perspective of a minority.
Sam Vimes is an honest man doing the best he can but sometimes that's just not good enough. So, for me, throughout the novel, he flip-flopped between being the hero I was rooting for and the antihero I loved to hate.
Minor story spoilers
Spoiler
An example of this is when Sam Vimes suffers a particularly heinous attack from a few deep dwarves. He feels extremely angry and frustrated about this (rightfully so) but unfortunately he expresses that anger by mistreating other dwarves who had nothing to do with the attack.
This hits home for me because it's something we see time and time again in our own world.
For example, post-911, Muslims around the world suffered from an increase in hate crimes against them. This is a tragedy because the actions of a few extremists (completely divorced from Islam) led to all this hate being directed towards the wrong people. Another more recent example of this was post-COVID, there was a similar increase in hate crimes towards Asian people who, obviously, had nothing to do with COVID, other than suffering because of it like everyone else.
So when Vimes starts getting pissed at dwarves in the same way, it felt real.
Thud! is filled with situations like this; touching on issues like discrimination in the workplace, police brutality, racism, etc. that lend a weight to the story that isn't usually present in other Discworld novels. I'm really into it!
Thud! was published right after Going Postal (which is my favorite Discworld novel I've read so far) and they seem to share quite a bit of DNA. With Going Postal dealing with capitalism, toxic corporate culture, bureaucracy (and more!) instead of the topics covered in Thud!.
If you like Going Postal, you might like Thud! (and vice-versa). I love both tremendously.
As of right now, Thud! has taken my second favorite Terry Pratchett novel slot; bumping Thief of Time down to a respectable third place.
You can't go wrong with Terry Pratchett. He's just so consistently good at what he does, and I love his work because of it.
stack1220's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
bookishdov's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5