Thief of Time - Terry Pratchett

Come back with me to that strange world, where DEATH is more than a state of (non) being; where magic is real, and where Time really is a woman. The world is a flat disc, and is carried through space on the backs of four elephants, who, in turn rest on A'Tuin, the great turtle. Come with me to Terry Pratchett's Discworld, via the 26th (!) novel in the series, Thief of Time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Plot(s) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oh, my, these are complicated in Thief of Time. In the beginning, there were the riders. There used to be five, but one left citing creative differences. Or something. So now there are four – and you know them – ...

Tick... Death sits at a desk in his study pondering the sights below him. What special event is about to happen on the Discworld and why have "they" chosen now to make an appearance and why mess with time itself? "SHOW ME A BEGINNING" he commands. Tick... We stumble across a mysterious birth on a dark and stormy night. What is so special about this child that the best Midwife in Lancre if not the world must be called on three times. Tick... Susan sits at a desk and surveys here classroom. Looking down she sees a rat with glowing blue eyes and a scythe. How DARE he summon her and to send ...

The Thief of Time is, I think, Pratchett’s 26th instalment in the ever-expanding Discworld series. If you’re a fan there’s no point in you even reading this review as you will have undoubtedly already bought, borrowed or begged a copy by now and no words from this reviewer will dissuade you. On the other hand if you are a newcomer to the Discworld novels, or are of the frame of mind that reads each new novel and assesses it with a mind unclouded by Pratchett worship you’re still in for a treat. After the long series (or did it just feel like that?) of largely uninspired and uninspiring reworkings of the standard Pratchett formula that spanned the ...