The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett

[Jax14]

This is a fantasy novel and the last written by an extremely popular author before his passing.

Tiffany Aching has always felt the pull of the Chalk but never as strongly as this. Thrust into a situation she feels she is not ready for, she needs to learn to ask others for help. So with the aid of Geoffrey, who wants to be a witch, and his goat, as well as a hodge podge of local witches (even those who thought they had given up on witching), she and her army must fight against the elves who want to cause mayhem in her land. Tiffany has some big boots to fill - is she ready for the challenge again?

As I was reading the book very different voices came through-it was as though the book was a collaboration and didn't quite gel. Having read the afterword where the author's process is described, and realising that the book was never tweaked and edited to his satisfaction before his death, now makes sense. Many old faces make themselves known again and I enjoyed the underlying theme of humanity and friendship as well as being true to yourself. With some of the more adult themes that crop up in this book, I still find it strange to be categorised as a children's book, and unfortunately the kindle edition I received had terrible formatting errors with words and sentences broken up in strange places.

While I didn't love the novel as it didn't feel like a full Pratchett, I say thank you to him for leaving such a genius and witty legacy of stories rich in colourful characters and classic storylines for all to enjoy. A book for the fans to tip their hats to.


Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to review the book.

[gali]

I love his books, and read most of them. I may read this one as well. He was a great author indeed. RIP!

[Corvac]

If you have never read a Pratchett, go do so now, but not this one.

This is a book for the old fans. For those of us that have to read everything that Pratchett has ever written. Jax14 gives a very good overview of the book. It is good (I don't think anything from Pratchett can be otherwise), but it isn't great.

That being said, I loved this book. I can't tell you why. Perhaps because I have read this man for so long and this is the last. Perhaps because in a lot of respects this reads as a farewell novel from the author to his fans. It is unpolished, but it reads like the end of an epic saga.