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Carpe Jugulum (Discworld #23)

4.03 of 5 stars 4.03 · rating details · 20,755 ratings · 416 reviews

In a fit of enlightenment democracy and ebullient goodwill, King Verence invites Uberwald's undead, the Magpyrs, into Lancre to celebrate the birth of his daughter. But once ensconced within the castle, these wine-drinking, garlic-eating, sun-loving modern vampires have no intention of leaving. Ever.

Only an uneasy alliance between a nervous young priest and the argumentati...more

Hardcover, 304 pages

Published September 8th 1999 by Harper Voyager (first published 1998)

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Feb 26, 2010 Steven Harbin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fantasy lovers, fans of humorous fantasy, people who like satire

Shelves: read-in-2010, discworld, fantasy, fiction, read-2010-to-2019, vampires, terry-pratchett, checked-out-from-clayton-co-library, all-time-favorites, reviewed, reviewed-on-goodreads

Pratchett satirizes vampire myth and legend in this Discworld novel. Actually one of the grimmer Discworld novels I've read. One of the Witches of Lancre sub set of the series, with all my favorite characters from those books, Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, her cat Greebo, Magrat, Agnes-Perdita all make their appearance. I recommend this one highly, but I think you need to have read the other "Witch" novels first, that would be Equal Rites,Wyrd Sisters, Witches Abroad, Lords and Ladies, and Maske ...more

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Dec 26, 2007 Ken rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Holy fuck I hate this book, and Terry Pratchett. Yes, I went out of my way to search for him and add this book. My anger is white-hot.

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May 16, 2008 Kristen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone looking for something funny

Shelves: comedy

The reviews here are quite varied on this book, they are all obviously written by Pratchett fans however one of the problems with being a Pratchett fan is that he has SO many novels that you are bound to find a few that aren’t your taste. I personally loved this book. My favorite of Pratchett’s creations include the Witches and the Guards series.

An attempt at a short summary:
The King of Lancre and his new wife the former Witch Margrat have their first child, and are holding the Christening cerem...more The reviews here are quite varied on this book, they are all obviously written by Pratchett fans however one of the problems with being a Pratchett fan is that he has SO many novels that you are bound to find a few that aren’t your taste. I personally loved this book. My favorite of Pratchett’s creations include the Witches and the Guards series.

An attempt at a short summary:
The King of Lancre and his new wife the former Witch Margrat have their first child, and are holding the Christening ceremony. In The King’s usual attempt to be “Modern” he invites the Magpyrs, a family of Vampires from Uberwald. Vampires of course cannot go where not invited, so they capitalize on the invitation to take over the entire country of Lancre. The Vampire clan however, is obsessed with becoming “Modern” and is quite Yuppyish. They have made themselves immune to garlic, sunlight, religious symbols, and just about everything else that normally works against Vampires. Meanwhile Granny Weatherwax’s invitation to the Christening was stolen, so in a typical Granny fashion, she is off in a huff. The soppy priest of Om that comes to do the Christening becomes quite the major character, and the “Wee Free Men” make their first appearance. Add in Igor, the Vampire’s henchman who wishes things would go back to the way they are, and the Falconer who spends most of the tale hunting down a Phoenix and you’re in for a non-stop good time. Nanny Ogg and Agnes/Perditia Nitt are put into the position of attempting to rescue the kingdom from the Vampires without Granny.

The witches are all their standard unique selves, Granny stubborn as a mule but with a heart of gold, Nanny with her wild ways and lewd comments, Margrat with her new aged ideas but strong backbone when needed, and the newest of the coven – Agnes Nitt a very big girl with a thin girl trapped inside her. Agnes becomes a major character in this book and really develops her unique personalities. The Priest of Om also becomes quite an interesting character with his on again off again faith crisis. The Wee Free Men are entertaining, but hard to read, Igor is an absolute trip.

Some will say that this is a re-write of “Lords and Ladies” I personally didn’t find it so. Sure bad guys arrive and threaten Lancre, and the Witches step up to do battle in their round-about humorous ways. But then again what fantasy/sci-fi/action or horror doesn’t have bad guys showing up and good guys trying to stop them? Of Pratchett’s novels I found this one to be much darker than the others because the Vampires are quite sinister for one of his villains. Still I found this to be an amazingly humorous tale. The bickering between the witches, the family fights between the vampires, Igor’s wanting to make everything dusty and covered in spider webs and longing for the old-school days of his master, the Falconer’s obsession with trying to catch a bird he’s never seen, the Wee Free Men stealing anything they can get their hands on, and even Greebo.

The pace of the book is unbelievably quick, numerous characters come and go and you’ll find yourself wondering how all of this will tie in together. But you can’t put it down. I can attest to that first hand, I read way past my bedtime to finish the book because the action never stopped long enough for me to stick in a bookmark. The humor wasn’t as non-stop as in some of his other books, but the funny parts were hysterical. I found that this book had far more meaning to it than many of the others.

If you are first time Pratchett reader, I would not recommend this book as a starting place because some of the history of the witches is almost required to get full enjoyment out of this story. I can’t imagine that a first time reader would understand the concept of “Borrowing” from this book or get the humor of the “I ain’t dead” sign. This is one of my favorite of Pratchett’s novels so far.
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Jun 05, 2007 Siria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 20th-century, british-fiction, fantasy, humour

Yes, another Pratchett. I'm on a re-reading kick at the moment. Which is probably a mistake since my stack of books to be read next to my bed is currently in the region of 67. But Pratchett is one of my comfort reads, so I don't feel like apologising to myself too much.

Carpe Jugulum is one of my favourites of the series. The writing and the dialogue are as sharp as ever; the characterisation of the witches is spot on; and the humour is just the right mix of wryly witty and really, really bad pun...more

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Mar 17, 2008 Riannon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Terry Pratchett is hilarious, his prose is excellent, and to top it off, he's a prolific author, so if you're like me and always running out of reading material, reading everything he's written should keep you busy for a while.
This particular comedy is (as you may be able to discern from the title) about vampires. Vampires and a girl named Agnes Nitt, who struggles sometimes to suppress her alternate personality, Perdita. To paraphrase a quote from Pratchett, "Inside every fat girl is a thin gi...more

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Feb 07, 2013 Al rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It is rare and splendid event when an author is elevated from the underground into the international literary establishment. In the case of England's best-known and best-loved modern satirist, that event has been long overdue.

Terry Pratchett's profoundly irreverent Discworld novels satirize and celebrate every aspect of life, modern and ancient, sacred and profane. Consistent number-one bestsellers in England, they have garnered him a secure position in the pantheon of humor along with Mark Tw

...more

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Jan 22, 2013 John rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: humor, sf

Witches and vampires and priests, oh my! It's easy for me, when I'm not reading Pratchett at the moment, to remember how much silliness his books contain, but forget what great storytelling is in there too. But boy, when I'm reading it I sure remember.

This is a grand tale about some witches that live in a small kingdom on the rim of the Discworld, one of whom has married its progressive, modern king, and had a baby who's due for a christening. The king, wanting to expand the scope of his kingdom...more

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Sep 22, 2012 Meghan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, vampires-zombies-apocalypse, silly

This addition to the Discworld- starring the Witches of Lancre- involves Vampires.

It's another hit for Terry Pratchett, and takes it's place as one of my favorites in this series. I don't know how Pratchett does it: the characters never get stale, the jokes are never old, and the hilarity of his stories doesn't flag. This one is just as funny as the others, and had me laughing out loud in true Pratchett style.

A few quotes:

"Oh, I don't know, I really don't," said Nanny. "I mean, it's flattering

...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Brooke Banks rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, funny, written-reviews

TL;DR – Basically, I loved everything in and about this book. The End.
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There's a lot going on in this book. There's vampires who are trying to become modern calling themselves vampyres. They stay as a family with the father vampyre, The Count, making his family get used to things like garlic, sunlight, religious icons, not being distracted by counting poppy seeds and missing their left sock. [Nanny's opinion(view spoiler)...more

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Jul 17, 2012 Smcleish rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: owned

Originally published on my blog here in May 2000.

The Discworld novels now have separate groups of characters, who each inhabit their own novels: the wizards of the Unseen University, the guards of Ankh-Morporkh, Death, and, as here, the witches of Lancre. Magrat having given up being one of the coven to become queen, she is replaced by Agnes Nitt, who is basically a caricature of the plump, unpopular teenage girl, and who in addition has an inner voice, the pushy Perdita - because of the saying...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, fiction, pratchett

In this book, we return to the small Ramtop country of Lancre, home to Granny Weatherwax, Gytha Ogg and Magrat Garlick. Picking up from where we left off, which is actually in Maskerade, which I haven’t reviewed here yet, Magrat is Queen now, with no time for witching. So the new Third Witch is Agnes Nitt (also known as Perdita, but only by her), a girl who is sensible, levelheaded and thinks quickly in a crisis. She is also a rather, shall we say, substantial girl (and lest you think I’m trying...more In this book, we return to the small Ramtop country of Lancre, home to Granny Weatherwax, Gytha Ogg and Magrat Garlick. Picking up from where we left off, which is actually in Maskerade, which I haven’t reviewed here yet, Magrat is Queen now, with no time for witching. So the new Third Witch is Agnes Nitt (also known as Perdita, but only by her), a girl who is sensible, levelheaded and thinks quickly in a crisis. She is also a rather, shall we say, substantial girl (and lest you think I’m trying not to be mean, believe me – Agnes is meaner about her self than I can be), and as we all know there is inside every fat girl a thin girl and lots of chocolate. Well, Perdita is the thin girl, and Agnes is the chocolate.

But that’s not the main point of this tale. The main point is that vampyres have come to Lancre, invited by King Verence to attend the naming of his and Magrat’s daughter, Esmerelda Note Spelling of Lancre (well, when your grandmother managed to name your mother “Magrat” due to an uncertainty in consonant placement, one doesn’t take chances.) But what’s done is done. No doubt we will see little Spelly in future Discworld books.

Once you have invited a vampire in, you are subject to its power. Of course, vampires know this. There are a lot of things that vampires know… These vampyres have studied, they have prepared. They do not intend to make the mistakes their forefathers did – keeping lots of knick-knacks about that could be turned into holy symbols, leaving up flimsy, easily pulled-aside drapes, that sort of thing. These are modern vampyres, ones who know their place in the food chain – on top of it. They’re ready, and they have every intention of taking over Lancre.
They don’t want a killing floor, though. Indeed not, they simply want a herd. An… arrangement.

But there are the witches to contend with, especially Esme Weatherwax. And everyone knows about Granny Weatherwax….

If you read Lords and Ladies, or even my review of it, you can see there are some similarities. Evil, inhuman force comes to Lancre, wants to subjugate its subjects, and in the end are foiled by the indomitable Granny Weatherwax. And yes, there are similarities. But the differences are worth reading it for.

First of all, we get a better look at Perdita / Agnes Nitt. Yes, she’s the Third Witch, but she’s more at home being a witch than Magrat ever was. Perdita is two witches in one, and they don’t like each other very much – a volatile combination. And as the newcomer, Agnes has the unenviable role of being the stand-in for the reader. She gets a lot of explanation that seems redundant to loyal followers of the Discworld series, but I guess new readers have to come in somewhere.

Secondly, we get to play around inside Granny Weatherwax’s head again, which is always fun. We see a reference to her sister, Lily Weatherwax whom we last saw in Witches Abroad, and her grandmother, Alison. It is implied that the Weatherwaxes have a definite dark streak to them, against which Granny must contend constantly. What bugged me about this book is that Granny isn’t quite herself – though I suppose it can be argued that she wasn’t meant to be. Confronted with immensely powerful vampyres in her country, and insulted by seeming not to have been invited to the young princess’ naming ceremony, Granny Weatherwax just… gives up. She believes she can’t beat them, and she doesn’t think anyone wants her around. This is a side of Granny that we haven’t really seen before, and it’s not a nice one.

She does recover, of course – that’s what Granny Weatherwax does. There’s no point in being a witch, really, if you can’t make the grand entrance and pop up just when everyone thinks you’re down.

Another really neat thing about this book is that we finally get to revisit the Omnians, who were introduced as a fanatical theocratic people in Small Gods. Time has tempered the Omnians, who are now the Discworld equivalent of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. An Omnian missionary has come to Lancre, and he gets caught up in the battle against the vampires as well, and it turns out that, well, the Omnians aren’t that bad anymore. Since the Prophet Brutha gave them permission to think for themselves, the Church has schismed so many times that it finally comes down to a schism in one member, Brother Oats. Like Agnes, he’s of two minds about the world, and neither of them really get along.

So yes, there’s not a whole lot that’s really new in this book, but since I’m a hard-core Pratchett addict, I have to recommend it.

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“There’s no greys, only white that’s got grubby. I’m surprised you don’t know that. And sin, young man, is when you treat people as things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.”
- Granny Weatherwax, Carpe Jugulum(less)

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Jan 18, 2012 Fiona rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: enjoyable-fluff, read-in-2012, library-books

Well, this is an interesting conundrum - I would call this a 4* book overall, but it's not one of Pratchett's best, I'd say it's a 3* Pratchett. Benefit of the doubt it is, then. I'm in an optimistic mood.

So. He doesn't like organised religion much, does he? In 'Carpe Jugulum', vampires invade Lancre, and Granny Weatherwax spends a long time in a cave being serious. This is bad, or at least for the vampires, but good mainly because it gives Nanny Ogg a lot of page time, and I absolutely adore Na...more Well, this is an interesting conundrum - I would call this a 4* book overall, but it's not one of Pratchett's best, I'd say it's a 3* Pratchett. Benefit of the doubt it is, then. I'm in an optimistic mood.

So. He doesn't like organised religion much, does he? In 'Carpe Jugulum', vampires invade Lancre, and Granny Weatherwax spends a long time in a cave being serious. This is bad, or at least for the vampires, but good mainly because it gives Nanny Ogg a lot of page time, and I absolutely adore Nanny Ogg. I just love the whole Ogg family. Especially Shawn. I should not write reviews the day I finish a book, because I just end up cooing over the characters. There is also a sappy evangelical Omnian by the name of Mightily Oats who just gets kicked by every character, despite being quietly heroic (...spoilers? look out for it, anyway, bless him), and who I consequently just want to hug.

Part of what I love about this book is that it is the ultimate in comfort reading for me: Pratchett does great lines, excellent characters (with such fantastic names!), bucketloads of common sense and some excellent plots. It's true what people say, that you enjoy his books very much when you've read some of the others - and as far as I'm concerned that's because his characters are so loveable. You know how Granny Weatherwax would react to someone saying *that* to her, so you wince along, and feel like they're all your old friends. You cheer when you run into the Nac Mac Feegle because (ahem) you didn't realise they were in any of the other books and this was a really nice surprise. Fortunately, you feel that for other characters you've never read about before - poor Mightily Oats - so I shouldn't think that newcomers to Pratchett will miss out on much.

I hear from various places this is essentially a reworking of the premise in 'Lords and Ladies', only with vampires instead of elves, which makes sense. I think I slightly preferred 'Lords and Ladies', on the grounds of Magrat got a bit more to do, but this was perfectly good fun and has a far better name. Isn't it just? I'd read it again just for the title. The book is, as far as I'm concerned, not his best - but it'll do very nicely indeed.(less)

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Jul 26, 2011 Claire added it · review of another edition

Uberwald's modernising vampyrs (note the 'modern' spelling) have managed to get on Granny Weatherwax's bad side, which, as any Discworld fan will know, is a very very bad idea. In order to sort this garlic-tinged chaos out, her fellow witches Nanny Ogg, Magrat Garlick and Agnes Nitt (with a supporting cast of Perdita, an irate Igor (and his er... somewhat unusual pet dog), a slightly disillusioned priest of the Great God Om, numerous sacks of baby toys, several baying mobs, a phoenix, and variou...more

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Feb 03, 2010 Kurtbg rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

There's something about the stories involving the Witches from the town of Lancre that seems to bring out the best in Terry's storytelling. The crone, the matron and the maiden find their trifecta in a state of musical chairs as Vampire are invited to Lancre by a very PC king. Well, vampires only go where invited so this doesn't look very promising for the yet-to-be-undead or the meal-to-be-had-daily. The crone, Granny Weatherwax, takes to the mountains feeling unappreciated by the king and outm...more

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Dec 14, 2010 Nenia Campbell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: x-1990s, reviewed, x-series-bk-23

Do you like the Addams family? Then you will LOVE the Magpyrs. Led by the post-post-modern Count, these vampires drink wine, eat garlic by the fistful, and memorize flashcards of various religious symbols. In the sunlight. Oh, and they are trying to figure out how to get rid of their archaic, listhping servant, Igor, who keeps adding spiderwebs and runny, flickering candles to the castle when their backs are turned. Is he an evolutionary dead end? One can only hope.

I could appreciate this Pratch...more

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Mar 07, 2011 Sally rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: audiobooks

I didn't expect to like this book as much as other Discworld stories because of the subject being about vampires. But, I am hoping to read all of the Discworld books, and since I enjoyed other ones that featured the witches, I wanted to progress by seeing what those "ladies" were up to. Terry Pratchett has an uncanny ability to look at a lot of facets of life and make fun of them in a way that often makes you laugh out loud. This was not so much a laugh-out-loud story, but I found it to be incre...more

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Jul 31, 2011 Steve Mitchell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

On the whole, I think that the best bits about Terry Pratchett’s DiscWorld novels are the passages where you can recognise the parody of real life. The major portion of the narrative in this book is vampires taking over so that does not necessarily hold true with this volume; the twenty-third book of the series. That said though, this still has some seriously funny laugh out loud moments. (I particularly enjoyed Vlad’s speech; “There you go again, Agnes. It’s most unfair. Once people find out yo...more

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Apr 23, 2010 Cara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: funny, fun-or-frivolity

Doug fell asleep while reading this, and I was trapped under a kitty cat with no other reading material in reach, so I stole it. Ended up devouring it in less than 24 hours. It's a total blast. I love Terry Pratchett's wit. This one doesn't get all the loose ends tied up quite as neatly as the Tiffany Aching books (or I'm just missing something? possible), and I couldn't understand what the crap the Feegles were saying half the time. Also, it seems like more was left implied rather than explicit...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Daniel Rhodes-Mumby rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Although it was one of my least favourite Pratchett books as a child, upon re-reading it several times in the past few years I've come to appreciate it for what it is - a truly powerful, deep and eloquent addition to the Discworld corpus and a fitting conclusion (?) for the main Witches storyline.

Granny Weatherwax is as ever the star of the show here, and although her journey through the plot remains much the same as ever before (starting with her trademark towering confidence, then brought low...more Although it was one of my least favourite Pratchett books as a child, upon re-reading it several times in the past few years I've come to appreciate it for what it is - a truly powerful, deep and eloquent addition to the Discworld corpus and a fitting conclusion (?) for the main Witches storyline.

Granny Weatherwax is as ever the star of the show here, and although her journey through the plot remains much the same as ever before (starting with her trademark towering confidence, then brought low by an unimagined defeat, only to rise and triumph again over the evils she faces) it seems nevertheless more fresh and well-executed here than ever before.

There is some minor character development here for Magrat and Nanny Ogg, but it seems ultimately so inconsequential that there's little to say beyond that simple fact.

Agnes puts in an unexpectedly strong performance, coming across as one of the more realistic and relatable characters, but ultimately it falls flat - whilst her exposed thought processes are a critical contribution to the reader's understanding of her, Perdita is perhaps too strong. She comes across as a separate character in her own right, and as a result she unfortunately undermines Agnes at every opportunity for development - perhaps appropriately given her in-universe undermining of Agnes too.

I may have erred earlier in stating that Granny was the star of the show; she most definitely shares the limelight here with the Quite Reverend Mightily Oats, certainly one of the most intriguing, tragic and yet powerful characters to ever grace a page. I won't say much more for fear of giving away plot details but I think the Omnian Church must be a wonderful inspiration for Terry, as (in a similar manner to Brutha in Small Gods before him) Oats is one of Pratchett's crowning achievements.

Although the previous Witches books were strong on the humour and Carpe Jugulum does not shy away from this heritage, it manages equally to stand tall as a mature and serious work; you will laugh and cry in equal measure, but above all you will think.(less)

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Aug 22, 2011 Lushbug rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Another very funny Discworld novel. This time the witches have a visit from some ultra modern vampires who are doing their utmost to avoid all the cloches one associates with vampires (none of this leaving crosses and stakes lying round the castle that can be used against you by some scantily clad young women or wearing dinner jackets at any other time than at dinner!). They come to Lancre invited as guests to the kings wedding and decide to stay and take over using mind control to subdue everyo...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Emma Maye rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: worthy-of-re-reading, pratchett, favorites

This is one of my favourite books because I just love Granny Weatherwax. The story picks up the Discworld witches' tales when Magrat and Verence are about to christen their new baby and Granny hasn't been given an invitation - two other witches, Nanny Ogg and Agnes/Perdita have. Major trouble right there! On top of it all, Verence has invited a bunch of Vampyres (who can't spell!). When you invite a vampire into a house we all know what happens but when a King invites a vampire into a kingdom......more

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Jul 24, 2011 Geoffrey Cubbage rated it 3 of 5 stars

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Terry Pratchett books don't actually need much in the way of reviewing. It's a silly little twist on fantasy conventions with a bit of moralizing at the end, all right?

Carpe Jugulum plays with the vampire stereotypes (pre-Twilight, of course), and it does so well. There's a family of vampires convinced that their aversions to garlic and sunlight and so forth are mental, and can be overcome with self-help techniques; and there are vampire goths who dress...more

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Aug 01, 2010 Elizabeth (Miss Eliza) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010_challenge_terry_pratchett, terry_pratchett, sci-fi_fantasy, 2010_challenge_fantasy_reading, vampires, authors_i_have_met

Up in Lancre there is a big to do. King Verance and his Queen, Magrat, have had their first child and a party is called for. In his attempt at dragging Lancre into the Century of the Fruit Bat, Verance has invited people from all over the Disc to celebrate the naming of his daughter. So what if he really didn't think it through when sending the invites to Ubervald and the Magpyrs. This is diplomacy, and you can't not invite vampires because they are vampires now can you? But while Verance has se...more Up in Lancre there is a big to do. King Verance and his Queen, Magrat, have had their first child and a party is called for. In his attempt at dragging Lancre into the Century of the Fruit Bat, Verance has invited people from all over the Disc to celebrate the naming of his daughter. So what if he really didn't think it through when sending the invites to Ubervald and the Magpyrs. This is diplomacy, and you can't not invite vampires because they are vampires now can you? But while Verance has sent out the invites to all the wrong sorts, the most important person has not received hers. While Nanny Ogg and Agnes are at the castle dealing with Mightily-Praiseworthy-Are-Ye-Who-Exalteth-Om Oats, who, while presiding over the naming, comes from a church that used to burn witches, which Nanny Ogg can't abide, Granny Weatherwax is mysteriously absent. She who is going to be the princess' godmother is missing. Or more importantly, her invite is missing, and she is never one to go where she isn't invited or wanted. Who knows, in Granny Weatherwax's mind she might have been made obsolete... she was always the crone, and now with Magrat has become a mother, Nanny Ogg becomes the crone and Esme is just pushed aside. But when the Magpyrs decide to stay permanently in Lancre, usurping Vernance's thrown, they need Granny Weatherwax more than anything. Because these vampires seem to have everyone under their spell... except Agnes, who's always in two minds about things, the second mind being Perdita, who the vampires seem unable to entrance, and Oats, whose religion seems to actually make him immune. With a convenient "spontaneous" mob, they hope to force the Magpyrs and their "new" ideas about vampirism out. But instead they bite Granny Weatherwax and the witches take to the road, ending up in Ubervald, hopefully the last place the vampires will look for them. Of course, with a few little blue men lurking about, there's no knowing how this will end up. Crivens!

The thing that I love about Pratchett is, that, while on the outside it looks like a simple science fiction story about witches and vampires, it is about so much more. From the human mentality to want a leader, if said leader stays within preconceived notions of leadering, to faith, and how it's not so much the God, but the faith behind it. To the idea of evil, and how those who behave evil and admit it are at least not trying to hide what they are behind progress and the common good. Evil is so much easier to handle in an evil package. Pratchett understands the underlying psychology of people and how they want their leaders to be leaders and their evil to be evil, but with a dash of dark humor. Plus, in today's world of all these "good vampires" it's a surprisingly current book, even though twelve years old. Here we have "mainstreaming" vampires! They actually think they're good and not evil! But savagely attacking strangers in the night is nowhere near as bad as lining up your peasants to be drained, even if you did give the town a nice new clock tower. But even amongst the weightier issues, it's the witches that drive this story. Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, Magrat and Agnes are some of my favorite characters in all of Discworld. They are just as messed up as everyone else, but they are able to see the big picture and understand how people think. As Granny Weatherwax would say, it's all Headology, and somehow these witches know how to get into my head and make the world a little better through their being present. Plus, no harm can be made by throwing in some Nac Mac Feegle, my little six inch tall swearing blue Scotsmen. Ah, how I love you fighting and drinking and fighting while drinking, you brighten my day as well, only please, don't drop by, I don't have any good whiskey.(less)

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May 03, 2012 Cartavio rated it 2 of 5 stars

I am not a big Terry Pratchett fan, but this novel came as a nice surprise. The narration didn`t grow too convoluted, as often happens in other Pratchett books, and the cuts between paralel actions were not too sudden. All in all, what I enjoyed most was:
1- A good parody at these obnoxious vampire obsession, "Twighliht" and such.
2- It was nice to see that the novel decidely takes sides for the simple, straightforward, rural witches instead of the aristocratic and decadent vampires.
3- I wondered...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Tonya rated it 5 of 5 stars

It's Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax to the rescue again. At least that's what I thought at first.

The trouble starts when Granny Weatherwax's feelings are hurt (what feelings?!?) when she thinks she hasn't been invited to a naming ceremony. She runs off like a petulant teenager and acts like she's too weak to help when the country is taken over by a family of vampyres.

I enjoyed the story because it gave me more insight into Granny Weatherwax. She isn't as tough as I thought she was. She always s...more

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Dec 30, 2010 Collin Jones rated it 3 of 5 stars

Directly before this book, I had read two other Discworld novels, Eric and Maskerade. Both were great entertainment with quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, particularly Maskerade. I had high hopes for this (toss a vampire in a story, chances are I'll love it), but I just couldn't get into it. I didn't think it was very funny.

Though I suppose it's largely a comedy, Carpe Jugulum is a bit more serious than other Discworld books. Though I can appreciate a good drama, Disworld is a comedy series. P...more

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Jul 23, 2011 David rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Another outstanding contribution to the Discworld series from Terry Pratchett! This 23rd book features the witches and they are pitted against vampires, who King Verence of Lancre foolishly invited to celebrate his daughter's birth. (Vampires could have never come if they weren't invited). Pratchett would have been totally within his norm to make the vampires comical and bumbling; Instead, he makes them intelligent and cunning, great serious antagonists. Besides excellent action and suspense, th...more

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Dec 07, 2012 Beth Jusino rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sometimes when the pressures are building up, you've got to let off steam somewhere. And there's no better way than with Terry Pratchett. I love to drop in on this kind of humor from time to time, and Carpe Jugulum didn't disappoint. It takes vampires, witches, fairy tales, and organized religion, shakes them all up like dice, and scatters them across Discworld.

If there's a downside to Pratchett, it's that his very cleverness sometimes overshadows his stories, and it's hard to get into the stor...more

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Nov 29, 2011 Sho rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Sho by: Mum

Shelves: discworld, fantasy, humour, series

Ah, vampires. The non-sparkly incredibly gorgeous and attractive type. That's a bonus.

We're back with the witches and this time there is more than a glimpse of the powerful awesomeness that is Granny Weatherwax as well as a tantalising peekette into her past. Granny Ogg and her clan feature heavily - and it's nice to see a lot more of her using her witchy power rather than being a sidekick, although to be fair in the other books where she's made an appearance there is more than a hint of her pow...more

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Sep 11, 2009 Jc rated it 4 of 5 stars

This makes 22 Pratchett books under my belt (missing Light Fantastic & Sourcery; already ready The Fifth Elephant), and I am still enjoying them (I am mostly reading them in publication order, though I may leave the "young adult" titles to last). This one is a nice spoof on vampire lore and features the witches, favorite characters for many readers. Also, C.Jug. introduces the Igors, who I have already met in the 5th Eleph. -- these are worth the read in themselves. C.Jug. is not the best of...more

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About Terry Pratchett

Sir Terry Pratchett sold his first story when he was thirteen, which earned him enough money to buy a second-hand typewriter. His first novel, a humorous fantasy entitled The Carpet People, appeared in 1971 from the publisher Colin Smythe. Terry worked for many years as a journalist and press officer, writing in his spare time and publishing a number of novels, including his first Discworld novel,...more

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“Everywhere I look, I see something holy.” — 53 people liked it

“And sin, young man, is when you treat people like things.” — 35 people liked it

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Carpe Jugulum (Discworld #23)

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