Carpe Jugulum

The plot is a version of an earlier Discworld novel, Lords and Ladies, with the predatory elves of that novel being replaced here by suave and deadly vampires, and the tiny kingdom of Lancre being defended by its witches. But plot is the least of Pratchett's appeal, and Carpe Jugulum is loaded with marvellous characters (not least the witches themselves, about whom we learn a deal more here), comic touches and scenes of genius, and even some of the renowned down-to-earth Pratchett wisdom (here about the inner ethical conflicts we all face, and the wrongness of treating people as things). Pratchett's vampires are elegant Bela Lugosi types, and they come up against an unlikely but engaging alliance of witches, blue-skinned pixies like Rob Roy Smurfs, a doubting priest with a boil on his face and a magical house-sized Phoenix in a seamless, completely absorbing and feel-good-about-the-universe mixture. Highly recommended. --Adam Roberts

I actually bought this book for light reading, as I had a long train journey to go on with nothing to entertain me. As always seems to be the case with Pratchett's books, I had no idea what was going on for the first 2 or 3 chapters, but once the characters had settled down into their roles I was able to enjoy it much more. I always love the way Pratchett portrays his characters, and Carpe Jugulum is no exception. He manages to tell a story with great wit, humour and clarity, while managing to keep us interested about all the characters. This subtle blend of serious storytelling and hilarious absurdity is very much in the style of the other Pratchett books I have read, and once again I loved it.

Well done Terry. Keep it up!


A trio of five??   January 25, 2006
Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)
8 out of 10 found this review helpful

This book might have been subtitled: "The Further Adventures of Agnes Nitt". Agnes is seething with resentments. Virtually conscripted into Lancre's witches' coven as the junior member, she replaces Magrat Garlick as "the maiden." She feels she's in Magrat's shadow, but given their comparative girths, that takes some doing. Agnes' size adds to her resentments, but she can't help being heavy. If that wasn't enough, she suffers an alter ego named Perdita who can't refrain from commenting on Agnes' size, personality or appearance. An petulant character, Agnes isn't easy to like, but she bears heavy burdens - besides herself.

Attending a naming ceremony for Magrat's newborn, Agnes encounters two new men in her life. Mightily Oats is a priest of Om who's spent far too much time in libraries to act as a rock of the faith. Omnians used to burn people, except, according to Granny Weatherwax, never witches. Time brings change, and Omnism was forever changed by the Prophet Brutha. Disputation, replacing [In]Quisition, led to so many schismatics debating theology that in Oats' case, he's constantly debating himself. Later, when it's Granny he's debating, the scene is one of Pratchett's most outstanding exchanges.

The other young man is more imposing. Vlad Magpyr is a member of a family relocating to Lancre from the Uberwald. They've arrived to take over the country. They're vampires - yuppie vampires, no less. Under the tutelage of Count Magyr, they're trying an Uberwald version of The Power of Positive Thinking. That means they're learning to resist all the usual weapons against vampires. "Garlic? Just a seasoning." Sunlight? Build up an immunity by starting with cloudy days and working to brighter ends. This version of "self-help" has made them very powerful. In fact, they appear invulnerable against any attempt to control them.

The Lancre witches coven should be able to resist the vampires' takeover of Lancre without difficulty - evil forces have been overcome in the past. The coven's membership, however, has shifted roles. Granny Weatherwax, doyenne of Discworld witchdom, has gone walkabout in a fit of pique. The traditional arrangement of "maiden, mother, crone" promotes Nanny Ogg to the primary role. She's comfortable with neither the role nor its label. Lancre witches are nothing if not flexible, however, and the shifted roles lead to some interesting changes in personality. Magrat's new responsibility as a mum is still settling itself, but rest assured, former witch or not, "tradition" is a word cast well aside.

Pratchett's Discworld narratives successively display less humour, but increasingly more wit and insight. His knowledge of our world is shrewdly presented through his stories of the Disc. What other "fantasy" writer gives you glimpses of plate tectonics, evolution and the drought-producing El Nino? Who else presents us with little painted blue men, speaking an almost familiar language and the most talented cattle thieves on the Disc? They also write "verra comp-lic-ated documents" as any London solicitor could attest.

This story might be viewed as a simple contest between good and evil. Not in Pratchett's hands. Evil is rarely absolute on Discworld and good's victories seldom unqualified. Vlad Magpyr asks Agnes to compare the vampires' plans for Lancre with human's raising beef cattle. Vampires may make people slaves, but can also keep their minds at ease. Isn't that a fair trade-off? Does it sound familiar? The struggle against such logic requires strength of will and a clear mind. Which of the triad's five has sufficient talent to bring such talents to bear? They all have certain insights into the mind's workings. One of them even terms the true power of witches "headology," granting it greater power than magic. Is this power effective against the forces of the Magpyr clan? Does the logic of the conclusion appeal to you? If this book has a weakness, it is the ending. Yet once again, Pratchett has fulfilled his desire to portray "a mirror of worlds." [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]


Great!   June 29, 2005
Kurt A. Johnson (Marseilles, IL USA)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful

This is the twenty-third book in Terry Pratchett's series on the Discworld - a flat world, supported on the backs of four massive elephants riding on the back of a planet-sized turtle. Anything hilarious can happen here, and eventually does.

This book returns us to Lancre, a relaxed land under the guardianship of a group of witches, the foremost of whom is Granny Weatherwax. But, when king Verence invites a family of vampires from Uberwald to the naming of his new daughter, they decide that the invitation was to take the country over. But, Count de Magpyr isn't your run-of-the-mill vampire - he eats garlic, plays with holy symbols, watches sunrises, and does not fear Granny Weatherwax. Can Mistress Weatherwax save Lancre from descent into a modern vampiric hell? Perhaps, but first she must keep herself alive!

This is another great Discworld book, one of my favorites. As with many of the later Terry Pratchett books, this one is not laugh-out-loud funny like the early ones were. I mean, it is quite funny, but even more so, this is a suspenseful book that is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. The characters are fascinating, and the plot is great!

So, if you like the Discworld books in general, then be assured that this is one of the greats. And, if you are a fan of witches, then this is just the book for you! I highly recommend this book.


A clever and witty new look at the old vampire cliches.   November 14, 2003
Ian Tapley
7 out of 9 found this review helpful

THE STORY:
A family of forward-thinking vampires, immune to all the traditional vampire killing methods (except cutting their heads off, which does in most people), has decided to take control of Lancre. The only thing standing in their way is a doubting (doubtful?) priest and the country's resident witches. But the strongest of them, Granny Weatherwax, cannot decide whether she should get involved at all.

WHAT'S GOOD:
Now, I can't claim to be a Pratchett fan, but as the saying goes 'I knows what I likes...'. This book is both funny and clever on many levels, be it in regards to the vampires, whose immunity stems from overcoming the social conditioning that makes them believe they'll burst into flame when the sun rises, or the contradictions of the Omnian faith, which is very thinly veiled satire of the christian church. But this book isn't simply a satire of religion and fokelore, it has a very strong core story that is, in fact, just about Granny Weatherwax's internal conflict about her own darkness and her relationships with others. Death makes a few, very welcome, cameo appearances along the way to lighten the mood too (I just realised how bizarre that sentence sounds!). Ultimately though, my favourite element was none other than those boozing, brawling Wee Free Men, the Nac mac Feegle. You've got to love a tiny blue smurf-like race whose three main pursuits are drinking, fighting "An' snafflin' coobeastie!".

WHAT'S BAD:
Igor's lisping speech and it's onamatapeic (forgive me if I've mispelled that last one - I just wrote it how it sounds!) spelling left me thinking and reading all 's' words with a lisp sound, which really pithed me off! Also, at times I found Agnes' character to be annoying and a bit pointless. Other than those small factors, not much else.

Satirical fantasy with a core of character self-discovery. Brilliant.