Book Review: Thief of Time by Terry Pratchett

Time is a thief. Time is a bitch. Time is anything but kind. But time is a great healer. Time seems to mean so little to us, yet, so much when we are running out. Terry Pratchett’s Thief of Time pokes fun at ending the world with a clock, and I wonder now if it has something to do with doomsday persuasion. Auditors are back, and they still hate humanity’s disarray. And I cannot blame them. It would be fun if humans were mechanical, logical, and like a Tick-Tock-machine. It would be much simpler for the rulers, at least.

At first, I was in love with the Thief of Time. The story about the history monks, Lu Tze and Lobsang Ludd, and Jeremy and the glass clock with Igor included was what I wanted to read. The plot seemed to move on, there was a clear structure, and I knew it would escalate towards the end as the cards would be revealed and Susan, Death, history monks, auditors, and Jeremy with his glass clock would meet, yet, something happened in the middle of the book, and the plot went messy. I didn’t love the five riders part plot-wise, it somehow broke the illusion and made Death pathetic. Susan didn’t seem to fit into the equation as there was a conflict “who will get to save the Discworld.” But I liked Susan’s teacher moments. They were the best scenes in the book.

Overall, a bit of a disappointment. There are good lines and funny scenes. The setting is good, characters are enjoyable (some of their personality is broken towards the end like Lu Tze’s), execution is not there. Still, it is a Discworld novel and even the “bad” ones are enjoyable, and I wouldn’t skip this book for Susan’s sake.

Thank you for reading! Happy New Year!