The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett

 

The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ankh-Morpork for all its wealth and infrastructure is still painfully reliant on imports of raw materials and some critical items the city nay society requires and the ordination of a new Low King of the Dwarves is shaking the foundations of what everyone with the exception of the Patrician takes for granted. Some strange crimes takes place in the city, the theft of a replica of the Scone of Stone and the death of Wallace Sonky the maker of certain latex/rubber preventives puzzle the watch but events are moving at a pace. In the Dwarf communities the old culture is clashing with the new but there are opportunities and thus Duke Vimes along with his wife and retinue (Angua, Cherry, Deterius and a Clerk) venture to Uberwald on a diplomatic mission to recognise the new Low King and pay respects to the Vampire and Werewolf families and naturally far away from the rule of law Vimes finds himself in the middle of a huge powerplay and ultimately fighting for his life.
The Fifth Elephant as part of the City Watch subset delivers both in terms of the Watch dealing with events in the city and when they are well out of their element, Colon left in charge was certainly interesting and Vimes dealing new situations was very satisfying. The Carrot/Angua subplot maintained the slow burn and threw in Gaspode as well and it was great to see Cherry and Deterius rising to the occasion. Overall an entertaining and "big" story mixing in action, suspense and a dose of political reality which taxed Vimes but underlined what the Patrician sees in him and as we learn Lady Sybil as well who excels at this level of society. The novel is a very strong addition to the series and introduces many aspects of the city and the disc that are built upon in later novels.

View all my reviews