Pratchett, Terry - Carpe Jugulum
Sun, Nov. 9th, 2008 08:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterUpon the birth of his daughter, King Verence of Lancre decides to have a giant party. Unfortunately, this means he decides to invite Omnian priest Mightily Oats and the Magpyr family, which in turn sets off Nanny Ogg, who takes issues with Omnian past practices of setting so-called witches on fire (the real witches got away, of course), and Granny Weatherwax, who does not approve of vampires attempting to take over Lancre.
I enjoy the witches books, so I'm a little sad to see that this is the last one that directly stars the trio of witches (I like the Tiffany Aching books, but I miss having more Granny Weatherwax). I'm also sad that Agnes/Perdita has not quite achieved the same place Magrat has in my heart (and I am very glad Magrat is in this book), although I suspect she very well could with another book.
I think (?) people tend to like this one better than Maskerade; I may be the exception, largely because I howled at all the parody in Maskerade but was a little meh to the vampire ones in here. They aren't as frightening as Fairy, and the tropes that Pratchett lampoons are tropes that aren't much in play any more.
Now, if he had written this book about brooding, morally conflicted and yet utterly gorgeous, perpetually teenaged hero vampires and the clumsy gorgeous girls they find to save them from their lifetime of misery and angst and squirrel blood, I would have lapped that up!
On the other hand, I had been expecting a more negative treatment of Mightily Oats in the book and was pleased to find that he actually developed as a character. And I very much love seeing Granny Weatherwax being put into a tight spot, from her opening encounter with Death to her battle against the vampires, largely because she always rises to the occasion. Or makes the occasion come to her, sometimes.
I enjoy the witches books, so I'm a little sad to see that this is the last one that directly stars the trio of witches (I like the Tiffany Aching books, but I miss having more Granny Weatherwax). I'm also sad that Agnes/Perdita has not quite achieved the same place Magrat has in my heart (and I am very glad Magrat is in this book), although I suspect she very well could with another book.
I think (?) people tend to like this one better than Maskerade; I may be the exception, largely because I howled at all the parody in Maskerade but was a little meh to the vampire ones in here. They aren't as frightening as Fairy, and the tropes that Pratchett lampoons are tropes that aren't much in play any more.
Now, if he had written this book about brooding, morally conflicted and yet utterly gorgeous, perpetually teenaged hero vampires and the clumsy gorgeous girls they find to save them from their lifetime of misery and angst and squirrel blood, I would have lapped that up!
On the other hand, I had been expecting a more negative treatment of Mightily Oats in the book and was pleased to find that he actually developed as a character. And I very much love seeing Granny Weatherwax being put into a tight spot, from her opening encounter with Death to her battle against the vampires, largely because she always rises to the occasion. Or makes the occasion come to her, sometimes.
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Thu, Nov. 13th, 2008 08:00 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Thu, Nov. 13th, 2008 08:03 pm (UTC)Now I just sort of flail at it and go, "NO HE IS A FREAKING PSYCHO MURDERER AND THAT'S WHY HE IS AWESOME!" It's like right up there with Dracula for books that would be great action movies if people wouldn't stop turning them into romances.