FanFare

Well, it's the Chalk's annual Summer festival, and Tiffany Aching has no one to kiss, as her erstwhile beau Roland is now engaged to Leticia Keepsake, daughter of the Duchess. Not that it really matters, as Tiffany is busy enough with making the rounds, burying bodies, stopping lynch mobs, tending to the dying Baron, being accused of the Baron's murder, flying back and forth to Ankh-Morpork to find the heir, escaping from the castle dungeons, guiding two very different young untrained witches, and battling a foul-smelling demonic ghost that is turning the whole disc suddenly and viciously against her... (Tiffany Aching #4, Discworld #38) By Terry Pratchett. [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Feb 22, 2024 - 3 comments

Oh, to be on the cusp of thirteen, with all the attendant emotions swirling around that you can't quite comprehend yet, going to a dance for the first time and locking eyes with some handsome young beau... Of course, there's always the chance that the young man in question will develop an unhealthy fixation on you afterwards. And if you're a young witch-in-training, like for instance Tiffany Aching, that young man might also be the personification of Winter, and have a little trouble understanding rejection... (Tiffany Aching #3, Discworld #35) By Terry Pratchett. [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Feb 20, 2024 - 5 comments

Come one, come all, to the naming ceremony for the new Princess of Lancre, daughter of King Verence II and Queen Magrat! The invitations have been sent out, beautiful and gilded, though Granny Weatherwax doesn't appear to have received hers, and is feeling a bit put out by the whole situation. And the Priest who was to perform the ceremony has been replaced by an Omnian (and they burn witches, you know!) And Count Magpyre definitely received his invite, and his retinue seems to have some sort of mind control powers that affect everyone but Agnes Nitt... (Witches #6, Discworld #23) By Terry Pratchett. [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Oct 8, 2023 - 3 comments

Agnes Nitt, the very model of a modern operatic soprano, has left the Ramtops for Ankh-Morpork, seeking her future on the stage, while also fleeing her future as the third witch in the Lancre Coven. Unfortunately, she's built like an operatic soprano at a time when the company wants beautiful waifs in the lead roles. Also unfortunately, the Ankh-Morpork Opera House is haunted, and the ghost has become murderous of late. And also also unfortunately, Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax are on their way into town to have a word with her... (Witches #5, Discworld #18) By Terry Pratchett. [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Sep 19, 2023 - 5 comments

Ahh, Midsummer in in the Ramtops, where the Lancre Coven returns from Genua to learn that Magrat is due to marry the King in two weeks' time, and that in their absence a gaggle of young new witches has been consorting with beings that they may not fully understand. Magrat meets the Royal Beekeeper, learns some local history, and chooses a new hat. Nanny Ogg has a hot date, does a little spelunking, and gives out some candy. Nanny's sons shoe a horse for a stranger, put on a play, and defend the castle against an invasion. And Granny Weatherwax stares at the sun, comes to grips with what might have been, and learns to borrow the Swarm... (Discworld #14, Witches #3). By Terry Pratchett. [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Sep 12, 2023 - 8 comments

Desiderata Hollow, an old Witch of the Ramtops, has died, and left her most notable possession to Magrat Garlick, along with instructions to travel across the Disc to the city of Genua to prevent a young woman from marrying the Prince, and to not take Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg along with her. Thus begins a road-trip comedy to a land of Fables, Voodoo, Pumpkins, Mirrors, and Fairy Godmothers, desperately in need of some Wicked Witches to save the day... [more inside]
posted by Navelgazer on Sep 11, 2023 - 7 comments