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Originally Posted by issybird
- I’m not much of a fantasy fan and to the extent I like it, it’s got to be set in a recognizable world. No weird creatures, etc. With that as a bottom line, would I find something to like here? And if yes, would some of the subseries be more to my taste?
- I don’t like fantasy, but I do like to laugh. badgoodDeb’s mention of guffaws is enticing.
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Hm, difficult question. About your "No weird creatures, etc.": The fantasy elements are mostly well known -- dwarves, elves, vampires, trolls, magicians, witches, dragons, the personification of Death, and so on -- but with a very Pratchettsk take on them. For instance, you'll find dwarves, vampires, and trolls as minorities in human society, treated the same way humans tend to treat minority populations. Some vampires have sworn off drinking blood, and struggle with that as addicts trying not to succumb to their addiction. One of the characters runs a sanctuary for sick dragons; the most common species of dragon is popular as a pet, but tend to get abandoned when the owner realize that a dragon isn't just a pretty fashion accessory, but quite demanding to keep happy and healthy.
The books are both hilarious and serious. For instance, I went to look for a reading sample for "Guards! Guards!", and started reading it (it's a long time since last time I reread it). In one of the first scenes, we meet a secret society: the Elucidated Brethren of the Ebon Night. They are ridiculous, with silly theatrics and overly complicated passwords. And then the book switches to the point of view of the Supreme Grand Master:
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Originally Posted by Guards! Guards!
Let the other societies take the skilled, the hopefuls, the ambitious, the self-confident. He'd take the whining resentful ones, the ones with a bellyful of spite and bile, the ones who knew they could make it big if only they'd been given a chance. Give him the ones in which the floods of venom and vindictiveness were dammed up behind thin walls of ineptitude and lowgrade paranoia.
...
"Brethren," he said. "Tonight we have matters of profound importance to discuss. The good governance, nay, the very future of Ankh-Morpork lies in our hands."
They leaned closer. The Supreme Grand Master felt the beginnings of the old thrill of power. They were hanging on his words. This was a feeling worth dressing up in bloody silly robes for.
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It's still hilarious, but, well, a cynical, charismatic cult leader, manipulating a group of resentful people into doing what he wants in order to gain power, and believing that he can control them... It's not
only hilarious.
I suggest you check out the reading sample of "
Guards! Guards!", that should give you a pretty good idea of whether Pratchett is to your taste.