Book four of the Discworld series is about Death (the character), while also going into a bit of detail about death (the experience). While not as deep as some of his later works, it still has some interesting philosophical points to make while also being funny as Discworld always is.
Mortimer, or Mort, is a young teenager who is a good egg, but he has issues making his well intentions work out well, and this is compounded by his awkward physicality; he is described more than once of being made out of all knees, for example. His uncle inspires his father to find him an apprenticeship, so he’d be someone else’s problem. At the apprenticeship event at the nearby town, he’s the only boy left when a strange rider on a magnificent white horse appears as the clock finishes striking midnight. This rider is of course Death himself, and the horse is his noble steed, Binky.
Mort’s father Lezek cannot fully perceive Death as his brain doesn’t want to. Very few can actually see Death, and instead have a vague perception of something wrong, even walking straight through him in some cases. The magically inclined, cats, and those that he has come to see in person can see him normally, however. Mort can see him since Death is hiring him to be his apprentice, but his father is foggy on the whole thing, and comes off thinking Death is a mortician, which is at least close to the truth.
Back at Death’s realm, which is very monotone in hue and morbid in theme, we again meet his adopted daughter Ysabell along with Albert, his cantankerous manservant. Ysabell is more developed here than she was back in The Light Fantastic and is quite a fun character to boot. Her relationships with both her adopted father and Mort are important to this book and beyond. She’s a teenager like Mort, but unlike him, she’s been a teenager for a very long time, since time does not actually pass in Death’s realm. Albert is something of a mystery and doesn’t like talking about himself much, although his unique predicament is also important to how things unfold, and he’ll be back in later books as well.
Death isn’t a harsh taskmaster, even though Mort understandably has a lot to learn about how to deal with the dying souls they usher onward, which is to be expected. Eventually, Mort is allowed to make the rounds on his own, which is where he gets into some trouble. Part of the ramifications of this trouble is how we meet Princess Kelirehenna (Keli) and Igneous Cutwell, a wizard of very little repute. Unlike the other characters I’ve mentioned, Keli and Cutwell don’t feature as large in later books, but they’re very important here, and quite enjoyable in their own, very different ways.
As Death sickens for something and decides to go on vacation, Mort scrambles to both do the duty and deal with his earlier decision and the complications said decision causes to the very fabric of history. This drives a solid and enjoyable story. I really like how Sir Terry not only makes us laugh, but also how he uses and twists some of the more common literary tropes to create a fun story with memorable characters.
This is the first book where Death is a main character. He appears in most of the books with at least a cameo, but this is the beginning of his arc of books that also includes Reaper Man, Soul Music, Hogfather, and Thief of Time. Pratchett does a marvelous job making Death a character we can relate to while also making it obvious that he’s not human, even when he expresses some humanlike emotions.
A prime example of how Sir Terry makes Death so relatable and beloved even this early in the books can be summed up in the following exchange with Mort after their first time on the rounds together:
YOU TRIED TO WARN HIM, he said, removing Binky’s nosebag.When I originally read the Discworld books back in the 90s, this one was one of my favorites for some time. It’s still brilliant, but not quite the full four stars I would have given it back then. The ending is a bit abrupt as some others have pointed out, although it does work. Due to this, I have to give it a slightly lower rating. It’s still both great fun and a good place for a new reader to start reading these wondrous books though, and as it starts the Death arc, you really can’t go wrong here.
"Yes, sir. Sorry."
YOU CANNOT INTERFERE WITH FATE. WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE WHO SHOULD LIVE AND WHO SHOULD DIE?
Death watched Mort’s expression carefully.
ONLY THE GODS ARE ALLOWED TO DO THAT, he added. TO TINKER WITH THE FATE OF EVEN ONE INDIVIDUAL COULD DESTROY THE WHOLE WORLD. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?
Mort nodded miserably.
“Are you going to send me home?” he said.
Death reached down and swung him up behind the saddle.
BECAUSE YOU SHOWED COMPASSION? NO. I MIGHT HAVE DONE IF YOU HAD SHOWN PLEASURE. BUT YOU MUST LEARN THE COMPASSION PROPER TO YOUR TRADE.
“What’s that?”
A SHARP EDGE.
3 and 3 quarters hourglasses out of 4.
Some fun quotes:
Albert grunted. "Do you know what happens to lads who ask too many questions?" Mort thought for a moment. "No," he said eventually, "what? "There was silence. Then Albert straightened up and said, "Damned if I know. Probably they get answers and serve 'em right.”
“You can help?” said Mort. “No,” said Ysabell. She blew her nose. “What do you mean, no?” growled Albert. “This is too important for any flighty—” “I mean,” said Ysabell, in razor tones, “that I can do them, and you can help.”
An hour ago, Cutwell had thumbed through the index of The Monster Fun Grimoire and had cautiously assembled a number of common household ingredients and put a match to them. Funny thing about eyebrows, he mused. You never really noticed them until they'd gone.
Morella is a Gen Xer who likes strange things a bit too much.
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