Interesting Times
1994
- fantasy fiction
- discworld (imaginary place)
- fiction
- fantasy
- drama (dramatic works by one author)
- fiction, fantasy, general
- drama
- english fantasy drama
- discworld (imaginary place), fiction
- fiction, humorous
The story
"May you live in interesting times" is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld -- especially on the distinctly unmagical sorcerer Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life. But when a request for a "Great Wizzard" arrives in Ankh-Morpork via carrier albatross from the faraway Counterweight Continent, it's he who's sent as emissary. Chaos threatens to follow the impending demise of the Agatean Empire's current ruler. And, for some incomprehensible reason, someone believes Rincewind will have a mythic role in the war and wholesale bloodletting that will surely ensue. (Carnage is pretty much a given, since Cohen the Barbarian and his extremely elderly Silver Horde are busily formulating their own plan for looting, pillaging, and, er, looking wistfully at girls.) However, Rincewind firmly believes there are too many heroes already in the world, yet only one Rincewind. And he owes it to the world to keep that one alive for as long as possible.
What it’s like
Brisk, bright comic fantasy with the warm, slightly scruffy feel of a well-thumbed paperback read in a cramped armchair. The prose is quick and conversational, full of parenthetical asides, footnote-style winks and sudden absurd images, so each page lands like a small joke with a sting in its tail. The world is vividly cluttered: smoky taverns, crowded foreign capitals, a long journey across strange lands where the scenery keeps tipping into the ridiculous, and a sense of dusty roads and sweaty adventure without any real grit. Its mood is sunny and irreverent, with a tender undercurrent about a timid, put-upon wizard who would very much rather not be a hero. Pacing is episodic and bouncy, built around escalating misadventures and running gags that pay off in neat bursts. Violence is frequent but cartoonish: swordplay, looting and slapstick carnage that stays broad and bloodless, with some mild innuendo and no real cruelty or horror. Ideal for readers who want a laugh-out-loud escape on a lazy afternoon, a comfort reread, or something light to take on a train, especially fans of gentle satire and lovable underdogs.
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