Title: Wintersmith
Author: Terry Pratchett
Type: Fiction
Page Count/Review Word Count: 376
Rating: 8/10
Terry Pratchett – Wintersmith
Wintersmith is one of Pratchett’s Tiffany Aching novels, and so the amount of enjoyment that you get from it will largely depend upon how much you like her. Loosely speaking, the story line follows what happens after Tiffany jumps into a dance that’s as old as the seasons itself, and what happens when the spirit of winter, the Wintersmith, falls in love with her. Unfortunately, as flattering as that may be, it does lead to some complications, like the fact that there might never be another springtime.
As usual, Tiffany is in fine form and accompanied by the Nac Mac Feegle, who used to annoy me but who soon went on to become one of my favourite Discworld creations. As for me, by the time that I read Wintersmith, I’d read all of the other Tiffany Aching books, and so both Tiffany and the Wee Free Men had grown on me. That said, though, I always find it tough to rate Pratchett’s books because they’re all so good that I often find it difficult to rank one of them above another – as for Wintersmith, I’d put it in his top 30% or so, but there are easily a dozen Discworld novels that I’d recommend before this, and possibly even a couple of non-Discworld stories.
Ultimately, though, if you do decide to read this then you’re unlikely to be disappointed, and if you’re anything like me then you’ll eventually work your way through Mr. Pratchett’s entire oeuvre anyway. Like the rest of his books, this works pretty well as a standalone, as well as if you read the series in order. I can’t really fault it, but I also just can’t give it a 9 or a 10 when that would give it the same rating as something like Feet of Clay or Men At Arms. Still, if you do decide to read Wintersmith then I’m sure you’ll enjoy it, and there are a few little nuggets in it that make for great entertainment but that I don’t want to tell you about for fear of spoiling it for you. Be sure to come back and to let me know what you think!
Terry Pratchett
