Reaper Man
1991
- fiction, humorous
- fiction, fantasy, general
- discworld (imaginary place), fiction
- english literature
- fiction
- discworld (imaginary place)
- death
- fantasy
- fiction, thrillers, general
- death (fictitious character : pratchett), fiction
The story
They say there are only two things you can count on ...But that was before DEATH started pondering the existential. Of course, the last thing anyone needs is a squeamish Grim Reaper and soon his Discworld bosses have sent him off with best wishes and a well-earned gold watch. Now DEATH is having the time of his life, finding greener pastures where he can put his scythe to a whole new use.But like every cutback in an important public service, DEATH's demise soon leads to chaos and unrest -- literally, for those whose time was supposed to be up, like Windle Poons. The oldest geezer in the entire faculty of Unseen University -- home of magic, wizardry, and big dinners -- Windle was looking forward to a wonderful afterlife, not this boring been-there-done-that routine. To get the fresh start he deserves, Windle and the rest of Ankh-Morpork's undead and underemployed set off to find DEATH and save the world for the living (and everybody else, of course).
What it’s like
Dry, wry, and warmly absurd, with the brisk comic rhythm of a well-told yarn read aloud in a cluttered kitchen. Terry Pratchett's prose is quick and conversational, full of footnote-style asides and sly wordplay, and its Discworld is a crowded, grimy, lamplit city of cobbled streets, smoky taverns, and wizard's-tower libraries where ordinary rain and mud feel lived-in rather than romantic. The mood is cheerfully melancholic: the book turns on the awkwardness of mortality, yet it stays buoyant, with bright comic set pieces and a steady sense of affection for its oddball cast. Its pacing is brisk and episodic, with short chapters that are easy to dip into. The emotional arc follows a retired Grim Reaper discovering a taste for life and an old wizard trying to outrun his own ending, both learning, in their own goofy ways, to appreciate what they have. Violence is mostly slapstick and off-page, with no gore and no sexual content; the darkness is philosophical rather than frightening. Good for readers who want a clever, gentle, laugh-out-loud fantasy for a rainy Sunday or a comfort reread, and for anyone who enjoys satire with a warm heart.
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