A shadowy group of monarchists have summoned a dragon into Discworld’s greatest city, Ankh-Morpork, with the goal of orchestrating the dragon’s slaying by a man who they could install as a puppet king. What they didn’t count on were both the dragon’s own lofty ambitions and the unlikely actions of The City Watch, the incompetent law enforcement who suddenly decide to take their job seriously.

I will be the first person to tell you that fantasy is something that is very hit or miss for me. In fact, it likely misses far more than it hits when it comes to my taste. Come to think of it, up to this point, the only fantasy series I’ve ever truly enjoyed is Stephen King’s Dark Tower novels and that’s likely due to their ties to his work on a grander scale. Despite the urging of a friend, I kept putting off Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series. For one, there are forty-one novels in the series and I cannot begin to tell you how immensely overwhelming that is. The other reason being that the book I was recommended – Guards! Guards! – is the eighth book in the series. Starting at number 8?! That’s madness!

I’m glad I finally relented as this is not only the best pure fantasy novel I’ve ever read, it’s one of the best books I’ve read in the last few years. Not only did I find this extremely accessible for someone such as myself who shies away from the genre, it was also goddamn hilarious. I probably could have read this a lot faster had I not stopped to constantly re-read passages because I was laughing so hard or that I stopped to read some of the jokes out loud to my wife. But I guess that’s par for the course when it comes to Pratchett. I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun reading a novel.

It sounds like I’m saying that the book is non-stop jokes and while it is definitely comedic, the story itself is certainly strong and had me deeply invested. Pratchett used great storytelling devices like a fish-out-of-water character in Carrot Ironfoundsson and a redemptive arc in Sam Vimes’ rise from drunken buffoon to hero extraordinaire. The novel’s main protagonist, who was purposely kept under wraps until the end (although, it was easy to figure out) is a rotten bastard of a villain.

Oh, and the forty-one books in the series that I mentioned earlier? There are actually sub-series within the wider series. As Guards! Guards! is the first in the City Watch series, I could blow through these books quickly without feeling like I need to read absolutely everything in order. It actually seems to be discouraged to read them all as they were released.

I truly enjoyed this story and I can’t recommend it enough. While I’m looking forward to picking up the next book in the series, I am very excited to read The Hogfather this Christmas – one of the stories in the MORT sub-series. How could I resist a hilarious romp during the holiday season where Death assumes the role of Father Christmas?