Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #12)

Original Title: Witches Abroad

Year Published: 1991

Published by: HarperCollinsPublisher

Number of Pages: 350

First Sentence: "This is the Discworld, which travels through space on the back of four elephants which themselves stand on the shell of Great A'Tuin, the sky turtle."

Goodreads rating: 5/5

Plot:

Once upon a time there was a fairy godmother named Desiderata who had a good heart, a wise head, and poor planning skills - which unfortunately left the Princess Emberella in the care of her other (not quite so good and wise) godmother when DEATH came for Desiderata. So now it's up to Magrat Garlick, Granny Weatherwax, and Nanny Ogg to hop on broomsticks and make for far-distant Genua to ensure the servant girl doesn't marry the Prince.

But the road toGenua is bumpy, and along the way the trio of witches encounters the occasional vampire, werewolf, and falling house (well this is a fairy tale, after all). The trouble really begins once these reluctant foster-godmothers arrive in Genua and must outwit their power-hungry counterpart who'll stop at nothing to achieve a proper "happy ending" - even if it means destroying a kingdom.

My thoughts:

 I absolutely adore Terry Pratchett like I've said many times before. What I love the most about his books are that you don't need to read them in a certain order to understand them. This is the third book with the witches as main-characters and I've read several of the books that comes after this one before reading this one without any trouble. They are stand-alone books although you can definitely see a "red thread" going through all of them. 

I loved this book. Since it was a "fairy tale" sort of book, there were many parodies on the fairy tales we all know and love. The witches are my favourite in the Discworld-world and once again they prove why. Not everything in life can be fixed by magic, sometimes we need to look into ourselves and find the strength and power to fix things. The three witches are also great role-models, and when I grow up I want to be just like Esme Weatherwax. 

There are of course many other characters that make this book worth reading, and if anything you should read it just to get a taste of Pratchett's use of language and fantastic remarks.

Do I recommend it?

I always have and always will recommend Terry Pratchett's books. This is no exception. 

Carpe Jugulum by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #23)

Original Title: Carpe Jugulum
Year Published: 1998
Published by: Transworld Publishers Ltd
Number of Pages: 378
First Sentence: "Through the shredded black clouds a fire moved like a dying star, falling back to earth - "
Goodreads Rating: 5/5

Plot (taken from Goodreads):
In a fit of enlightenment democracy and ebullient goodwill, King Verence invites Uberwald's undead, the Magpyrs, into Lancre to celebrate the birth of his daughter. But once ensconced within the castle, these wine-drinking, garlic-eatin, sun-loving modern vampires have no intention of leaving. Ever.

Only an uneasy alliance between a nervous young priest and the argumentative local witches can save the country from being taken over by people with a cultivated bloodlust and bad taste in silk waistcoats. For them, there's only one way to fight.

Go for the throat, or as the campyres themselves say ... Carpe Jugulum.

My thoughts: 
I absolutely adore Terry Pratchett. He is my number 1 favourite author. If I was forced to choose one author to read for the rest of my life it would be Terry Pratchett. Within the Discworld world the witches are probably my favourites. This is book nr 6 in the Witches series and it does not dissappoint. It's a great book with many amazing characters.

The witches are in number of three: Granny Weahterwax, Nanny Ogg and Agnes. In this installment they have to deal with something that Lancre has not dealt with in well ... forever. Vampires. The dialouge is hilarious as per usual with Pratchett and all the different subplots are extremely entertaining and do not distract from the main plot. He ties together all the loose ends perfectly in the end and manages to surprise you even though you thought you had it all figured out.


Do I recommend it?
YES! Especially if you love satire. It's a book filled with humour, colorful characters and manages to teach many lessons in a refreshing way. I do recommend Terry Pratchett (the name of the book is not that important, they are all great) to anyone.