4 Stars

Terry Pratchett

CARPE JUGULUM

HarperCollins

ISBN 0-06-105158-6

1998

The motto of Discworld's vampires, "Carpe Jugulum," loosely translates as, "Go for the throat." A family of vampire nobility leaves their homeland of Uberwald (the Discworld analogue of Transylvania) to make a place for themselves in the outside world. The head of the clan, Count de Magpyr, has taught them to tolerate garlic, sunlight, religious symbols, and other vampire antigens. They drink wine and no longer obsess over lost socks or feel compelled to count seeds scattered on the ground. (Yes, the two latter compulsions do come from actual vampire folklore!) To the great disgust of their traditionally-minded servant, Igor, they have become modern, almost human. Their professed desire to win the acceptance of their human neighbors, however, conceals a dark plot to take over King Verence's realm. The King, having invited the vampires to his baby daughter's christening, has no inkling of their true motive. They prove to be more difficult guests than the most capricious of fairy godmothers. The witch Granny Weatherwax (familiar to readers of the Discworld series) returns from her self-imposed exile just in time to save the day, with the help of a goodhearted but confused itinerant preacher named Mightily Oats.

Pratchett's hilarious satire on the conventions of vampire folklore and fiction will delight any devoted vampire fan. Along the way, he also exercises his parodic talents on fairy tales, political correctness, and religious fundamentalism. Yet Granny Weatherwax's crisis of confidence adds an undercurrent of seriousness that lends solidity to the satirical plot.

A sequel, THE FIFTH ELEPHANT (U.S. edition published in early 2000), takes place in Uberwald itself, inhabited by vampires, werewolves, and the obligatory hunchbacked servants, all of whom are named Igor. This novel features characters from the "City Guard" series of the Discworld universe. Snap up these two books -- both available from the Science Fiction Book Club, a generally good source of SF and fantasy bargains -- at the first opportunity.

Reviewed by Margaret L. Carter