Snuff - Terry Pratchett

Snuff

By Terry Pratchett

  • Release Date: 2011-10-11
  • Genre: Fiction & Literature
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 371 Ratings

Description

For nearly three decades, Terry Pratchett has enthralled millions of fans worldwide with his irreverent, wonderfully funny satires set in the fabulously imaginative Discworld, a universe remarkably similar to our own. From sports to religion, politics to education, science to capitalism, and everything in between, Pratchett has skewered sacred cows with both laughter and wisdom, and exposed our warts, foibles, and eccentricities in a unique, entertaining, and ultimately serious way.

At long last, Lady Sybil has lured her husband, Sam Vimes, on a well-deserved holiday away from the crime and grime of Ankh-Morpork. But for the commander of the City Watch, a vacation in the country is anything but relaxing. The balls, the teas, the muck—not to mention all that fresh air and birdsong—are more than a bit taxing on a cynical city-born and -bred copper.

Yet a policeman will find a crime anywhere if he decides to look hard enough, and it’s not long before a body is discovered, and Sam—out of his jurisdiction, out of his element, and out of bacon sandwiches (thanks to his well-meaning wife)—must rely on his instincts, guile, and street smarts to see justice done. As he sets off on the chase, though, he must remember to watch where he steps. . . . This is the countryside, after all, and the streets most definitely are not paved with gold.

Hailed as the “purely funniest English writer since Wodehouse” (Washington Post Book World), with a “satirist’s instinct for the absurd and a cartoonist’s eye for the telling detail” (Daily Telegraph, London), Terry Pratchett offers a novel of crime, class, prejudice, and punishment that shows this master at his dazzling best.

Reviews

  • Not the best Discworld

    2
    By zenfrodo
    A decent read. The plot and story are fairly solid...but ye gods, the style is AWFUL. All the dialogue is stilted, formal, and unreal. No one sounds like who they are (Nobby Nobbs, Vimes, and Fred Colon are the worst offenders); none of these characters are recognizable. The book's style reads like a bad Victorian romance novel, not Discworld. In the last years of his life, as the Alzheimers destroyed his brain, Pratchett would dictate his writing into a tape recorder and leave the transcribing to his editors and daughter. It shows. It shows horribly. I can't tell if the style is from Pratchett's deterioration or from said editors putting their heavy hand on this work. I suspect the latter.
  • No footnotes

    3
    By Sings bass
    I am a big Pratchett fan but as such I know that lots of the material in the Disk World Series is in the footnotes. The iBooks version seems to have eliminated them. I will not be buying more iBooks.
  • Thumbs up!

    5
    By Book beetle
    A real page turner and a must read!
  • Highly enjoyable

    4
    By theappleofadam
    If it was anyone else, this book would be a five star. But in the continuity of Pratchett's work it does not belong amongst the best of the best. Don't get me wrong, Snuff is an excellent addition to the Watch series. It is a compelling story the brings us closer to Vimes as he spreads his influence across the unnamed continent. It was a fun read that was over far too fast. I give it four stars out of reverence for other books like Thud! and Wee Free Men; books that dive into deep aspects of character development, while exploring larger themes. Whereas those books are examples of Pratchett at his most Ernest, Snuff ini a fun mystery read. A total update of the English countryside murder scenario that Agatha Christy was so fond of.
  • Snuff

    5
    By IFPLprez
    Read this in hardcover, then I ran out to the library to find more Sam Vimes! I have read loads of Pratchett, and I will read more! Write on!
  • Brilliant!

    5
    By Toother
    Another wonderful journey through a world that is colorful, clever, absurd, and illuminating. And fun.
  • Sam Vimes redux

    5
    By SurfaceDog
    First, I have to say that this is (as usual) a fantastic book for any Discworld fan. Sam Vimes is one of the most complex and compelling characters ever, and this latest installment really does him justice. The story isn't a fantasy novel, it's a detective story/drama/comedy that just happens to take place in a fantasy setting. As always, Mr. Pratchett shows a keen eye for social issues and modern life while remaining true to the gentle humor and powerful storylines that drive His Grace Sir Samuel Vimes. The ebook had a LOT of problems that need to be fixed, but the book itself is awesome.
  • Absolutely delightful!

    5
    By So Chiara
    Sir Terry Pratchett has done it again!
  • False advertising: this one is abridged

    2
    By eolake
    I just listened to this one with the usual pleasure, but it felt it a bit short and unfulfilling, and a bit confusing. So I bought, paid for, and checked with the ebook edition, and found out to my astonishment that this book, though NOT LABELLED so, is ABRIDGED! In fact, half the book is missing! This is either false advertising, or a bad mistake in labelling which should be corrected soonest. Now I have to buy the book for the third time, to get the full audiobook version I wanted. (Why would they even *make* an abridged version? There's nothing in Pratchett's writing which wants or warrents abridging.) (Apart from all this, it's the usual good stuff, fans of Sam Vimes will not be disappointed. But get the un-abridged version.)
  • Dreadful formatting

    1
    By UrsulaV
    It's Pratchett, so of course the quality of the writing goes without saying. I highly suggest buying the print version, though, or even seeing if the Kindle version is better formatted, because this is one of the most glaringly awful formatting jobs I've ever waded through, hands down. Typos every page, sometimes every paragraph. The makers of the e-version should be ashamed to do this to a good book.

Comments