Raising Steam (Discworld)

If this is going to be the last discworld book then I am glad it went out like this. While not the most well written, all the humor is there that you would want and it's just a nice story proper ending for everyone involved.

I'm a Disc World fanatic. This book is an up to standard continuation of the discworld - industry series. Steam engines come to discworld. Added to the panapoly of discworld species (vampires, golems, werewolves, dwarfs, humans, etc.) are goblins. There isn't as much slapstick craziness as in some of the earlier discworld books, and didn't seem to be as witty or punny either. Nonetheless, alternatively laughed out loud and sat on the edge of my seat.

The brilliance of Terry Pratchett's books never ends. The subtlety of is humour, the sheer invention of the characters, the ability to make you never want to put the book down ... sheer genius. We have lost one of the true Greats.

Moist von Lipwig is someone who you can identify with and right on the next page, he's doing something so scandalous, that you have to read the paragraph again to make sure that he is really getting up to mischief, but in the end his doings comes from the right place and all is saved at the end of the day. Combining him with Vimes is exciting cause you know the two of them couldn't be further apart in their mannerisms, but at the same time they are exactly alike. This is not a book for a lazy afternoon read, you have to keep your head about you and remember all the little things that gets thrown in randomly. In the end it all adds up to a story full of wonder, adventure and excitement and lots of action. Just like we know and love the Discworld. Well done!

I've been a fan of Discworld for a while now, and Raising Steam was an amazing addition. Centered around everyone's favorite reformed (mostly) scoundrel Moist Von Lipwig delivers us the story of the introduction of steam travel to Discworld. I think my favorite part of this book is how it builds the world of Disc. I have a feeling that Sir Pratchett has BIG plans in store for the world.

Another good book from the great master, Mr. Pratchett got it right again. Discworld has taken a new step in its evolution and who knows what will come after locomotion? I hope next book will tell us...

Moist von Lipwig (pronounced "Lip-vig", please!), has, to his dismay, been given another assignment by Lord Vetinari. As usual, he isn't given a choice: it's do or die! And, as usual, he does a great job, however reluctantly. Okay, so that's what the book is about.

Terry Pratchett is, as usual, brilliant in his development of characters and plot lines. For those of us that have been faithful readers of his Discworld series, it was pretty much to be expected that, sooner or later, steam trains would enter the picture. That given, the idea of resistance to change, and opposition to what is viewed by some as a danger to tradition, along with (of course!) various political ramifications, makes for a wonderful mix of problems for Mr. von Lipwig to deal with. The dwarves and the trolls are still not completely happy with each other yet, and the goblins are making their presence more known, adding even more flavor (and aroma!) to the mixture.

Well worth the read. Hopefully, this will not prove to be Sir Terry's last Discworld novel. There are many questions still left, and characters that can use further development. In other words, there is a whole world of enjoyment still to be explored! Hang in there, Sir Terry! We love you!

Ever since I heard about Sir Terry's Alzheimer's diagnosis, I fear that each Discworld book will be the last. Instead, they are still getting better. Someone else will do a better job summarizing the story, but I will at least try to hit the highlights.

A young man of the Discworld has perfected the steam engine, or at least managed to build one that doesn't turn people into clouds of pink mist, and brings this first train to Ankh-Morpork to ask Harry King, "The King of the Golden River," to ask for help financing the project. King, seeing a chance to have something his wife can brag about, agrees. Lord Vetinari, Patrician (read tyrant) of the fair city, prevails upon Moist von Lipwig, who, in previous books, revived and/or saved the Post Office, the Royal Bank, and the Royal Mint, to represent the city's interests in the matter.

Complicating things, the grags, priests of the dwarves, are on another crusade to maintain the purity of dwarfishness. For them, of course, that means trying to cut off all contact with non-dwarves, even if it means destroying some of the Disc's latest technology for everyone. Clacks towers are knocked down or burned, equipment and workers for the trains are attacked, and dwarves who don't fall in line are killed.

Pratchett once again pulls us into this world of his, and holds us there. I found myself furious with the bad guys, saddened by the plight of the goblins, and cheering and fearing for our engineer, Moist, and the Low King. As always, Pratchett uses the Discworld to hold a mirror up to our own world, and once you finish laughing, there is quite a bit to think about. I recommend this to anyone who likes fantasy, satire, humor, or just plain old good writing. Please, Sir Terry, keep writing for us as long as you can.

Another excellent Discworld adventure as Moist Von Lipwig shepards in the age of trains to the backdrop of a civil war among the dwarves. There may have been less over the top humor than normal but the story was compelling and the cast of characters engaging as always.

Pratchett is one of the few authors who gets better and better without starting to repeat the same story. The characters may come back, but they always have a fresh stage! This book is wonderful and would enthrall a reader even if s/he had never read a Discworld novel before.

Disc World, like every other world in the multiverse, changes. Steam is harnessed and the citizens of Ankh-Morpork hark to the possibility of fresh fish, and going in circles on rails, but change is always challenged, and even a railway track may not run smoothly.

I quite enjoyed this latest installment of the Discworld. It had almost all the characters I've met in the 40 or so previous novels and maintained its literate, satirical comment on current events and the nature of sapient beings.

Terry has given us a real treat in this book. Life on the discworld moves on, by steam this time, but there is plenty in this novel for fans to enjoy. Old friends abound, previous themes are gathered up and knitted together into a thoroughly satisfactory whole, and plenty of new ideas give the whole adventure a delightful sparkle.

This is a book I am delighted he wrote, and one I will look forward to re-reading many times.

Terry Prachett will always be my favourite author and I shall never say naught against him. Loved the book, I haven't read from the discworld series in a while after finishing this I immediately went back into the series and started re-reading. Great book, fantastic depth and exploration of some reoccurring characters. Kind of a rat pack romp.

Terry Pratchett is my favorite author and he has hit gold again. Raising Steam is quintessential Pratchett. He has move the disc world into the steam age and add a bicycle for flavor. I liked this book.

Terry at his best with the small hints to the normal world. The clacks compared to the cell phone, nobody can be without it and can not remember how he or she had could live without it. Progress is now the word and the story is reading so easy and still you have to read it for a minimum of five times to find all the small word jokes and references. Sad the there will be no book following this one, due to his dead, but I would liked to see his view on the fast moving world on earth and this translated to the disc world with all his occupants. He is breaking with intolerance ( racsisme) and the hate against technology. It was waiting fot the first computer and the first tablet appearing in his work, but time was working against him. Rest in peace Terry and we will remember your disc world as you inheritance.

I am aware of the untimely death of one of my favorite authors. I have thorougly enjoyed Discworld-in a Monty Python meets Sci-Fi way. As I read more of his books the formula became fairly clear. This one is probably the most sappy with the poor oppressed group gaining ground as other species did throughout his books; this seems to be a focus that has been beaten to death. While still having some fun elements and incorporating many favorite characters-Vimes, Moist, Lord V, I did not bother finishing the book, normally I read most of them several times.

We have seen the story of the Postal Service revival (Going Postal) and now we have the history of rail transportation in Discworld. Terry is still in great form and the 40th Discworld book does not dissappoint.

You know, if you cut out everything that didn't have anything to do with the bloody train that the book is supposed to be about this would actually be a decent book. Leave in the grags too I suppose. Gotta have a villain, I reckon.

Raising Steam was better than Snuff by a long shot, not that that's saying much because I've had bowel movements which were better than Snuff.

And speaking of bowel movements: Pratchett, intent on taking everything good about the series and taking a big smelly dump on it, eschews such ludicrous ideas as a coherent plot and focusing on what the book is actually about and takes frequent diversions towards other pursuits.

The goblins from Snuff make a return, retaining their status as the epitome of everything wrong with Pratchett. Poor poor creatures unable to defend themselves. They're so put upon and defenseless, but they're actually super-awesome at everything they put their hand to and, as they did in Snuff, the personalities of every character warp around them to espouse the incredibleness of the goblin race at every turn.

And they can brew some kind of tea that turns a man who never lifted a hand in violence in his entire life into an unstoppable killing machine that single-handedly defeats three dwarf assassins...but somehow they're incapable of preventing random bandits from eating their children (who, just to drive home how poor and unfortunate and defenseless goblins are, it is noted taste like chicken), because they're such poor poor put upon creatures that can't defend themselves and boo. Hoo. Frickin' hoo. Gimme a friggin' break. -_-

And just to add insult to injury aforesaid non-violence man subsequently punches a guard who makes a racist comment about goblins.

There's a pointless interlude where Grag Bashfullson from Thud! rescues an Ankh-Morpork dwarf visiting his old granny in Uberwald from an angry mob, which is never mentioned again. Padding.

Pointless appearances by the wizards and Lu-Tze that contribute literally nothing to the plot. More padding.

I really don't see any point in Thunderbolt. A troll lawyer whose uniqueness is noted once then discarded. So what was the point in making him a troll? Not only that but he violates a number of rules established in previous books. Thunderbolt is a diamond troll where Mr Shine (his uncle?!?!) was previously established to be the only one (at least the only one living as the latest in a line), because diamond trolls are automatically rulers of all trolls. Not only that but he's well established in Ankh-Morpork's Guild of Lawyers where previously the concept of a diamond troll was kept from all non-trolls and subject to legend even among most trolls, with Mr Shine having to travel everywhere in disguise.

Vetinari once again out character, forcing Moist to fast-track a line to Uberwald for the purposes of a more regular booty-call with Lady Margolotta (it's never said as much directly, but it's pretty obvious).

Moist in particular stands out, ironically for his failure to stand out. Theoretically the primary viewpoint character, gone is the ne'erdowell jackanapes who danced on the edge of an avalanche. Now he's just some bland guy who says life isn't worth living if it's not in danger, but doesn't give any indication towards believing that, notwithstanding a new-found propensity for violence and crusading for goblin rights.

And then suddenly in the middle of the book the plot cuts out for no reason so that that tool Feeney from the last book can spend about five pages pondering fauxlosophically about how wrong cultural assimilation is. A subject which is abruptly dropped because his mother is making his favorite meal for dinner and it wasn't even Sunday.

The dwarfs were previously shown to be not particularly religious, but now they all look to Tak, previously shown as an important but not particularly prominent figure, who is suddenly the source of all good and the deity in whose name the Delvers commit their crimes.

As to the good parts of the book, the parts dealing with the things the book is actually about, e.g. the previously mentioned bloody train, are solid. Harry King and Dick Simnel aren't extremely interesting characters but they're decent enough. Not really enough to carry a plot on their own, but together with a bit of help from a supporting cast they perform as well as can be expected.

The plot finally gets underway about 2/3rds of the way into the book, with a daring high speed flight to Uberwald because the bad guys have usurped the capital. Even that I ended up skimming through because it was just. So. BORING.

I know people will try to jump up my ass and bitch about how I can't criticize it because Pratchett is suffering from Alzheimer's and wah. Wah. Wah. These people I invite, in the nicest possible way, to drink paint and die. If Alzheimer's is affecting the quality of his work then he needs to stop the work not keep going and really give ruining the series' credibility the old college try before he completely checks out.

I want my $15 back. *deletes book from kindle*

This is a fine Discworld book evolving the world another step, this time with the invention of the steam railroad.

The story is straightforward enough and mostly involves new characters, though some of our favorites (in particular Lord Vetinari) show up. There's a weird subplot about some kind of Dwarvish splinter group that (I think) wants to stop folks from mining but I'm afraid that wasn't all that clear to me. Either way it's not terribly important and the story moves along fine without it.

I greatly enjoyed this book though I felt it wasn't as good as some of Pratchett's others. I that's in part due to the subject matter and in part due to a lack of "pep" I detected....this book seemed more "written" than "inspired" as some of his others were.

Still it's a fine book and I'm pleased to see Discworld technology advancing steadily. Highly recommended for any fans of good fantas and of course Pratchett fans.

Terry Pratchett isn't going to be around forever (unfortunately) so enjoy him while he lasts. I've read every Disc World book before this one and while its not my favorite it's still fantastic even by Mr Pratchett's high standards.

No one does it better than Pratchett. Silly and stupendous all at the same time. He's the master of comic fantasy and manages to give his work a moral and intellectual depth rarely found in any work of literature.

Moist von Lipwig has become one of my favorite Discworld characters, along with Vimes, Vetinari, Death, and the redoubtable CMOT Dibbler. This was another excellent adventure, wittily written as always.

Sir Terry in excellent form. Discworld is evolving ... almost a farewell, though I know one more book is coming.
A real page turner, with some amusing 'surprises,' as well as shrewd sociopolitical commentary. Which is why I keep returning to the Disc.

Another tour de force by one of the greatest fantasy/satirical/humorous writers of the modern era. Sir Terry will be sorely missed, the world will be a greyer and colder place without him. This, the last? of the Discworld series lives up to all its expectations, the wonderful characters, the as always hilarious footnotes; lets say if you are a Pratchett fan, you will not be disappointed. If you are not a fan, then get with the damn programme.
Vale Sir Terry.

Admittedly a fan of Terry Pratchet and Discworld but this one is up there with the best.

Great series to get into if you haven't read any of his books. Great characters, descriptive narrative but always fast paced and interesting, funny and thought provoking at the same time.

Another tasty hunk of Discworld mirroring our round world, this time sending up the introduction of steam trains. From the land of mad train spotting via the pen of the master of surreal satire. Enjoy another romp with Moist Von Lipwig, who took on the postal system, the banking system and now the railroad. Chuff, chuff, chuff...wooow wooow!

After some slightly doubtful books, at last a return to the Pratchett of yore, together with the Discworld and almost all of its classic occupants - well maybe without DEATH.
Love the new kitten torture - just right for Vetinari.
I feel that I've been reunited with a whole group of friends that I haven't seen for years - may there be many, many more!

Sorry, but this is not a Terry Pratchett novel. I first discovered the Discworld more than 20 years ago. Once upon a time, the advent of a new Terry Pratchett novel was something that had me all but camping out in front of the Barnes & Nobel the night before--once I walked in to the store as the clerk was unpacking the first copy of Thief of Time, got the first copy out of the box and called in sick to work the next day to do it up proper. Bottom line, I loved Pratchett's prose and still do, have passed it on to my daughter and niece.

Most Discworld readers know that Terry has fallen to a rare form of Alzheimer's. 'Snuff', the most recent novel before this, left me sad and wanting the quality of just a few years back. Pratchett's writing actually did improve over the decades and, to my taste, reached a peak around 'Night Watch', 'Monsterous Regiment' and the Wee Free Men novels.

Terry Pratchett ranks with the best of contemporary British humorists. But 'Raising Steam' does not have a trace of Pratchett's voice, not a bit of it. The general plot outline seems to have been lifted and assigned to a marginally competent copy writer. Imagine showing up to the 'Monty Python, Live at the Hollywood Bowl' performance in 1982 and instead of Cleese, Idle, Jones, Palin, etc there were local radio newscasters reading the scripts in plummy, professional newscaster voices.

That's 'Raising Steam' in a metaphorical nutshell. It is the rough framework of a novel Pratchett might have written five years ago and have been something I'd have read and re-read for years to come. But there never will be a Terry Pratchett novel about the advent of steam locomotives and railways coming to the Discworld. If you download this book or purchase it online, you won't have a Terry Pratchett novel. At best, you will have the empty box the book might have been in--tricked out to 300 pages, but empty.

The 3 Lipwig's stories has to be the best sub sets of the Disc World books. So much insight into the world of today. You learn something and it is very funny. Mr. Pratchett sure be writing our textbooks.

Classic Terry Pratchett: Wit, wisdom, humor that touches the heart and the intellect. What more is there to say, besides: I'm so sorry he is gone. I never met him in person, but he was like a friend to all his fans.

Okay, just finished Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett. He is my favorite author, and this is the only book of his that I don't like.

The premise was good, but the characters were terrible cardboard cutouts versions of themselves, the dialogue was in the wrong book (It would have fit in Dodger, so I'm guessing he wrote both books simultaneously). I won't spoil the plot of the book, but there isn't anything surprising, except the sheer number of cameos and 'Easter Eggs' that actually derail the pacing of the book.

I suspect I know why it was so bad, and it saddens me.

This is another Discworld triumph. Moist von Lipwig is back, Lord Vetinari is here, there are kittens, and there are new insights into Drumknott in addition to the usual cast of dwarves, trolls, goblins and all the other wonderful things Mr. Pratchett has invented.

If you know the Discworld, you need no further reason to read this book If you don't, you're in for a great treat.

As someone who has read almost everything Pratchett has written, I could tell that someone was helping him write this book and they meshed beautifully with Pratchett's style of writing. The little twists and surprises made the book truly enjoyable.

Probably Sir Terry's last book, and our last chance to visit with his amazing and vast cast of characters. And if this is the end, it ends well. It brings a sense of closure. The world he created is moving on growing and reaching the Fantasy Industrial Age.

The book suffers a bit by having an unfocused and honestly pointless villain. But otherwise it is a nice send off for Moist Von Lipwig, Sam Vimes, Harry King and Lord Vetinary.

I read this book very quickly as i enjoyed it thoroughly. I disagree with many of the negative reviews on here. There was plenty of humour as well as mystery and thrills and spills.

The development of the railway in the Discworld was an interesting turn of events but created a great story.

While this is not in the realms of the best Discworld books of 8-12 years ago it is still a great read.

I would recommend to all and any Pratchett fans.

I love everything Terry has written...I'm very biased. This particular story is one of his better, though far from his best. But I love the way he writes, so every one of his stories are great in my opinion! He is a master of the written language!

Not quite as much focus on Lipwig in this one. Everything seems kind of rushed in an unrealistic sense. On the other hand, seeing at home moments with Adora Belle are sweet. Still gives an awesome Pratchett experience, but doesnt quite match the tone of the previous two Lipwig books.

Once again Terry Pratchett fill's the imagination with his wonderful characters. If you aren't familiar with his work you are missing an amazing world of hilarious adventures. You'll want to start closer to the beginning but for Patchett fans this story is an excellent chapter in Discworld. Thank you Mr Pratchett,continued health and success.

Pratchett does it again! I love the development of characters- new and especially old friends I love to read about. This author is a master at his craft. Love the humor tucked in with his unique and perceptive views on politics.

I am a huge Terry Pratchett fan from way back. I have books in the series that are more favored than others but I can honestly say that I've never seen a "bad" Discworld book. This newest installment is no exception. I'm so glad Sir Terry is with us still and writing still. I missed a chance to see him in person a few years ago when he was in the States and I'm still kicking myself for it. If I could write a tenth, a hundredth as well as he does I'd be truly content. Hat's off to you Sir Terry, may the knob on the end of your staff never fall off and may your broomstick always start the first time.

Once again Terry Pratchett fill's the imagination with his wonderful characters. If you aren't familiar with his work you are missing an amazing world of hilarious adventures. You'll want to start closer to the beginning but for Patchett fans this story is an excellent chapter in Discworld. Thank you Mr Pratchett,continued health and success.

Pratchett does it again! I love the development of characters- new and especially old friends I love to read about. This author is a master at his craft. Love the humor tucked in with his unique and perceptive views on politics.

I am a huge Terry Pratchett fan from way back. I have books in the series that are more favored than others but I can honestly say that I've never seen a "bad" Discworld book. This newest installment is no exception. I'm so glad Sir Terry is with us still and writing still. I missed a chance to see him in person a few years ago when he was in the States and I'm still kicking myself for it. If I could write a tenth, a hundredth as well as he does I'd be truly content. Hat's off to you Sir Terry, may the knob on the end of your staff never fall off and may your broomstick always start the first time.

Its hard to not like a Terry Pratchett written novel. His characters dont need introduction. His city doesn't need a description, leaving him with lots of space for the creation of the story. To that end, Raising steam succeeds. It tells the story of the world adapting to a new technology and the challenges that come with it. This book like Truth or Moving Pictures introduces a new technology to the city and then lets the fun begin.

But is it the best Terry Pratchett ever? I am not sure. I love his writing and have read almost everything he has written. This one drags right from the beginning till the long train ride happens. Vetinary comes across as direct and dictatorish. Something that was never there before. His subtlety has been taken away. Vimes's cynicism is too direct again.

But the biggest problem for Discworld lovers like us is that the characters dont seem to have enough to say or express. The story is the most technological amongst all his books and it seems to take away from his characters. I kept waiting for some gem from Moist's past or some truism from Vetinary's mouth but there seemed none this time.

So no, not the most well written novel by TP but a good read nevertheless.

Nice to have both Vimes and Moist in a story. But with Vimes and Moist and Vetinari and even society all on the same side, the villains didn't seem to really have a chance. this lowered the stakes and made it less exciting. recent (past 10 years) DWorld stories seem less like adventures and more like historical accounts of a very fun and funny place. still good though. I highly recommend reading THUD before reading this one though. lots of reference to it. this is pretty much the sequel to it. I plan to read that next.

This book is not the classical hilarious diskworld book. It seems actually more poignant then funny. It seems that Pratchett is trying to tie together loose ends and give our beloved characters an ending. That being said it is a fascinating read and a brilliant way to bring closure to a phenomenal series. Considering I how long we have spent with the denizens of diskworld it is fitting that the diskworld iself gets an ending.
I hope there will be more but if this is the last it would be a fitting ending for Moist, Spike, Ventari, Vimes, and the rest of the Ank morpork characters.

I'm sorry but the magic has gone from Terry's recent books. He can still write well but the sparkle that meant I could not put his earlier books down is not there. I found it a struggle to finish this book.

WHAT THE...? YOU CAN'T BE HERE. YOU NEED TO GO BACK. YOU HAVE MORE TO WRITE. MILLIONS DEPEND ON YOU TO DELIGHT THEM EVERY YEAR, AS YOU DID IN THIS BOOK AS WELL, DESPITE WHAT SOME IDIOTS HAVE RATED. THEM I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HERE SOMEDAY. SO LONG, AND THANKS FOR ALL THE TURTLES.

...and I've read almost every book he's written. It was disjointed; Vetinari seemed to be written by someone else who didn't get the man at all..come to think of it, the entire book felt as if it was written by someone who knew Ankh Morpork, knew about the characters; but didn't know them well enough, or care for them at any discernible level of depth. Disappointed.

For some reason I found this a little hard to get into initially. I'm generally a huge fan of Pratchett. Having said that, once I'd got comfortably out of the new character introductions and into the story proper, it picked up, and I was unable to put it down.
New characters, plus comfortable old ones, and expansion on old political themes really makes this a great successor to THUD!, Going Postal and Making Money.

I would happily have given it 5 stars if it had been a bit more grippy at the outset.

As any new Terry Pratchett book, Raising Steam was one of my most anticipated books of 2013. And indeed the book started well, reminiscent of his previous book, The Truth, where a new technology is discovered in Ankh Morporck. We are introduced to the principal characters, old and new, and the stage is set for a rollicking ride through Discworld.

Sadly though the ride was monotonous and dull as a, wait for it, railway journey through a kilometer long tunnel. Halfway through the book, I was beset with the fear that the momentum of the story would lead it nowhere in particular. Because I felt that the book reads more as a diary of accomplishments of the expansion of the Railway rather than a novel. Towards the end, my fears were, sadly, founded. it must be said, though that there are certain high points, and the tongue in cheek humour does indeed shine through in many instances.

The biggest problem I see is that there is no clear established antagonist in this book, which are a hallmark of Mr. Pratchett's books. For example, Mr de Worde in the Truth, Reacher Gilt in Going Postal, and Cosmo Lavish from Making Money etc. Also Vetinari's scenes in any Prachett book are a delight to read, full of subtlety and guile. But in Raising Steam he comes off as a total tyrant (and jackass). His dialogue so completely lacks the hallmarks of his character throughout the Discworld series that it makes me wonder if Cosmo Lavish did indeed replace him in Making Money.

I am aware that producing novels of Mr. Prachett's quality is exceedingly difficult and an admirable one at that. His books have brought hours of entertainment and joy to me, which is why I can't help but feel a tad disappointed in Raising Steam.

It's not to say this is a bad book, because god knows there are enough and more lesser talented writers out there on the best seller lists today. But for me it's not the same high standard of literary quality I expect from Mr. Pratchett. But having written 39 amazing, entertaining and vividly imaginative books I can readily forgive him for this one.

This was a very big disappointment and a far cry from the glories of books like Interesting Times or Small Gods. There was no trace of humour anywhere in this book, which astonished me as Pratchett is one of the funniest writers ever. It was as if this was written by someone who had studied the Discworld series and knew all the characters but who had none of Pratchett's wit or imagination or facility with words. It was just a straight-forward and not very interesting story about not very interesting people, told without satire, humour or Pratchett"s usual social commentary. The last few books in this series have been poor but this was a new low from one of my favourite writers. Sadly, this was a waste of time and money.

Who are you people rating this mess with 4 and 5 stars? Have you actually forgotten the brilliance of classic Discworld movels such as Small Gods? And where, oh where, was the editor?

I have to agree with the comments posted by other reviewers rating this dismal book with 1 or 2 stars. Virtually zero humor, disjointed plot (I mean, when we get a whiff of one), mishandled characters, clunky and often ungrammatical writing (page 153: "The view in the late afternoon sun over the maquis from the terrace was wonderful.") featuring repeated use of "disorientated." I could weep.

Dreary and painfully didactic, with hamfisted religious allegories that get increasingly muddled (Tak and the grags) and preposterous (does the Iron Girder have a soul?), and those freakin' annoying goblins who are just the latest downtrodden minority for which we and Ankh-Morporkians are supposed to discover a deeply hidden but nonetheless heartfelt admiration - in short, painfully bad. And Moist von Lipwig's prominence is not a redeeming feature.

Other have covered sins such as how poorly Vetinari's character in particular is written (pounding his fist on the table? Really?) and the references to "Vimesy." There was a mere flash of the old humor in the end of the exchange between Angua and Adora Belle on pages 55-56, enough to keep me struggling on for another hundred pages or so, but I finally gave up and skimmed the rest of this bloated, essentially humorless, excruciatingly tedious embarrassment.

Would someone close to the beloved Sir T please tell him it's well past time to stop?

The Discworld novels have succeeded by a juxtaposition of two elements. The first is the premise of the whole fantasy world of the Disc - that due to an excess of magical force sloshing around, it is possible for any logical absurdity, flight of fancy or even pun (or play on words) to become real in a concrete way. A classic example would be the possibility that Death can actually become a real person who might decide they don't want to do their job anymore. What would happen then? These kind of premises make possible a light and engaging form of social satire. The second element is Pratchett's idealistic humanism, expressed in the dogged determination of his main protagonists to stand up for justice and common values in the face of the absurd chaos of the Discworld.

I think that the Discworld novels have been successful when the first element has predominated. The humorous and anarchic plots of the majority of the early stories, along with trademark flashes of wit and wordplay, are marvels of comic writing. But they have always been anchored by Pratchett's moral vision that makes his characters relatable and human (even when they are werewolves). And it does drive you back to consider the basis for some of the beliefs and behaviours of our own society. However, for whatever reason, in recent novels (probably from Thud! onwards at least) it is this moral and political viewpoint that has come to be the main driving force behind the stories. The result in Raising Steam is an example of why this is a mistake. It turns the novel from a comic fantasy satire into a form of propaganda with no real humour or interest. It turns the characters from sympathetic and flawed people who struggle to do the right thing into invulnerable and robotic ciphers who spout the author's personal philosophy. It is like reading an Ayn Rand novel.

Raising Steam takes up the idea of the introduction of a train system to the Discworld, starting (of course) from Ankh-Morpork. Moist Von Lipwig is tasked with overseeing the successful development of the railroad, but must deal with opposition from conservative dwarf factions who believe that it will bring an end to authentic dwarf culture. I believe that in earlier days Pratchett would have used this story as a satire on the ambiguities of rapid industrialisation and corporate greed. Perhaps due to some magical quirk the trains become self-replicating monsters who threaten to cover the entire world with their tracks, and Vetinari sets into action a plan to bring them back to a useful and sustainable level. Perhaps the smoke and other pollution from the train system interrupts the normal flow of magic and the Disc stops spinning, with disastrous environmental results. Anything would be better than a story that amounts to the message that 'technology and industry is amazing and brings unproblematic prosperity and social advances to all, and the only people who raise issues with its cultural and social impacts are insane religious fanatics'.

There are enough dashes of humour and plot to make this a moderately good novel in itself, but as a Discworld story it is weak and disappointing.

The latest entry in Terry Pratchett’s sprawling Discworld series, Raising Steam, is an example of what I call the “innovation” series-within-the-series. Just like there are sets of books that focus on specific characters and areas of the Discworld, there’s an increasingly large set of books that take on specific technological innovations entering the fabric of Discworld society.

We’ve seen this as far back as 1990’s Moving Pictures (in which the movie industry hit the Discworld) and 1994’s Soul Music (rock and roll, or as Pratchett calls it, “music with rocks in it”). Recently, Pratchett seems to be on a roll with this type of narrative, having introduced the character Moist Von Lipwig and then covered, in relatively short order, the postal system (Going Postal), banking (Making Money) and now mass transportation in the series’ latest addition, Raising Steam.

When a young engineer creates the first steam engine, it doesn’t take long before the first steam train is chugging along, to the great delight of Ankh-Morpork’s residents. A consortium of the city’s most powerful citizens, including long-time tyrant Lord Havelock Vetinari, Harry King and (of course) Moist von Lipwig, quickly get involved in the creation and rapid expansion of a railway system. Suddenly, areas of the Disc that were previously weeks or months of travel away from the city can be reached quickly and conveniently.

And so, the Disc changes again…

I’ve been a fan of these books since way back. As with any long series, there are some great books and some less than great ones. I’ve been reading these books for over 25 years, and there have been some slumps, but even the weaker entries in the series are usually fun for fans, if only because it’s always so great to visit this setting and see these characters again.

Unfortunately, in the case of Raising Steam, I fear that we’ve reached a low point in the series. I can’t say to what extent this can be attributed to Sir Terry’s condition (he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s a few years back) but I believe at least one change related to this may be affecting the newer books: I understand the author currently writes by dictating to his assistant or using speech recognition software. Raising Steam has a noticeably different style from earlier entries in the series: less tightly written, more meandering, almost conversational at times. There are sections and paragraphs that go on too long. Some of it has the distinct “sit a spell and listen” tone of someone telling a long, rambling story It’s just not as crisp as it used to be.

Worst of all, and this is the first time I’ve noticed this, Pratchett’s beloved characters are starting to blend together. In the past, you could open any of his novels, read a random bit of dialogue, and it’s likely that a regular reader would be able to identify which character said what. Raising Steam is the first time I’ve felt that didn’t work. Strong, long-time characters like Captain Vimes and Lord Vetinari feel almost faceless and interchangeable. Even Vetinari whipping out a classic line like “Don’t let me detain you” didn’t help. I can’t tell you, as someone who’s been reading these books for almost 30 years, how utterly disappointing this was.

So. Positives. Yes, there are a few good jokes, and yes, it’s interesting to see the Disc change again. The broad looks at areas of the Disc we hadn’t seen before are nice. The goblin storyline continues to develop. There are some interesting revelations late in the novel.

Still, putting it all together, I unfortunately can’t recommend Raising Steam to anyone except the most fervid fans of the series. It’s too long-winded. It meanders and overstays its welcome. Worst of all, several characters feel like shadows of their old selves. I hate to say it, but it feels as if the Discworld series is starting to lose steam.

(originally posted on my site, Far Beyond Reality)

Read “The Shepherd's Crown.” It was written AFTER this book, and it absolutely DOES feel and sound like a Pratchett. Rough, yes, un-fleshed-out, certainly, but authentic: Tiffany & Co. sound as they should. In this book, the characters do not.

In addition to the many, many glaring inconsistencies other reviewers pointed out, Adora Belle suddenly does not smoke? Smoking was the DEFINING characteristic of this character for two entire books. Now, suddenly, without any mention of quitting, or in fact any reference to smoking, she simply doesn’t smoke. At all. Did whoever write this even READ the Moist books?! Even the most basic of research would’ve turned up the smoking trope!

I, like previous reviewers, am a lifelong Pratchett fan. Yes, I even adored Unseen Academicals, Thud and Making Money. You may quibble about the style, but the characters are as they should be. Halfway through RS, I felt betrayed, as if the rug had been pulled out from under my feet.

When I heard The Shepherd’s Crown was coming out, I was apprehensive. When the book arrived, I opened the first page with a beating heart. Ten pages in, I breathed a sigh of relief and thought ”Thank God.” I felt profoundly grateful Sir Terry gave us The Shepherd’s Crown - a final morsel from his genius mind.

So if you’re feeling heartbroken after reading Raising Steam, read The Shepherd's Crown. It’ll make you feel better. I promise.

Once it had been a dream, it had been nearly realized before being abandoned, and many lost their lives looking to harness it until one young man succeeded. Raising Steam is the penultimate book of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, as Moist von Lipwig helps along the technological marvel of locomotion created by Dick Simnel that is monetarily supported by Harry King and pushed by Lord Vetinari early on especially to reach Uberwald which becomes imperative as the Dwarfs verge on civil war.

Young Dick Simnel saw his father killed while trying to control steam, but after years of reading and later technological tinkering he succeeded in creating a locomotive engine and a means to use it on rails. Dick then heads to Ankh-Morpork and the wealthy Harry King to get support, which the latter is happy to do. Soon train fever hits Ankh-Morpork and Lord Vetinari calls on Moist von Lipwig to utilize the invention to the betterment of the city, in no uncertain terms. Like always Moist’s mind begins seeing the possibilities in the new technology and begins helping Dick and Harry come up and implement ideas, but soon Vetinari begins pressing Moist to get things moving faster. All the while, dwarf society is splitting between fundamentalist and pragmatists resulting in attacks on such technological marvels as the clacks and the new railway. Then after the fundamentalists launch a coup when the Low King is at summit, it is only with the railway that the “King” is able to return to put down the coup and change dwarf society.

While I enjoyed the character of Moist in his previous two books, this book was not really a Moist von Lipwig book though he was the main point-of-view. In fact this book very much needed the reader to know the events that happened Thud! and Snuff, which were both Watch driven books especially as Sam Vimes featured heavily in the latter part of the book. The story was not bad, but the twists and turns were predictable and some random scenes were in fact plain random as they never played in the overall plot of the book. There was a hint of Pratchett attempting to make a commentary on religious fundamentalism with the acts of terror, but because of political climate of the time he wrote he watered it down a lot. However, the biggest drawback is that the humor was lacking especially as Pratchett included every person or group that have been featured prominently in the series, save the Witches, almost as if he wanted to show them on last time just in case.

Raising Steam is not the worst Discworld book—Eric—and it is close to being one of the best. Honestly, the story is fine, but seems to take longer than necessary. In previous books the reader could forgive this fact because of the great humor, but as stated before that is lacking. This book is for long time Pratchett fans and anyone interested in getting into Discworld is encouraged to find an book in the first three-quarters of the series to read first and work their way to this one.

I personally believe that both this book and the previous one (Snuff) were not written by Terry Pratchett. The writing style is completely different to his earlier works, and the characters have become long winded and pompous in their conversations.

I've been reading all of Terry Pratchett's books in sequence since January 2016. This gives me an usual position in which to see the decline in the last few books. The break up seems to start around Unseen Academicals. Prior to this, some were better, some worse (Monstrous Regiment and The Last Continent were not all that, although the idea of Rincewind riding a horse that is going upside is still pretty funny), but with the exception of the Tiffany Aching books (which might have been written earlier?), the difference in the quality, humor, tone, and compulsive readability is obvious. I see the same things others have noticed: the use of swear words, increasing sexual innuendoes, and less than witty puns are all tells in this respect. Also, trying to interlace one novel to another without explaining why certain remarks should be relevant or funny is a big problem in the last few books -- Terry was always good at keeping you oriented, mostly through footnotes. If you start reading him with Unseen Academicals, Snuff, or Raising Steam, you'll likely walk away, knowing there's a joke but you're not in on it. Actually, my first Pratchett book was Night Watch, and it was much funnier after I'd read through the whole sequence. The last book you can probably enjoy without extensive knowledge of Discworld is probably Thief of Time or The Last Hero. (Not including the YA books, which seem to exist in a pocket universe of their own.) Considering how driven Terry was, however, it might have been his wish that others help realize the last of his ideas, and I respect him for that.

I have the book, but listened to the story first from Audible. The narrator is, of course, wonderful as you know exactly which character is speaking, plus the timing, inflection and cadence are perfect. The book is the same with you filling in the character's voices in your own mind...

A Moist von Lipwig story of the discovery and use of railroads & steam power in Disc World in typical impossible to do what Vetinari wants, but Moist accomplishes anyway through ingenuity and shady doings. Moist is one of my favorite characters and to have him back working his magic to get something done for Lord Vetinari is doubling the fun.

HOWEVER, be aware the treatment of the characters is not typical Pratchett. If you're not a hardcore Pratchett fan or this is one of your first ventures into Disc World, the story seems fun. If you are aware, you will find the character of the characters changed and may feel let down.

If you are not familiar, I would seriously recommend finding and reading "The Colour of Magic" to set the stage. The books are fairly stand alone but the build of the characters and how they interact through the series makes everything better. You can read out of sequence much better once you've read the first two - my opinion...

Part of the change on this book being also, this may not be appropriate for children, where all of his other books pretty much are. There are current political issues, events and overtones weaved into the story and changes to how Pratchett typically uses his characters.

The changes may be due to his medical condition and, perhaps, his way of thinking because of it. It isn't a 'bad' story, it's just not a typical Disc World story.

The humor is not Pratchett style. Most of the Characters aren't acting like themselves. Vimes is a swashbuckling swordsman, Colon and Nobby had a cameo and didn't eat or steal anything. The Patrician is mostly cast correct. Dwarf jokes are absent, no battlebread. Terry Pratchett books have always been a slanted, humorously warped twist on reality that made you laugh while making you go "hmmmmmm......... Might be right about that" . This book has very little of that. It's just a fantasy adventure with a few twists and comedic elements. Severely disappointed with it on many levels. Reads like someone overnight crammed some crib notes then ghost wrote the book.

I've seen the other reviews. And reading the book, I noticed that all the characters were perfectly on key--except for the Patrician. I'm not the only one who's noticed that he seems 'off', especially compared the Lipwig, who is ever so delightfully 'on' (note to self--never drink anything offered by a goblin. True, they mean well...).

But what if the Patrician being 'off' isn't a bug, but a feature? What would happen to Ankh-Morpork if the Patrician began to fail? A stable government is not the normal state for Ankh-Morpork but a rather nice aberration brought on by his wise government. There are moments when the Patrician is so marvelously himself--but in those moments, he isn't talking. An easy handoff to a designated successor is also not the norm for Ankh-Morpork. And who will tell the Patrician that...things aren't right with him? He's much too powerful to be sent to a doctor when he's apparently healthy. He's letting his emotions rule his reason; there's no real reason that the train has to get where it should so quickly, save for Havelock's desire to see his beloved Margoletta again. Possibly before it's too late.

Perhaps the Patrician being 'off' mirrors what Mr. Pratchett understands is happening to him. And if there is a next book, the Blackboard Monitor may have to make the most heartbreaking erasure of his life.

I think Pratchett knows what he's doing here, even if he's being a bit too subtle about it.

A visit to a Terry Pratchett book is like a visit to old, if somewhat peculiar, friends. Here those friends are engaged in a multi-layered adventure. Locomotives and railroads are being created, a coup among the dwarves of being thwarted, even a love affair or two is being promoted.

All of this takes place on Discworld, Pratchett's unique world. It's disc shaped (of course) and flat (yet cats have not pushed everything off it). The novel is written in Prachett's style, with a blend of humor and satire.

Anyone in search of an entertaining read, with plot and character twists enough to keep you enagged, will find it in Raising Steam.

If you look on this book as a standalone, it's perhaps two stars, in my opinion. Everything proceeds far too easily, nearly everyone is honorable and nice, and it's a gentle little ride with the few conflicts being all too easy to overcome and resolve.

I look on it, though, as Terry Pratchett wrapping up loose threads and saying a gentle “goodbye” to his characters. Nearly every character from the Ankh-Morpork books is included, sometimes for specious reasons, sometimes just in passing, but most are there, albeit shorn of personality and dimension.

I wonder if he will be doing the same for his other threads.

I've been struggling through this book for days when I usually zoom through a Terry Pratchett book in an afternoon. It is, in a word, bad. I've been a Pratchett fan since I was a teenager, and this book is missing everything I love about his writing--most importantly: subtly. You're whacked over the head with the metaphors about globalization, fundamentalism, modernization, etc. The dialogue is a joke--but not the funny kind. Whoever wrote this also just sat down with a laundry list of Discworld characters and tried to shove them all in. In past books, the focus has been on one or two main characters. In this one, Moist von Lipwig is just there to state obvious points for us "with a gleam in his eye." "If you sold shares--or we could call them stocks, say--you could spread the risk and reward!" "If you wrote a sort of guide to traveling--we could call it a travel guide, see!--people could read about places before going to them!" Ugh. I don't know which possibility is sadder: if Terry Pratchett's condition is to a point where this is the best he can do, or if this is the best ghost writer they could drum up. Either way, this will be the last new Discworld book I read.

Can only echo what some others have put so well - like many, I would practically slaver over the idea of the next Pratchett book - at his his best Pratchett is wickedly funny and can move you to tears - a gentle, insightful teacher and pure joy.

Like Snuff *meh* it's good writing. For someone else. It's all the difference between a cook who prepares the same recipe as an expert cook, but leaves out the seasoning. With "Raising Steam" every now and again some vintage Pratchett seems to bubble up - then the bubble pops, and I was back to pleasant again. And I miss whatever is going on with Granny and the girls including wanting to know what happened with Agnes/Perdita, but now I'm kind of uneasy even if another book came out with the witches. Overall I'm not sorry I read Raising Steam, but still kept thinking "what the *bleep* through the whole book, like Snuff (which I thought really jumped the shark). And it's a good thing some of my relatives are "railfans" so I'm used the the fascination with trains, otherwise there are sections that I couldn't have empathized with at all and probably would have been bored.

As to who wrote this or what might be going on with Terry Pratchett and an illness that affects my own family, I don't know what to think. But re the books I am getting tired of missing the joy and being bludgeoned with social commentary, as opposed to the Pratchett of old who would slyly slip things in. And tired of favorite characters becoming boring.

Oh, Moist Van Lipwig. Why aren't you scheming? What happened to your villains?

In Moist's first book,"Going Postal," he faced off the gloriously wicked Reacher Gilt and saved the Post Office and the Clacks. He gets to wear a golden suit and ride a golem horse, getting his picture in the papers. Adora Belle "Spike" makes a marvelous maybe-girlfriend.

In Moist's second book, "Making Money," he faced off against the delightfully dirty Lavish family. He gets to hang out with a cute doggie and spend more time with Adora Belle. There's the Glooper, which cannot be summarized, and there's the making of fool-proof paper money which is totally not a con because it's actually legal! Good grief!

This is Moist's third book, and the enemy is ... small and squalid. There are no charming animals. Adora Belle is busy somewhere else. There's no grand, glittering scheme, just a plodding persuasion of one rich man after another.

There's a Scottish engineer who has a dream - he's going to conquer steam so people can go faster. The book opens with Lord Venitari wishing he could get to Uberwald faster, and without bruising his bottom. Poeple in Ankh Morpork realize they get their information faster, but food still spoils on its slow journey. People are certainly ready for a newer, faster method of travel.

The reader finds out that the enemy is not only squalid, but spread out and nameless. No one is threatened, much less killed, for the first half of the book, except for a very flat-footed threat from Lord Venitari that Moist Must Do What He's Told. Then there's the bridicide around page one hundred, but it takes place far away from Moist's main plot and exists just to show that Our Enemies Are Evil.

Then the dwarves start having issues, and suddenly the Dwarf King has to travel from Quirm to Uberwald, post haste. Why can't the dwarves travel by broomstick, the way they did in Thud? This question is not raised, much less addressed.

Now Moist has to lay track to Uberwald fast, and the plot picks up... a little. Speed speed and more speed! The Iron Horse is a poor substitute for an actual animal, but it does turn into a somewhat interesting character. To quote Diane Duane in 'The Young Wizards' series, "What is loved, lives" - and the engineer loves the train enough, and enough people worship the train enough, to make it sort of alive. Unless someone is pulling a trick? With Moist, you never know.

The book isn't bad. It's just ordinary. Pratchett, most likely due to his failing health, did not gild the lily with a patina of goldish.

The prolific fantasy author revisits one of the most beloved literary worlds. Previous books focused on wizardly occurrences, travel, a dwarfish printing press, swamp dragons and Death taking on the guise of the winter Hogfather, to mention but a few. In the fortieth outing we are bound to find that the immediate humour and snappiness has gone, even if just because he'll get published no matter what.

Moist von Lipwig was pressured into revitalising the Post Office by the dictator of Ankh-Morpork, Lord Vetinari. His wife Adora runs the clacks, or communication towers, which have become inordinately popular. Moist, a former con-man, also oversees the Mint and Bank, behaving well lest Captain Vimes of the Watch set a werewolf guard onto him. Now a plain-speaking self-taught engineer Dick Simnel turns up with his steam-powered engine, brought from his mountain homeland by putting it on wheels which run on rails. Travel and goods shipping across the Disc could be within reach. Moist instantly sees the possibilities. Harry King, the refuse collector tycoon, wants to elevate himself from the 'where there's muck there's brass' situation. He decides to finance railways, and Moist, enjoying the spectacle, works to grease the metaphorical wheels.

Lord Vetinari enjoys fresh seafood and watercress, so the first major rail is laid to seaside Quirm which is famous for lobster, wine, cheese, onions and avec. Now fresh lobster can reach Ankh-Morpork not in three days, but before the ice it's packed in has melted. Tensions are rife as always - the Low King of the dwarves is facing rebellion in the dark mountain passages, and radical dwarves are burning down outlying clacks towers and killing the staff. (Not very brave of them since the staff are goblins and a few human clerks.) Vetinari is keen to maintain the tenuous peace between dwarves and trolls. He orders Dick Simnel the engineer to lay a railway to Uberwald and the kingdom of the dwarves. Moist will pay the penalty if it's not ready in time.

While this is less funny than some of Terry Pratchett's previous outings, I enjoyed the way that the tale explores the social good brought by railways, from understanding of others to housing and employment for railway workers. The reader can get tired of the many 'as it were' comments slipped into the narration and the dialogue. The unmasking of a major character as having been female all along is perhaps allegorical, given that Lyn Pratchett now assists Terry with his writing. Or perhaps this is just for balance in a world with many strong male roles. Discworld fans will of course want to ride the latest craze along with their favourite characters, but new readers may not get into the fun and might wonder what all the fuss was about the series.

Terry Pratchett was born in 1948, and is best known for his series of Discworld novels. He was the UK's best-selling author of the 1990s, has won the Carnegie Award and has been awarded an OBE and a Knighthood for his services to Literature. “Raising Steam” is the fortieth in the Discworld series, and the third to give a starring role to Moist von Lipwig.

“Raising Steam” sees the railway finally come to the Discworld, thanks to Dick Simnel – a young engineer from Sto-Lat. He quickly brings his invention, the Iron Girder, to Ankh-Morpork, where it catches the eye of the successful businessman, Harry King. Spotting a great opportunity, Harry promises to invest heavily. Harry isn’t the only one who’s keeping an eye on things, however – the Iron Girder inevitably attracts the attention of Ankh-Morpork’s Patrician. Keen that the city should exercise some small level of influence over this new enterprise, Vetinari gives a Moist von Lipwig – already the Head of the Bank and the Post Office – a new job.

Unfortunately, Moist’s new job is going to be anything other than easy. The building of the railway involves lengthy negotiations with a variety of landowners, something that keeps him away from home for weeks at a time. There’s also the trouble with dwarfish fundamentalists – who, up until now, have been focusing their attacks on the Clacks system. This new-fangled railway provides them with a new target...

An enjoyable read overall, one that got better as it went along. (I found it a little slow to get going though...I was worried, early in the book, that things were finally catching up with pTerry). It still wouldn’t be one of my favourite Discworld books, though. I’ve never really been able to warm to Moist, and “Raising Steam” hasn’t really changed my opinion of him. Occasionally, some of the other characters seemed to be behaving a little oddly. (Vetinari, at times, seemed a little...unVetinari-like. There was also a rather pointless conversation between Ridcully and Lu-Tze, where neither character seemed that familiar to me). The idea of the railway coming to the Discworld also makes me a little uncomfortable. However, the goblins have been a great addition to the series and they get a decent supporting role here.

It's not really that surprising that the Discworld books have gotten so dense as the series has continued. After all, even if you set aside the fact that Raising Steam marks the 40th entry in the series , the past several entries in the series - Thud!, Snuff, and others - have found Discworld changing and evolving, bringing new species into its acceptable society, and that means that every new action has ripples beyond the human population. So while it's understandable that Raising Steam is so dense with events, it still means that Pratchett has lost some of the tightness and focus that marked the best entries in the series, and it leaves you feeling that he's cramming his books more tightly than he used to as he gets older. For all of that, though, when Raising Steam hits its stride, it reminds you that no one is as capable of Pratchett as evoking the magic and mystery of an evolving world and of new technologies that change the world in front of your eyes. Raising Steam is about the coming of the steam engine to Discworld, and in the book's best moments, Pratchett simply explores the wonder that comes along with such an incredible invention, from gathering crowds to the monetary possibilities to the changing realities of diplomacy and war. And Pratchett still delivers no shortage of fantastic scenes apart from that, from a battle on a train to some wonderful exchanges between Sam Vimes, Moist von Lipwig, and Lord Vetinari. Combine that with Lipwig's constant scheming and planning, dwarf terrorists, and the constant threat of war, and you have a stuffed book that moves well...but that also feels too busy at times, and even Lipwig's ability to keep all the plates spinning seems like it's stretched to the limits to include it all. Raising Steam is an enjoyable read, and it's a reminder of the wonder and beauty that Pratchett can find in so many experiences. But it also gives you a sense that the series is getting overly full, and it may make you miss some of the more focused and tightly controlled novels of the set. Still, for any fan, you'll enjoy this one quite a bit. Maybe not among the tops, but still a great read nonetheless.

Little by little, Anhk-Morpork, greatest city on the Discworld, has been yanked and dragged forward into a modernish age. Movable type, a computer (sort of), the telegraph, paper money, all innovations with far-reaching changes to the fantasy-Victorian society.

And now, it’s railroad time.

In “Raising Steam,” the 40th book in Sir Terry Pratchett’s ongoing Discworld series, painfully earnest engineer Dick Simnel has harnessed the power of steam and a team of equally earnest young men and has come to Anhk-Morpork to, basically, start a whole new industry with the support of sanitation entrepreneur Harry King, who knows money when he sees it and would like to leave behind a legacy that doesn’t involve quite so much smell. The sort-of benevolent, definitely tyrannical city ruler Lord Vetinari, sensing both the imminent trouble and massive opportunities looming in this enterprise, sends his troubleshooter and pet con-man Moist von Lipwig to get a handle on the situation, which he does by whole-heartedly joining their campaign and not-quite-swindling landowners for travel routes. Excited citizens crowd around to ride the new miracle of the age and businessmen begin to realize what easy, cross-country travel might mean.

But not everyone is happy about change. Plans to lay track all the way to Uberwalk immediately bring violent and explosive reactions from reactionary dwarf factions, and then it seems the entire Disc gets in on the action, trolls, goblins, wizards, watchmen and all, as they fight to complete the longest, wildest powered journey the Disc has ever seen.

“Raising Steam” has a very different tone than the previous books. Darker, action-packed, with a quicker pace and possibly the biggest cast Pratchett has ever used, as fits a story as expansive as this needs to be. Where most of the previous books could be read and enjoyed without having read the rest, this one almost demands a certain level of familiarity, if only to get all the references and cameo appearances.

30 years ago the Discworld books began as light-hearted parodies of fantasy tropes, poking fun at warriors and wizards and getting in some licks on our own modern society. Since then, as Pratchett’s characters grew in complexity and the Discworld itself grew in scope, the Discworld series has become a wholly remarkable work of satire Pratchett wields like a scalpel. “Raising Steam” is about the first railroad, yes, but it’s also about the industrial revolution and class warfare and diplomacy and the changing world and the dangers of dogma and the excitement and terror of change and the struggle for universal suffrage and the sheer love of great big iron things and how an entire society can be changed by one man who knows how to use a slide rule. Also, it’s funny.

If you’re new to the Discworld series, this may not be the one to start with. If you’re already a fan, it ramps up the whole world into a new age and squabbles all the way there.

"If you can't trust governments, whom can you trust?" - good to see Pratchett has decided to try and answer the unfathomable in his latest Discworld novel. For an author whose powers must be declining due to his unfortunate health issues, every novel that comes from his prolific pen becomes even more of a treasure. There are quite a few negative reviews on this one, but I have to say I liked it. Primarily because it was a subtle novel, with a strong intellectual layer under the usual deft satire. As one gets older, the need to "bestow wisdom", to opine based on experiential knowledge, gets stronger. Many an author inserts their own cobbled philosophies into their book - trying to teach as well as entertain.
That was the case here.
The story has a theme of "progress", which is followed through two plots in the novel.
Firstly, in this case the evolution of steam, the advent of industrialization, given life by Iron Girder and Dick Simnel. The pulse of that action is maintained by Moist von Lipwig (aka to the goblins as 'Mr Slightly Damp'), tyrant Lord Vetinari, and Harry King - wannabe rail baron.
The second plot is the narration of political problems in the Dwarven kingdoms with the struggle of the progressives versus the graggy traditionalists. Rhys Rhysson, Low King of the Dwarves is up against the crags, led by the ironically named Ardent.
As kilometer after kilometer of track is laid to meet the challenge of saving a Kingdom, coupled with endless politicking to satisfy everyone (most of Pratchett's characters are present in this one) Moist comes to conclude that dancing on a "speeding locomotive. That was living all right!". The inaugural trip involving golems, train fights that would grace any Hollywood movie, the Clacks, and a blocked coup is a fitting end to the theme of Pratchett's effort here.
As I mentioned the novel is littered with philosophic utterances. Covering topics from feminism to minorities, from economic theory to political practice - with a modicum of psychology and social mores thrown in - Pratchett has chosen to try and gently point out the flaws that exist in a heaving society, whilst advocating that change is inevitable and that is must be embraced rather than hated. After all, "when you've had hatred on your tongue for such a long time, you don't know how to spit it out."
I rather liked this one because, it is more intellectual than the early years of Discworld. No author's style can remain identical over thirty-plus years, nor should it. The legacy that Pratchett will leave behind is one of diversification and of variety; he has produced a set of novels where everyone will love at least one. This one? It's for those who love philosophy because there's plenty of it in here.
Oh, spotted on tiny error on the Kindle - "insurgent dwarfs will get their just deserts" - the sweet analogy would have been more accurate than this barren one.

I give it three stars for having the courage to try, and out of nostalgia for the true Terry Pratchett writing style of days gone by. I mean no disrespect to Sir Terry, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease. However, if (as I suspect) he has a ghost writer, or an uncredited co-writer? Clearly, that person is unfamiliar with Discworld. Lamentably so. I noticed that "Snuff" was (pardon the pun) not up to snuff; with this novel, I bid farewell to Discworld as I loved it. I like my Death tall, bony, and benignly baffled by humanity; I enjoy my Sam Vimes dark-alley cynical; I delight in Vetinari as a cryptic cipher to those who read him as well as all around him in the novels. And, if I may be blunt, oh, how I miss the Adora Belle who was unafraid to live up to her nickname of "Spike", with metaphorical spike pointed at Moist Von Lipwig's moral center (ahem). What can I say? The joy of Discworld was the way it pointed up the farce of our own. This read more like a soon-to-be sociopolitical rant than the gaily satirical Discworld books on my shelf. More as if the author, rather than a character, was doing the ranting, let me clarify.
Blessings and good wishes to Sir Terry, a geek-nerd's author.

I read a lot of the reviews for Raising Steam before I ordered it and many of them raised good issues. This book did feel different to the other Discworld novels, it did seem to shoehorn in all the characters from other books and it wasn't as light as I've come to expect from how Mr. Pratchett normally handles his topics. That said, I still very much enjoyed this book and I'm glad that I purchased it.

If I had to pin a word to the difference in feel it would be "gritty". It's not a bad word but it is unexpected. When I look at how he handled the topics raised in Snuff or Monstrous Regiment there was a serious point to be made but it was delivered with a deft touch and trademark style.

In this book some of the veil fell away and the story disclosed an actual undercurrent of nastiness in characters. Again I don't think this is a bad thing but it does color the book differently than the others. I'm very glad I had the opportunity to read this book but if I'm looking for the pinnacle of Discworld I'd probably reread the Thief of Time.

Don't let the negative review dissuade you from reading this but don't expect a traditional Discworld novel.

I love Terry Pratchett's Discworld books more than I can say. I have at this point read every one, and except for ERIC (FAUST - with a strikeout through "Faust") I've loved nearly all of them. Some, like many of the City Watch book, anything with the witches, are books I'm bound to reread in the future. Some, like the staggeringly funny SMALL GODS have and will continue to make it onto my list of favorite books. But I found that RAISING STEAM was not as enjoyable as some previously books. I do not think that Sir Terry's talents are waning due to his Alzheimer's (it is a form that affects his ability to work with shapes and has left the part of the brain dealing with speech largely unaffected), but more to the fact that you simply can't write nearly 40 books within the same fictional universe and maintain the same level of excellence. I do wonder how someone reading this as their first book in the Discworld universe would react to it. I suspect rather well, though of course all of the characters making brief appearances here whom we know so well from other books will not be properly appreciated by newcomers.

As Pratchett's disease progresses I find myself selfishly wanting him to write the novel that I have thought inevitable, though now it seems to have been merely evitable: a novel where Granny Weatherwax and Commander Vimes confront one another. Whatever he writes I will read though I will also confess that I'm more likely to read the older books with renewed joy than I am new ones. Still, I definitely recommend this one.

My friends who know how much I love science fiction and fantasy have told me for YEARS that I must read Terry Pratchett. And some how, until now, I have never quite gotten around to it. So I was very excited when I received this copy of RAISING STEAM. And even more excited about how much I liked it!

Since this is my first foray into the worlds of Terry Pratchett, I cannot attest to whether this is or is not a typical Terry Pratchett novel. What I can say is that RAISING STEAM is a good story, it stands on its own, and it made me smile.

Terri Pratchett is clearly a master. He imbues his fantastical characters with personality, humor, and realism; these folks are all fun to get to know, and you definitely care about them. His world is full of detail and description, and you feel quite comfortable in it. IMHO opinion, the world he describes in RAISING STEAM is a cross between steam punk and the best of fantasy, with a lot of offbeat humor thrown in. I do not know if this offends any diehard TP fans, but I do know I enjoyed this world very much.

RAISING STEAM is a comfortable read. I would not consider it a page turner; rather is it comfortable story that I look forward to coming back to at the end of each day. I do not feel compelled to stay up all night reading it all the way through, but rather relish the idea of falling asleep while reading.

Overall, RAISING STEAM is a happy read. One that I would happily recommend to others.

This item was given to me for my review.
Terry Pratchett's novel Raising Steam is a story about progress and invention, and it is also a book about mining, class distinctions, gender prejudices and change. If Dickens and Monty Python had a love child, I am pretty sure it would be Terry Pratchett or one of his characters. This is my first foray into Disc World, so I felt a bit like I was walking into the middle of a private, and very funny, conversation. I am not sure my speed reading did the book justice, but I can see why so many people really love Pratchett's World. The writing is clever, funny, and zany with a lot of wisdom thrown in. The first "footnote" I read, I wondered what on earth Pratchett was doing because they were like no footnotes I had ever read, or even written, before. Some of them were so funny. I found the story to be deeper than I was expecting, too. I liked the book quite a bit, but it is probably not a genre I would continue reading, simply because I do not get into this type of fantasy on regular basis. I debated on giving it three stars because I am not in love with the book, just like it, but I AM in love with Pratchett's cleverness and gift of prose. So, four stars because it is a well written book that I like and appreciate, even if I do not plan on continuing with....or going back to....other books in the series. Okay, I get what the big deal is about Pratchett. I am glad I gave Raising Steam a read.

This was a great last (other than another Tiffany Aching book I believe) book for Discworld. There were the Wizards and Witches and Watch and lots of wonderful references to the stories of the Disc we have been reading for years. I am sad there will be no more but this was a wonderful ending. Better if you have read all the previous books but should definitely read the book before this (Thump! I believe) as this is a pretty direct sequel.

The only book where I'm laughing at the map before I'd even started reading the book... places like Bad Sheuschein and Aix en Pains... Discworld is guaranteed to make you laugh.
But I have to admit, this is a large book and I undertook it with joy, the joy one has where one's favorite author puts out a very long book and then....flop... the first half of the book was dull as dust for me! What happened to my Discworld? I was bummed and almost didn't finish it, but then wading through dullsville I got half way through and lo! it picked up and was it's usual entertaining world.
If you've never read a Discworld book, I wouldn't start with this long one, but it's got the usual suspects, starring mainly Moist Von Lipwig and his wife... and the Patrician and a bunch of other people that are always around in these situations. If you're a fan, you know who they are.
I have to say it's not my favorite of Mr. Pratchett's but it's not bad, though I wish the first half was a little livelier, it ended on a good note and I don't regret reading it.

This is the longest of the Discworld books and also one of the least easy to read. It's the 40th book in the series. Despite being the third Moist Von Lipwig book, it reads like some of the odder entries in the series, like Pyramids, Small Gods or Monstrous Regiment. Ostensibly, Moist is the hero but he really appears in about two thirds of the book. Lord Vetinari and Commander Vimes get large parts, as does Harry King. It is crammed full of references to other books, name checking everyone from CMOT Dibbler, Queen Keli of Sto Lat, the Librarian, Rincewind, the Igors, and dozens of others.

It feels like a first draft that has undergone one round of editing then been published. Misspelling Pant-y-Gyrdl as Pantygyrdl is a unforgivable when elsewhere a character that appeared in one book in 1988 is referenced. The structure is excellent, but drama is lacking. Sadly, so are the laughs. While Terry's style has moved from 'laugh-out-loud' to 'wry smile' over the years, both are lacking here.

For such well-rounded characters, both the Patrician and Sam Vimes are represented differently to their many other appearances. They seem, for want of a better word, 'off'. I think this is also an editing issue. Some UK fans have tried to place the blame with Terry's suffering from a form of Alzheimers, but that seems crass. The fact is, this is one of the biggest and most-wide-reaching Discworld books. Should there be a 41st volume, things will be significantly different to every one of the previous books: the Discworld has entered the industrial age via the steam locomotive. With such grand ambition, I expect there simply wasn't time to re-edit and prepare a few more drafts in time for the Xmas customers in the UK.

Regardless of all this, even if this were the best of the books, it atypically relies on the reader having read a good portion of the series to fully comprehend. This would not be a good place to start!

None of the Discworld books warrant less than a 6 out of 10. From book 4, Mort, to book 36, Making Money, they have been worth at least 7 out of 10. Many have been worth a full 9 or 10. That this book drops below that quality is a shame, but it's not awful. I am a big fan (I have bought every book since 1991 in hardback upon publication, and even had some of them signed), but not a drooling fanboy (I have never dressed as a character from the books or been to a convention), so I can be honest here. It's not his best. IT's one of the worse efforts of the last five years (Unseen Academicals is worse though). I just wish they'd spent a little longer getting it polished and up to snuff.

Like many Pratchett readers I've read all his books multiple times. I've also listened to them multiple times as audiobooks.
I find it hard to believe that Terry Pratchett wrote this. The characters are inconsistent with earlier portrayals of those characters. Not that Sir Pratchett is consistent from book to book. Many of his character's traits change from book-to-book for the sake of a more interesting story in the book you are currently in. But to many of the characters have their basic traits changed too much.
This book has the feel of a poorly-written reunion show. There are scenes that only exist for a cameo. The scene to not advance the plot and there is a lot of expositional name-dropping to include characters they couldn't fit directly into the scene. Too many pointless appearances by unneeded characters!
I remember a statement from Pratchett's daughter that the books would end with Terry's death. I don't think this book was far enough along to be finished by someone else. I think the Shepard's Crown is a more fitting end.

I truly love the Discworld novels but I have to say this is my least favorite. I was SO looking forward to Raising Steam and it was a decent enough story but something just wasn't right. I'm going to guess that Rhihanna wrote the majority - if not all - of this one. I'd heard he was passing the series on to his daughter and I was so hopeful she would do a better job with the Discworld than Todd McCaffrey did with PERN when he started writing with his mother. Alas, my hopes were dashed.

There were so many things that were just OFF with this book that I don't even know where to begin. Primarily, the characters were different. Each and every beloved, repeating character was different. And not in a good way.

I'll read the next book (if there is one) in the series but if it runs along the same lines as Raising Steam, I will sadly give up on the Discworld, as I did with PERN several years ago.

I never thought I would say anything negative about a Pratchett book….never say never, right? This is the worst Discworld book ever and I love all of them! The story is badly strung together, the characters we all know and love do not remotely resemble themselves, it's not at all funny, and it hits too close to home on the satire and parody. Every time the grag storyline appeared, I kept thinking about the hideous things ISIS is doing in reality. That's not cool. I don't want to think about ISIS when I'm reading a beloved fiction series. If an author wants to make such an obvious statement than just come out and say what you think. Don't hide your thoughts in sham parody behind characters that haven't until now been all that offensive or evil. I tend to agree with other reviewers that this was badly ghost written by somebody else. I was heartbroken to learn that Pratchett is in the early stages of Alzheimer's but that doesn't mean we should be treated to a watered down version of the Discworld. If he is not up to writing at his usual standard anymore then let the series go. We'll miss it but we'll understand.

I'm a longtime Discworld fan and Moist is one of my three favorite characters (after Ridcully and Chidder). I admit that my hopes were not high for this book - I despised "Snuff" (mostly because I never liked Vimes, and he seems to have stagnated ever since "Night Watch"). I wasn't that taken with "Unseen Academicals" either. My hopes were right on target. This is not so much a bad book as a weak one, boring; even the hard parts, like an attack on railway workers that ended in several deaths, were glossed over quite a bit.

This is not the Ankh-Morpork that I love. There seems to have been a huge leap forward in municipal development; everyone is in a much more advanced society. The relationship between Moist and Spike is completely superficial (much as the one between Vimes and Sybil has been in recent books). Everyone does what Moist wants; there are no real challenges (and such that are written do not come across as challenges per se, more as routine duties he must undertake and obviously succeed in). I probably won't reread this book, because it saddens me so much. (By contrast I reread everything from "Eric" to "Making Money" at least once a year.) I don't recommend this unless you're a total Discworld completionist.

It's not my favorite Discworld novel, but I'm not going to even suggest the author's health has anything to do with that. He's written books in the past I do not like -- and some of them feature the protagonist of this novel: Moist. So that's not an auspicious start.

The book is a love letter to trains, engineers, and the development of railroads. A topic that doesn't thrill me.

I love Vimes and Vetinari, but in the past, I have not liked their characters when they're not front and center, which they aren't in this book. So again, I did not like the characters as portrayed in this Moist-centric novel. For many reasons, this just isn't the book for me.

However - I love the development of the whip-smart, geeky goblins. I marvel at their names and how Pratchett came up with them. Also, there really was a LOT of humor in the sentences. I tend to like more humor in the story.

I'd been looking forward to this release, and I really wanted to like it. I just couldn't. It was... preachy. Lots of little moral lessons with no subtlety whatsoever. Lots of expositions on characters realising how wrong they'd been with their prejudices and preconceived notions. I could overlook the whole "helpless, inept male just needs some earthy woman-wisdom" schtick that Pratchett has been using for a while now - but here, the moralising is injected into the narrative so humourlessly and with such clumsiness, that the fun of a Discworld novel is almost completely absent. And that's what a Discworld novel is supposed to be - fun. Fun and absurd. It should make the drink you're sipping on come out of your nose when you least expect it. This one struggled to even raise a grin.

I feel like a bit of a heel knowing that Pratchett may not be able to produce any further novels in the future, and I'd add that after 40 novels, he's entitled to one or two misses. If you've read the others, I'm sure you'll read this one. But Ankh-Morpork just doesn't feel like the wild west anymore. The trains always run on time now.

Just to be short, this book at times sounded like Terry Pratchett contributed to it, but at other times I had trouble thinking that the characters were the ones I had come to know and love over the years. So if it hadn't been narrated by Stephen Briggs I probably would have given up some point in the middle.

In fact if a reader does not know the series then I wouldn't recommend that they start with this one. There's references to incidents in prior books that aren't adequately explained (or not at explained at all.) I also felt that some of the characters were there just because they were fan favorites. The plot lacked cohesion and some of the people were acting out of character.

I did wonder if some of things were a bit of satire on train movies. I'm not a fan of train movies so I have a hard time being specific, but some of the scenes rang a faint movie bell at times.

I have re-read my copy of "Thief of Time" so often it's in tatters. Discworld is one of the great inventions, but much more, it has been a backdrop for social satire, silliness, wisdom, and enormous fun. Yes, we all know Sir Terry has his very odd form of Alzheimer's, and I am saddened greatly that anyone should suffer that, much less someone so brilliant.

That doesn't mean that I can recommend this book. I got halfway through it, and gave up. I wanted so much for it to be good, but it was a struggle to turn the pages. Please, if this is your introduction to Pratchett, don't judge his work by Raising Steam. Follow Rincewind in his early stories, meet DEATH, the most sympathetic grim reaper around, and his granddaughter Miss Susan. Go to Lancre, and have a drink with Nanny Ogg, and study "headology" with Granny Weatherwax.

I'm sorry, I really prefer to say good things. I know I haven't said anything specific about this work, so let me just say, it's plodding, it's not engaging, and even well known characters don't have their former appeal. For me, it just doesn't work.

This is a thoroughly enjoyable if low-pressure (pun intentional) excursion through Mr. Pratchett's Diskworld, the subject of forty books so far. In this one a local handyman cum engineer invents the steam locomotive with all the logical consequences inherent in creating a railway system. If that sounds a bit dry, the whole thing is presented by a wide range of established Diskworld characters featuring professional scoundrel Moist von Lipwig. It is all generally light hearted with much of Mr. Pratchett's usual wit, ingenuity and humor intact. As expected it is full of silly wordplay with cities named things like "Aix en Pains" and "Pantygrydl". Is it the best of Mr. Pratchett's work? Maybe not, but it is well worth reading. Anyone that enjoy's the Thursday Next series is likely to read this with pleasure.

Change is coming to Discworld. Dick Simnel, a young country lad, discovers how to harness steam for locomotion thereby creating the first steam engine. He has big ideas about the future but no corresponding bank roll so he’s off to Ankh-Morpork in search of an investor. There he finds a perfect match in Harry King, the well-to-do lord of refuse who happens to be interested in making his mark with a more respectable endeavor. Lord Vetinari, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, quickly becomes aware of the potential for the steam engine and, as any “leader” worth his salt would do, he acts to safeguard his city’s interests. This he accomplished by once again “encouraging” Moist Von Lipwig to get involved with the new railway project (circumstances very similar to his involvement in revolutionizing the postal service and banking in “Going Postal” and “Making Money” respectively). Not everyone is a fan of the new invention, however, or the changes it will bring to the Disc. Traditionalist dwarves struggle against this and other modernization. They violently lash out threatening the peace secured by the Koom Valley Accord. “Raising Steam” finds Pratchett focusing his satirical lens on religious fundamentalism, terrorism, marriage equality, and (in)tolerance.

Sir Terry Pratchett is a brilliant satirist, humorist, and writer of fantasy. He’s also one of the most prolific authors of this (or probably any) age. His bailiwick is certainly the Discworld series (with dozens of primary novels and sundry off-shoots – whether YA novels or novelty items like maps, cookbooks, science books, etc.) but he’s also written a number of unrelated novels and even has several notable collaborations (with the likes of Neil Gaiman and Stephen Baxter). While his signature wit and wisdom grace all of his works, not all are created equal. In this reader’s estimation, the last few Discworld novels have been subpar (a notable exception being “I Shall Wear Midnight”). Unfortunately “Raising Steam” follows that trend. It’s okay and benefits from the familiarity of bearing all the hallmarks of Pratchett’s writing, but it’s just not as sharp as his best works.

The plot never really generates any momentum and just seems to meander along. The tension between the competing factions never grips the reader. There’s no crescendo with the climax. The novel just seems rather aimless and adrift at times. The book’s saving grace is its setting, the Discworld. The characters are familiar (with one caveat I’ll highlight later). The style and structure is familiar. The warmth so characteristic of Pratchett’s writing is certainly present. There are select passages that remind the reader of just how poignant Pratchett’s writing can be, but, sadly, too few of them.

Particularly disappointing is this novel’s representation of Lord Vetinari. I can’t remember him ever being so chatty, nor can I remember him ever frequently and openly embracing the label of tyrant. Much of his charm historically has been rooted in his mystique, which “Raising Steam” all but obliterates. I sincerely hope this was an exceptional portrayal of Vetinari and that it’s not representative of a new direction for the Patrician.

One could certainly do worse with his time than reading “Raising Steam”. It’s not a bad novel. But the true genius of Terry Pratchett is only hinted at rather than being on full display. I still look forward to the next Discworld adventure (and would love it to feature the witches!).

I finished reading the ARC over the weekend. Terry Pratchett continues to modernize Discworld by adding in steam railroads. Dick Simnel brings a working model engine to Anhk-Morpork, makes a deal with Sir Harry King for funding to build a model train set. This turns out to be a crowd-pleaser, even getting Drumknott away from his paperwork. Lord Vetinari places his gopher (Moist von Lipwig) in charge of overseeing the future of railroads. Moist faces and overcomes many challenges when tasked with getting the train and the Low King to Uberwald to put down a grag rebellion. There is plenty of action, plenty of fighting and no little bit of politicking involved. In all, a very good read!

As a fan of Terry Pratchett for the last 20 years or so, I had found the last few books, shall we say, less good. I miss the crazy discworld tales of old; indeed TP has progressively become more and more serious with his underlying themes.

Raising Steam is a book that is worthy of the TP legacy - still not as zany or laugh out loud as he used to be, but the writing is solid and the characters and plot engrossing. The Goblins turned out to be an excellent addition to the TP roster of creatures. And one of the lines later in the book from the older Dwarf about one of the Goblins was quite touching. While I would not recommend this book as the introductory novel to someone who has not read Pratchett yet, it is good for one familiar within his work.

I'm going to keep this short and bittersweet: terry is gone. he may have actually died after this book was written, but he was gone in these books long before then. if you want to read an incredible book by an amazing author, pick up monsterous regiment, going postal, or night watch. this... this is stale husk riding on the expectations of a fanbase who used to never be let down... until now.

i love terry pratchett, and have read pretty much everything he's written, but this one isn't quite as good as some of his other works. it has all the usual aspects of his writing, but kind of lacks the humorous edge that most of his stuff has, which is a bit sad.

there is, however, the usual social commentary, this time on the impact of technology on society, "dwarf fundamentalism," and of course, the requisite multi culti social acceptance fluff. i really liked some of the character surprises, some of which are only revealed at the very end.

Raising Steam is the story of a railroad, the struggle for the kingdom of dwarfs, and all the politics it takes to build and run them. There are plenty of familiar characters running about and getting involved in all aspects of the story. It's not exactly laugh out loud funny, but if you know what to look for, you'll see how it is a bit satirical and underhanded and how it does, surprisingly, often reflect how politics often run or get in the way of the clean running of things. A few things it is include being a Discworld setting as well as a book about steam and trains and consciousness. It's not your out and out hilarious book, nor is the cleanest or crispest. The story sometimes gets a bit convoluted or a bit off the rails. Sometimes Pratchett's structure of short sections instead of proper chapters introduces characters and plot points in such a way that the purpose is unclear, and, unfortunately, that seems to be much of the first half of the book. By the end it all starts to fall in place and make more sense and there's a plot that's easier to follow. Not Pratchett's best work by far, but fans of Discworld will find the familiar in it if not necessarily the joy of the early outings and that makes it worth reading.

Pratchett's latest is in a large way a culmination of the more recent works in the Discworld saga. Building on events and characters lately explored in the Fifth Elephant, Thud, The Truth, Going Postal, Making Money, the Unseen Academicals, and Snuff, a critical time has arrived on the Discworld: the time of the Steam Engine. Young Dick Simnel has used the power of math to become an engineer and tame the power of steam. With his prototype steam engine the Iron Girder, he journeys to Ankh-Morpork in search of financing to create what will become the railway, changing the Discworld once more.

A familiar cast of characters soon surround him: Harry King looking for a new empire beyond the Golden River; Lord Vetinari deciding to place a bet on the future - and rigging the game by throwing Moist von Lipwig into the middle of it all.

Meanwhile, other forces are in collision. The Peace of Koom Valley, ending centuries of conflict between trolls and dwarves, is starting to gel into something new. And that means those most committed to the old ways, the conservative Grags of the dwarves, are determined to fight it and all the newness coming into the world. The throne of the Low King trembles.

And yet there are differences: trolls, dwarves, and humans are actually starting to think of each other as just people; the clacks has expanded and become indispensable; the power of the press has become a force to be reckoned with; even once despised goblins have started to become part of the larger society. Change is happening - will it become change for the better?

Moist von Lipwig is the central player in this story. He's still as addicted to danger as ever, and being at the center of things. And yet he's matured and become something more than just a reformed scoundrel. He's Vetinari's not entirely unwilling agent in seeing the dream of the railway realized and the throne of the Low King secured.

If you're familiar with Pratchett's Discworld, then you will want to plunge right into this book. If you've never read any Pratchett, you may find a number of references going right past you - but you'll still find an entertaining tale.

I'm giving this 4 stars because it's Pratchett, but also because it manages to build on so many previous story lines for this epic. That's both a strength and a weakness, which is why I didn't give it 5. Between the two major story lines in this tale, the focus isn't quite as sharp as Pratchett's norm. Although Dick Simnel is a key character and a new one in the Discworld, he never quite gets full treatment in his own right. Lipwig gets the spotlight for the most part. Granted, he doesn't do all that badly...

Pratchett's talent has been to use a character at the center of a story structured in ways that compare and contrast with this world and some Theme. If The Truth was about journalism, Going Postal about information technology and monopolies, and Making Money was about the nature of banking, this tale is about how transportation changes the world and at the same time about how cultural identity shifts as the world shifts. As always, Pratchett does manage to offer up entertaining insights on the nature of existence, civilization, and on being people, whatever the species.

I was intrigued by the story line advertised for this book, so I decided to order it. I find this book to be very difficult to read unless one has already been familiar with the series, to be extremely cleverly written, and to have a good plot line.

There is a note at the beginning of the book that invites "new" readers to the series to give it a try. I think in fact that the author tried a bit too hard; the beginning pages were so full of explanation that I had a hard time getting through the first 60 pages or so. After that the writing (and reading) got a lot easier.

The writing style is very clever, bordering on brilliance. The author uses words that many people might not recognize as having double meanings, and also writes complex sentences in a manner that reminds me somewhat of things the Harvard Lampoon would put out. The combination of strange and double-meaning character names and the extensive writing style is actually amazing. It took a while to get used to, and there is a depth of writing that takes a while to enjoy (if one wants to get the most out of the experience). I can see why there would be many fans of the series. I am not one of them; I don't generally want to have to think too much when reading fantasy fiction - I prefer reading history and biography for my "cerebral" books. But I am nevertheless impressed by the achievement this author has made. The book is worth a read for anyone, because for someone who likes this sort of writing, it would be absolutely addictive.

The plot is fairly basic, and it is obvious that this is part of a series. I did like the plot twists at the end, and the character development of Moist, the main protagonist. Once one begins to understand the writing and characters, the plot works fine.

The only thing I found odd, although it fit in with the unique style of the book, is that the author has a tendency to introduce very minor characters and then kill them off in a rather bloodless and casual way. It feels a bit odd, even in a book like this.

There is very little in here that would be a problem for the average high school student, although I don't know if they would necessarily "get" the intricacies of the format. I would not recommend the book for anyone younger than high school.

I gave the book four stars based on the definition - I "like" the book, but don't "love" it. I suspect that people will either want to read the entire series, or wonder why they read even the one book.

Summary: A complex literary achievement wrapped up in a strange and irreverent writing style. Recommended - try out at least one of the series; it may be just what you like.

This book was okay and entertaining enough but since it was not actually written by TP, it was not Brilliant.
For any other writer, this would be the achievement of a life time. It would be their best work ever.
This stand-in author clearly familiarised himself/herself with the characters, but just lacks the genius to pull it off as a Pratchett.
Its the perfect example of the Prince and the Pauper and the Pauper wrote this novel.

Its all I can say, as I have been reading TP for decades, so this was a good effort by the substitute.

As a diehard Pratchett fan, I did enjoy this book...to a point. It definitely doesn't have the snap and fire of his earlier novels. Strange as it sounds, my first impression was that all the characters in the book were getting old. They just didn't seem to be their usual selves. Sam Vimes wasn't the hard-boiled copper I've come to love. Lord Vetinari was chatty, for heaven's sake! The plot was all right, but instead of the sharp, twisty plots I've come to expect from Sir Terry, there seemed to be way too much plot jammed in wherever it would fit -- with a lot of side doodles. It's a shame -- I've been looking forward to this book a long time, and I really wanted to love it, but I just can't.

...or a new error, if you're a grag.

I agree with other reviewers that this feels a bit like a farewell tour. Technically it's a Moist von Lipwig book ("Going Postal", "Making Money") but it has plenty of familiar faces and feels like more of a playful romp than a lot of Pratchett's older material. That is, the villains are a bit less fleshed out than usual, they are a bit more easily defeated than usual and I felt the book lacked the same grip of Pratchett's older works. It's like an easy ride with old friends.

And there's a lot of classic Pratchett to love in this novel. The wit and humor is all there and Moist von Lipwig continues to develop as a character. Without delivering a lot of spoilers, I'll at least say it's been my favorite of the most recent Pratchett books. You should definitely pick it up if you're a Discworld fan.

The eternal question for all Discworld books: can you read this without being a Discworld fan. Maybe? I would advise at least reading the other Moist von Lipwig books I listed above although you'd still be missing some relevant backstory (e.g., the Battle of Koom Valley). For non-Discworld fans I typically suggest starting with "Guards! Guards!" or "Equal Rites" and then look online for the "Discworld Reading Order Guide" and go from there. Moist is a fairly close spinoff of the Guard series, I'd say, since it's more centered around Ankh-Morpork.

What a disappointment. This book was as flat out Un-Funny as his earlier works were hugely enjoyable. The only 'puns' presented were lifted from a thesaurus by a research drone looking for different terms for Moist, and even they failed to amuse.

It reads like it was written by an Affirmative Action committee trying to sanitize prior characters as an apology for being entertaining. The names are the same but they bear so little resemblance with the classic heros of such gems as "Guards Guards" - as to have come from a turtle of an entirely different shell.

The book was simply Not worth the effort to carry home - its time to end the party before it becomes even more boring.

How hard it gets to review Terry Pratchett's latest books!
Like many reviewers here, I am a longtime fan of Terry Pratchett and I have read almost everything he wrote. I am also aware of Pratchett's degenerative disease that is not making his life and writing easier I guess.
Like also many reviewers here, I cannot help feeling disappointed by the change in writing style of Mr Pratchett. Let's make it clear: Nothing will change how much I have loved the Discworld novels and I will re-read with pleasure many of his books (specifically anything with the witches or Carrot Ironfoundersson or Tiffany Aching).
Raising Steam, although not within the worse, will not be part of these books!
Raising Steam is a new book dedicated to Moist Von Lipwig, Harry King, Commander Vimes, Lord Vetinary and some other characters. It brings the train to the Discworld with all the excitement it can provide...
Now, where are my bursts of laughter gone? What happened? How come I did not once laugh out loud?
Is it because the discworld starts oddly to resemble our world? I get it: Quirm is France... So I guess Ankh-Morpok is London.. .(?)
To be fair, I did not mind that much the counterweight continent to be a clear reflection of China in a previous book (Excellent) and the mention of Quirm does not bother me that much but I have some unpleasant feeling that as the time goes by, the discworld is losing its originality.

How soon will Internet show up in the discworld now?
I understand the need for fresh ideas but the fight against all inequalities is getting tired in the serie. Ok, we get it.... First it was the vampires, the dwarves, the Trolls, the golems, the undead...
Now it is the goblins trying to find equality. The dwarves having become the muslims with their grags, their integrists...
So now I cannot help thinking of the dwarves as muslims... I hate being brought back to our world!
It did not make me think, it did not make me laugh...
At the end, it is not that much of a bad book in itself but it is so far away from Pratchet's typical quality that I cannot give it more than 2 stars.
A last comment: This book is NOT recommended as a first attempt to discover the discworld. It contains too many references to the previous books and a novice reader may likely get completely lost.
At this stage, I would say that I think Pratchett should have retired a few years ago when he was at his best. Unfortunately, the only result he is getting, apart from more money, is to degrade the overall quality of his amazing serie.

At the center of this book is the relationship between Moist, Harry King and our engineer Dick Simnel. To be fair, Dick mostly works in the background as he continues to tinker with Iron Girder to make her better, faster and stronger. But they're little group together with Moist and Harry does make for an interesting little triumvirate. Harry and Moist have always had a fair amount of respect between the two of them given how they were both scoundrels but now largely self-made men in Ankh-Morpork society.

The other joy in this book, as is the way of Discworld novels, is how rapidly the residents of Discworld take on our "modern" behaviors when it comes to piece of technology or some new development. For example, in Going Postal Moist's development of more interesting stamps quickly led to the first stamp collectors. In this book, the development of the railway quickly leads to food service on the trains, sleeper cars and even train watches to name a few. And it's just funny how malleable the Discworld is such that they quickly adapt to any new development and soon enough it feels like they had always been a part of things.

This book also picks up on the continued integration of goblins into Ankh-Morpork society. Here we see that they're already the primary staff manning the various clacks towers and the new locomotives quickly catch their interest. Then there's the exploration of goblins from other counties like Quirm amd how they also seem to take on traits reminiscent of the humans who live above ground. But they're more than just background characters - the participation of the goblins remains an important part of this story and essential to the final resolution to things.

The side angle related to the Dwarfs and the continued struggle between the Low King and the fundamentalist Grags was interesting in general but at times a bit distracting. Sure, the very purpose of the railway managed to align with the needs of the Low King in the end, but that was very roughly attributed to Vertinari's uncanny ability to see the future with the certainty of the author. It felt a little forced, but then for the most part it still worked. Obviously the events covered in Thud! were insufficient to handle things all on their own - social political tensions are liable to remain very much alive well after all the treaties have been signed and such.

Raising Steam is a lot of fun and remains a pretty solid adventure in Ankh-Morpork and Discworld as a whole. One can only wonder what new project Moist might get tasked to work on in the future - regardless I'm sure it'll be full of a lot of crazy business.

It really does seem like this is intended to wrap up the universe, as most characters make an appearance to let you know their final status. The story itself is filled with fluff -- side stories that don't shed much light on characters and don't affect the plot, but seem to be just to make the book longer. The whole plot just seems to slide too smoothly through one problem after another with very little of the mystery and/or problem solving of prior books. There are several hints about apocalyptic events that may occur, but then those bits seem forgotten towards the end.

Pathetic characters divorced from the contexts that made them interesting. Hectoring over the top moralizing characters without any redeeming quality of humor. Quite regrettable. The ending was a forgone conclusion. I like Terry Pratchett. This does not appear to be Terry Pratchett, as there is a poor grasp of the characters of previous DW novels. Moist as a dwarf-killing berserker, selfless child rescuer, and goblin rights activist, Vetinari as a locomotive stoker (and inexpert crossword player), etc. etc. Does anyone not have a heart of gold in this book? Tripe.

While not the most intriguing of the Discworld novels, it does a masterful job of weaving in a plethora of the wonderful characters that have been spawned over the years. It is almost as if Pratchett is saying, "Goodbye from the Turtle, all is well," given the degree by which so many characters are introduced.

In this context it is a satisfying read, however I definitely do not recommend undertaking it until the majority of the other Discworld novels have been consumed. It would be like attending a class reunion for a school you didn't attend.

I grew up around trains and switchyards and turntables, thanks to a couple of grandfathers in the '50s, and even though I haven't ridden in a cab or spent the night in a sleeping car in nearly sixty years, it's not an experience I've ever forgotten. Railroads, in the early days especially, were romantic in a way that cars and the Interstate never were and never can be. For millions of small-town folks and the farm families outside those towns, the train was the gateway to the rest of the world. It brought you your mail and it took away your milk cans, and it also took you off to war -- or even just to the big city, as is the case here.

Moist von Lipwig, who started out his new life (thanks to Vetinari, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork) as reformer and savior of the post office, and then of the central bank, has a new remit. Dick Simnel, a young, self-taught engineer of genius who has a head on his shoulders and a gleam in his eye, has almost singlehandedly invented the steam locomotive, out in a little town on the Sto Plains. He brings his prototype, "Iron Girder," to Ankh-Morpork, because he knows that's where things happen. More specifically, he brings it to Harry King, the King of the Golden River, who has become very wealthy recycling the city's wastes, but who would like to branch out into a field of endeavor he can talk about in polite company. One demonstration with a circular track in Harry's industrial compound and he's hooked. The locomotive speaks to him, . . . as it also does to the crowds of people who quickly come to stare at this marvel of steel and steam and sheer power, and to wave as it surges past. This amazing machine could pull a whole string of carriages filled with freight, not to mention passengers, and Harry knows there could be another whole fortune in it, so he agrees to underwrite Dick's plans to build more engines and lay track to nearby towns, and they'll share the profits. And Vetinari, don't forget about him. With a great many reservations (he always has suspicions about anything big and new, but he's a great adaptor), Vetinari approves the project in return for a small share for the city. Because nothing major gets done without the Patrician's approval. But it's going to be an enormous undertaking, requiring a great deal of organization and considerable arm-twisting of landowners to get all that track laid. And Vetinari is adamant that while grocery runs to Quirm and other nearby locations will be nice, what he really needs -- what he will insist on having, if everyone knows what's good for them -- is a line all the way to Uberwald, which is 1,200 miles distant. And that's where Moist, the reformed con man, comes in. He's going to be the railway's negotiator. He'll supply the grease the enterprise needs. And with the help of the newly emancipated goblins, who have discovered a great talent for the technical, he's sure he can bring it off.

But there's another major plotline this time, and that's the resurgence of the grags, the extreme fundamentalist dwarfs who see themselves as the sole protectors of all that is dwarfish. They want trolls and humans and especially goblins put back in their places, which means destroying the clacks towers and now the railway -- and they're happy to kill anyone, of any species, who gets in the way of their holy crusade. But there are more dwarfs living in Ankh-Morpork now than anywhere else on the Discworld, and they're modern dwarfs who have not much use for the mines back home, nor for the grags. Ever since the agreement they hammered out at Koom Valley, Vetinari and the Low King of Dwarfs and the Diamond King of Trolls have gotten along well. They can see the future and they're willing to embrace it. And now that means doing something about the militant, bloody-minded grags, who fear the future and want only to return to the past.

So half the book is about the blossoming of the railway and the other half is about the struggle to save the future from the grags and prevent a return to interspecies intolerance and warfare. The former is exciting and beautifully done. Sir Terry gets it where the romance of the rails is concerned. The latter, though, is mostly dark and sometimes depressing (though realistic), which probably explains why some fans have given this installment of the Discworld saga less than happy reviews. The lighthearted yarns of the 1980s are behind us and their author has more important things to say to his readers these days.

I should note that while deaths have occurred before in the Discworld stories (DEATH is an old friend to Pratchett's fans), generally they happen offstage if they're violent, or the violence is at least only alluded to. And frequently they include a humorous note, as the recently deceased tries to figure out what comes next. In this latest installment, however, violent death is a good deal more explicit, even actually in your face a couple of times, including much blood and scattered body parts. There's a grimness here of the sort you might not expect from Sir Terry -- but when he's talking about ideological terrorism and the absolute refusal of certain types of unimaginative and terrified people to accept anyone who is unlike them, it's clear he's delivering a serious message. He obviously has no tolerance where terrorists are concerned, nor does he think anyone should have. There's always a deeper social message in Pratchett's books, but it's pretty explicit this time around.

I liked the book, I really did, even though the subject matter was heavier than usual. It's certainly not the book you would recommend as a starting point to a novice, but the parallels between Discworld and our Roundworld are clear, uncomfortable as they may be. It's also worth keeping in mind that, given the realities of Sir Terry's health these days, this may well be his last unassisted novel. If so, it's not a bad legacy.

Originally posted on [...], a new idea everyday!

Book- Raising Steam
Author – Terry Pratchett
Price- $18
TL;DR- More of a world advancement then a story 90%
Basics- Hit the open rails! Steam power comes the Discworld (Much to the joys of cosplayers everywhere!). A new engineer invents the first steam powered locomotive and brings the invention to THE big city. Here, he beings to change the world. Moist von Lipwig is put in charge of coordination this new invention across the world. However, trouble comes as the dwarves splinter as conservative factions fight the future tooth and nail! Can Moist get the job done in time?
Setting- It's Terry Pratchett and his Discworld! Of course it's well done, he's had over a quarter of a century to make this thing perfect. We're done here. 5/5
Characters- This is another Pratchett trade mark-well done characters. If anything this book suffers from having to put EVERY character in from all the different Discworld story arcs. The book is less about characters or story and mostly about the setting as a whole progressing. Characters do change over the course of the story, but it's mostly the people you love doing what you love. 4.5/5
Story- The book isn't mostly about the story. Sure, you get a good Pratchett story, but not his best here. I liked it, don't get me wrong, but I wouldn't say you come here for the story. This book is about the world. The world is changing. The clacks forced some changes, but this book is about how the world really changes when steam pushes it along. Every character gets a mention to show the reader that they are involved in some way, and sometimes that felt a little forced. Nothing is bad here, but this isn't my top Disckworld story. 4/5
Summary- I liked this one. I didn't love this one, and it's not my favorite of his books. Nothing is horrible in this, but I felt like the book was just a series of events that were related. The book spans a lot of time as Moist runs around putting out fires as he goes. That's not bad. But Pratchett has the lucky problem of having gone to the mountain top and even if he slips a little with one book, he's till MILES above most of the other writers out there! Give this one a chance; it's a good book just not the one I'll give to my friends first. 90%

Not his best work, a bit heavy handed sometimes, but overall I really enjoyed it. Some people on here are insisting that he didn't write it because of his Alzheimers diagnosis (just the most unfair thing to say the least), but I didn't find the book to be so far off base that I assumed that in the least. The satire is strong (the comparisons are a bit overt though) and I laughed out loud quite often. I really enjoyed it. I do think I'm done reading about Moist though. I'm missing my witches.

The latest adventure of Moist van Ludwig (under direction and supervision by the Patrician) when he gets involved with helping and advising on the developing of a steam train railway network (and a few other interesting distractions).
Contributing characters consist of (apologies for anyone missed off the following list):
Goblins, Dwarfs, Trolls, Golems, Vampires, a brief werewolf guest appearance and Gnomes. Oh - and humans get involved as well.
Sir Terry has published another winner!

This is a terrible book. I never thought I’d say this about anything with Terry Prachett’s name on the cover - but don’t read this book.

I am a huge Discworld fan; I've read all of them many times over. This is NOT a Discworld book and it wasn't written by Terry Pratchett. Whoever wrote this book under Sir Terry's name should be ashamed of him/herself. How COULD you? Academicals and Snuff were bad enough, but there were still faint echoes of Prachett’s style in both. This book retains only the names of the characters from Prachett’s prior work. Every ounce of the subtlety, wit and character has been bleached out and replaced by over the top ranting and clunky dialog.

If Prachett’s daughter wrote this, then please STOP. I don’t know why she would want to put her father’s name on such a piece of dreck. His editors should have stepped in. Haven’t they made enough money? If anyone wants to release any more “Discworld” books, s/he should have the courage to put his/her name on the cover. Stop using Prachett’s name when he is no longer here to defend himself.

Hail and Farewell, Mr. Pratchett.

I give the book four stars for wrapping up so many of the loose ends of this much-beloved series as Mr. Pratchett, in full knowledge of his own condition, edges toward his final page. Was it the best of the series? No. Was he "helped?" Well, he's dictated the last few because of his condition. You decide. I consider it a Discworld novel, a love letter to us and to his fabulous creation, both a masterwork of humorous fantasy and a platform for very real -- and effective -- ruminations on our world as it is.

"This is the Disc, world and mirror of worlds..." Mr. Pratchett writes at the end of "Guards, Guards," tipping his hand to us once and no reason to say it again. And as that book draws to a close, as two dragons sail off the edge of the Discworld into eternal night, the last line: ""Perhaps the magic would last. Perhaps it wouldn't. But then, what does?""

What indeed, Mr. Pratchett. My most heartfelt thanks for your work.

This is a book that seems less about telling the story of trains coming to Discworld, though it does that, and more about showing us the various characters and places. Pretty much everyone who has appeared in any of the novels shows up here, including Rincewind, in a small, but welcome, cameo. There's also the usual Ankh-Morpork denizens and a few other surprises I wouldn't dream of spoiling.

The story itself is indeed about the railroad showing up in Discworld, gradually turning the world more and more steampunk. Not surprisingly, Moist von Lipwig ends up in this up to his eyeballs. With a bit of help from Harry King and the son of the man who designed the harvester in "Reaper Man", the trains are soon up and running across the world.

Of course this irritates certain people, like some of the more conservative dwarfs, who began organizing terrorist attacks against the trains and the clacks towers. Proof that there are always going to be at least SOME people who won't get with the program.

I really enjoyed this book, though it is something of a fanwank. If you aren't already a Discworld fan, I don't know how much this will do to make you into one, but you might enjoy it. I certainly did.

Read the 1 and 2 star reviews by dedicated fans. This book reads as fan fiction, or as written by an assistant and lightly reviewed by Pratchett. As described in those other reviews, Vetinari being so badly written is proof enough that this is not a really true Pratchett novel of old. Explaining his thoughts, him explaining his thoughts? Not even remotely Vetinari. Please stop now Terry, you had a great run.

This was a fun well structured book. Great character work. This was more of a swashbuckling adventure then normal for the main character. I read this after reading the first two books in the main character's story arc, and did get a little Pratchett fatigue. When reading Sir Terry I think it best to work in a pallet cleanser book here and there. -J-murder

I have no words. I never thought I'd write a poor review of one of Terry Pratchett's works - and I'm quite sure this book isn't one. To whomever wrote it: I'm very sorry. I'm sure you meant well but you did Sir Terry a disservice. I most sincerely hope the author wasn't Rihanna or Lyn as they surely cannot be proud of this work.

The book reads like mediocre fan fiction. The characters are so far divorced from the rich complexity of previous works that it almost physically hurt to read this book. Vetinari has become a babbling twit, Drumknott has lost the plot, Harry King has never spoken so much in his life and Moist von Lipvig should never have had to have read about *anything* in the Times as he would have been part of the railway from its arrival in Ankh Morpork.

More offensively, the dwarves are a hair's breadth from being openly labelled as religious terrorists and the goblins are a one-dimensional caricature of a race.

The cracks were starting to markedly show in Unseen Academicals but Raising Steam should simply never have been published. Far from being a fitting tribute or swansong, it leaves the entire Discworld series on a note better left un-sung.

I couldn't bring myself to finish it.

I’ve regrettably been away from Discworld and its satirical look at fantasy for some time now, finally returning as the series incredibly hits its 40th (!!) novel. I distinctly remember the early novels being consistently funny, even when they were dry, and having characters that stuck with you after the stories ended. That’s sadly no longer the case with “Raising Steam.”

There are quite a few plot threads being woven throughout the story, but at its core most of the book is about a farm rube with some science know-how figuring out how to make a steam engine. From there the reader is treated to discovering how to build a track, how to name and market the idea, and government officials and business magnates discussing how to exploit it. We are given descriptions of how bunks will need to be built to house passengers on long trips, how chefs will be needed to cook food, how people will need to ride the rails to write guidebooks, and other minutia of a railway first being invented in a world.

If that sounds like a boring concept, well, frankly that’s because it is a boring concept. To be fair, the story does pick up steam around the halfway mark as the secondary plot comes to light about an ultra-conservative dwarf terrorist group. Of course, since this world is a magical place, the steam engine also turns out to be more than it first seems and more than science can explain. Even with those potentially exciting ideas in there, unfortunately much of the story is a chore to sit through.

Pratchett’s trademark wordplay is there, but it’s lost much of its magic and seems halfhearted at best this time around. There are only a few chuckles to be found here and there, like his description of the martial arts style “déjà fu” (punching someone in the future) or his musings on those who use the term “newfangled” and whether anyone ever considered themselves to be “fangling” anything.

While the concepts themselves have potential – steam technology invading a fantasy world, the changing role of goblins within a human society, a schism between dwarf factions – the execution here leaves something to be desired and the end result is sadly a mostly unfunny snoozefest.

...about the discussion of whether the master did or did not write some of the later Discworld books, then read this book. It doesn't take more than 10 pages to understand that THIS is a Discworld book that was not written by him. Very disappointing, compared to all the previous ones.

This book is nothing. While I love the discworld series and would give it a few stars just for the author's sake, and I don't fault him for the health issues that are presumably the reason for the decline in the quality of the books; but the book is what I'm reviewing, and this book is empty of all the wit and life, the characters that came vividly to life, the situations that mirrored reality so cleverly, all the qualities that made the earlier books some of the best ever. Anyone could have written this. I read it through, waiting for some signs of life, but none ever showed up.

Terry Pratchett has guided the flat world and it's capital city Ank Morepork thru many changes. His character, Moist Von Lipwig has been the principal guide in the emergence of banking, postal service, and the printing of paper money.

The varied population of the flat world contains several factions such as trolls, dwarfs, golems,vampires as well as human citizens. These groups and sub-groups encounter conflicts similar to our world. Problems, are often overcome with the guidance of the tyrant Ventenari, gadfly Moist, and peacekeeper Vimes. The challenge this time is the change that comes behind an invention of the steam powered transport.

An excellent story teller Terry forces one to compare the Diskworld problems to those encountered here on our round world.

I love the Discworld series, but what to say about this one. As we are all aware this may be our last outing in the Discworld. As sad as that is, I just can't say this was a good book. Reading it was in many ways like reading an outline, a sequence of actions that lead one to the next with very little detail. The difference between this and earlier works is night and day.

There are two things everyone wants to know about this book: Is it good, and is it his last. I can only answer the first: Yes. Definitely.

The tone is typical riotous comedy, but the theme will leave some a bit misty at the eye: the slow changes time brings to everything. The lead character is a careful practical engineer, a rarity in Diskworld. He goes to Ankh Morpork to team up with Harry King, one of my personal favorite characters, and thus begins a new era of steam locomotion on Diskworld. The whole of Ankh Morpork's citizenry makes an appearance at one point or another: Ventinari to Dibbler, Ridcully to Vimes, no one is left out. Pratchett's last or not, this is a fine addition to the Diskworld family and the reader will enjoy the read immensely.

Bless Sir Terry. I have bought and will buy every single book published under his name -but, for this one at least, the magic has dimmed to a noticeable degree. It is not that the story is bad at all - it is just that the story is ordinary

I won't deny that this is 2 stars instead of 1 because of what Terry Pratchett's writing has meant to me over the years.

I can not believe that he wrote this on his own at best it may have been written by him and a ghostwriter but even that would surprise me.

The characters that I have loved for the last 20 years are unrecognizable, unlikable, and unrelatable.

When first learning about Sir Terry's illness, my heart broke for him and for the fans of his work it is terribly apparent that as he declines so goes Discworld.

if indeed raising steam and snuff were written by his daughter it may be time for her to recognize the blood does not build a legacy and that her father's legacy may best be served by allowing the Discworld to live on in the hearts and minds of the fans because further works of this caliber will only take away from the legacy of the earlier novels.

This is hard for me to write because I'm a huge Pratchett fan, but here goes: this book is terrible. I literally believe Pratchett didn't even write this book, but hired a ghost writer. Seriously. The names and places are from Discworld, but the dialogue and characterization is nowhere near Pratchett's standards. It's like some amateur trying to copy him - poorly. The whole thing is an overblown, confused mess. I was literally shaking my head as I read the clumsy dialogue. If this had been the first Terry Pratchett novel I had read, I would never have read another. I'm flabbergasted that there are so many positive reviews. This book is a pale shadow of his past novels. I promise you, you will be disappointed if you love Terry Pratchett's subtle wit and seamless, brilliant storytelling.

You can tell that Sir Prachett is trying to drag the Disc kicking and screaming into the century of the Anchovy before he hands the reins over to his daughter, next in line for that seasoned quill. Raising Steam carries on the themes set up in Thud!, Snuff, Unseen Academicals and Making Money - the continued rise of goblin person-hood, dwarf gender identity and technological/economic progress. My only complaint about this book is that these themes are now so well-worn with Sir Terry that there is hardly any fear of our hero Moist von Lipwig failing - the villains are quite literally out of their element, and the power and danger of the steam engine is not entirely left up to the reader's imagination so even from the very first section there's no doubt that Anhk Morpork will be riding into the future on steel rails. That said, even on his worst day, any Discworld book can top most of the other science fiction/high magic fantasy out there, so whether you're an old fan or a new fan, you'll enjoy this one - though if you're a new fan, you might prefer to start at the beginning of the Moist von Lipwig series with Going Postal.

Now Bigger and better with Steam! This is a great book and recommended must-read for any Terry Pratchett fan.

This is not a good place for a new reader to start. Exactly where that is- is a highly debated thing between `pTerry" fans, as his first couple of books in this series are "just" funny little satires of conventional Fantasy- but the Discworld books have grown into a full fledged world of it's own, with deep rich characters- but still the same humorous bent, at least some of the time. I suggest The Wee Free Men myself. Anyway, what's important for the new reader to know is that the Discworld series is not one of those which starts off great and gets worse book after book. The first couple were enjoyable, but not great- however they steadily get better and better until... well, I dunno. Hard to tell. Certainly he's reached a peak, but has he actually started to come down? I know a lot of reviewers just can't stop themselves to comparing this to other books, and pondering if Sir Terry has "jumped the Shark" or not. But why? Maybe this isn't quite as good as Going Postal- so what? It's still a hilarious fun filled character driven romp thru the wonders of Discworld. So put on your flat Rail-road hat and hang on! Don't analyse, just enjoy!

Anyway, I digress. This is, as I said above, part of the "character series' with that lovable and fast thinking scoundrel Moist von Lipwig. Also playing an important part is Harry King, The Patrician, many Dwarves and later, Commander Vimes and many of the Guards. Rincewind (the protagonist of the first couple of books) puts in a small cameo.

I have to agree with other reviewers on a few points. Vetinari, in this volume, lacks his wonted reserve and understatement. That episode with the goblin potion seems gratuitous - it comes out of nowhere, then leads nowhere. His tendency towards footnotes has advanced to a distracting degree. And the whole industry behind smelting and forming steel on such a scale seems undeveloped, in which it reminded me of another book.

Still, this offers a lot to enjoy. Pratchett's research about steam engines is impeccable. He really brings the engineering ("sliding rules" and all) and the machinery to life. He notes some of the many branches of train fanaticism (at least one of which I grew up with). He even translates some of the marketing possibilities into Ankh-Morporkian terms. As always, tells a story I enjoy in the scintillating wordplay I've come to expect. Then, through it all, he pushes the inclusive social agenda, with people (or whatever) of both genders (if any) taking their various places in society. Social equality doesn't mean monotony of course; golems and goblins have different needs, interests, and abilities. Each one, however, is free to find his or her (or whatever's) own way to contribute.

This might be one of Pratchett's lesser works, but that's just on the Pratchett scale. It still blows the sneakers off just about anything by just about anyone else.

-- wiredweird

I am a loyal Terry Pratchett fan. For the most part, I love the Discworld series, though there were a couple that I did not like as much as others. Was this my favorite? Hmmmm....probably not, BUT, that did not mean Raising Steam wasn't a good read. I was laughing in the first five muntues and I love the Patrician, while his character was not the same I still enjoyed his quips, but he doesn't come off the same. There is a little too much "technology" that doesn't blend well, and some things that just don't fit. But otherwise, I enjoyed it. Good job Mr.Pratchett....and God Bless.

You can read this as your first Discworld novel, but I think starting from the first book has given me more enjoyment as I have really gotten to see the characters develop and interact. This does make a difference and I can appreciate some of the humor that I might have missed otherwise. It is very hard to write a review for this series, because I am afraid of giving something away, but I will warn you to read it slowly, and enjoy it....I have learned to pace myself and fully relish this series. If you are a fan already, you will not be dissappointed, if you are new to the series, go back about ten books at least and work your way to this one....believe me, you will be hooked and you will have and amazing journey. If you are really smart, start from the first book....and make room on your shelves!

I have loved this author for years. His earlier works were a bit more hilarious, but there is plenty of humor here. It is a bit more grown-up and subtle. Like when the little goblin gets all upset that Moist calls him by a nickname, and then spends the chapter calling him "wet" and "soggy" and things like that. The tyranny of a tiny egomaniac. Every one of Pratchett's characters has some little idiosyncratic thing that makes them special. They live on, even after you close the book.

Mostly, I found the book sweet and comforting, like a visit with old friends. Thanks for that, Terry.

I love Terry Pratchett's Discworld, his fertile imagination and his playful humour with words and this book was no exception. I really enjoyed reading it, laughed aloud on several occasions and couldn't resist reading bits out! The first steam engine on the Disc, named Iron Girder, attracts the attention of just about every faction - including the Patrician Lord Vetinari. The book culminates in a race against time along track being built almost as fast as the train is travelling.

Sadly, bearing in mind Terry Pratchett's illness, this had the feeling of a valedictory, having cameo roles for so many of the characters in previous stories. I enjoyed seeing them again, but if felt like a farewell. Such a shame, but a great yarn.

I've been a fan of Pratchett's for years now. While more of a fan of his earlier "DISCWORLD" stuff, I have enjoyed reading all of his novels. They're always entertaining and, more often than not, will bring a smile and/or a laugh along the road from the front cover to the back cover. If you've been keeping up with his DISCWORLD series then you obviously have to read "RAISING STEAM"

I'm a huge Pratchett fan, and I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I didn't. Where there is real heart in most of the Discworld books, this seemed contrived, and didn't seem to have a really clear focus, The familiar characters were almost caricatures of themselves, and the new characters curiously monochromatic. Even Death was subdued. Still worth the read, but it does not stand up well against the first two Moist von Lipwig books.

This book is nothing. While I love the discworld series and would give it a few stars just for the author's sake, and I don't fault him for the health issues that are presumably the reason for the decline in the quality of the books; but the book is what I'm reviewing, and this book is empty of all the wit and life, the characters that came vividly to life, the situations that mirrored reality so cleverly, all the qualities that made the earlier books some of the best ever. Anyone could have written this. I read it through, waiting for some signs of life, but none ever showed up.

Terry Pratchett has guided the flat world and it's capital city Ank Morepork thru many changes. His character, Moist Von Lipwig has been the principal guide in the emergence of banking, postal service, and the printing of paper money.

The varied population of the flat world contains several factions such as trolls, dwarfs, golems,vampires as well as human citizens. These groups and sub-groups encounter conflicts similar to our world. Problems, are often overcome with the guidance of the tyrant Ventenari, gadfly Moist, and peacekeeper Vimes. The challenge this time is the change that comes behind an invention of the steam powered transport.

An excellent story teller Terry forces one to compare the Diskworld problems to those encountered here on our round world.

I love the Discworld series, but what to say about this one. As we are all aware this may be our last outing in the Discworld. As sad as that is, I just can't say this was a good book. Reading it was in many ways like reading an outline, a sequence of actions that lead one to the next with very little detail. The difference between this and earlier works is night and day.

There are two things everyone wants to know about this book: Is it good, and is it his last. I can only answer the first: Yes. Definitely.

The tone is typical riotous comedy, but the theme will leave some a bit misty at the eye: the slow changes time brings to everything. The lead character is a careful practical engineer, a rarity in Diskworld. He goes to Ankh Morpork to team up with Harry King, one of my personal favorite characters, and thus begins a new era of steam locomotion on Diskworld. The whole of Ankh Morpork's citizenry makes an appearance at one point or another: Ventinari to Dibbler, Ridcully to Vimes, no one is left out. Pratchett's last or not, this is a fine addition to the Diskworld family and the reader will enjoy the read immensely.

Bless Sir Terry. I have bought and will buy every single book published under his name -but, for this one at least, the magic has dimmed to a noticeable degree. It is not that the story is bad at all - it is just that the story is ordinary

I won't deny that this is 2 stars instead of 1 because of what Terry Pratchett's writing has meant to me over the years.

I can not believe that he wrote this on his own at best it may have been written by him and a ghostwriter but even that would surprise me.

The characters that I have loved for the last 20 years are unrecognizable, unlikable, and unrelatable.

When first learning about Sir Terry's illness, my heart broke for him and for the fans of his work it is terribly apparent that as he declines so goes Discworld.

if indeed raising steam and snuff were written by his daughter it may be time for her to recognize the blood does not build a legacy and that her father's legacy may best be served by allowing the Discworld to live on in the hearts and minds of the fans because further works of this caliber will only take away from the legacy of the earlier novels.

This is hard for me to write because I'm a huge Pratchett fan, but here goes: this book is terrible. I literally believe Pratchett didn't even write this book, but hired a ghost writer. Seriously. The names and places are from Discworld, but the dialogue and characterization is nowhere near Pratchett's standards. It's like some amateur trying to copy him - poorly. The whole thing is an overblown, confused mess. I was literally shaking my head as I read the clumsy dialogue. If this had been the first Terry Pratchett novel I had read, I would never have read another. I'm flabbergasted that there are so many positive reviews. This book is a pale shadow of his past novels. I promise you, you will be disappointed if you love Terry Pratchett's subtle wit and seamless, brilliant storytelling.

You can tell that Sir Prachett is trying to drag the Disc kicking and screaming into the century of the Anchovy before he hands the reins over to his daughter, next in line for that seasoned quill. Raising Steam carries on the themes set up in Thud!, Snuff, Unseen Academicals and Making Money - the continued rise of goblin person-hood, dwarf gender identity and technological/economic progress. My only complaint about this book is that these themes are now so well-worn with Sir Terry that there is hardly any fear of our hero Moist von Lipwig failing - the villains are quite literally out of their element, and the power and danger of the steam engine is not entirely left up to the reader's imagination so even from the very first section there's no doubt that Anhk Morpork will be riding into the future on steel rails. That said, even on his worst day, any Discworld book can top most of the other science fiction/high magic fantasy out there, so whether you're an old fan or a new fan, you'll enjoy this one - though if you're a new fan, you might prefer to start at the beginning of the Moist von Lipwig series with Going Postal.

Now Bigger and better with Steam! This is a great book and recommended must-read for any Terry Pratchett fan.

This is not a good place for a new reader to start. Exactly where that is- is a highly debated thing between `pTerry" fans, as his first couple of books in this series are "just" funny little satires of conventional Fantasy- but the Discworld books have grown into a full fledged world of it's own, with deep rich characters- but still the same humorous bent, at least some of the time. I suggest The Wee Free Men myself. Anyway, what's important for the new reader to know is that the Discworld series is not one of those which starts off great and gets worse book after book. The first couple were enjoyable, but not great- however they steadily get better and better until... well, I dunno. Hard to tell. Certainly he's reached a peak, but has he actually started to come down? I know a lot of reviewers just can't stop themselves to comparing this to other books, and pondering if Sir Terry has "jumped the Shark" or not. But why? Maybe this isn't quite as good as Going Postal- so what? It's still a hilarious fun filled character driven romp thru the wonders of Discworld. So put on your flat Rail-road hat and hang on! Don't analyse, just enjoy!

Anyway, I digress. This is, as I said above, part of the "character series' with that lovable and fast thinking scoundrel Moist von Lipwig. Also playing an important part is Harry King, The Patrician, many Dwarves and later, Commander Vimes and many of the Guards. Rincewind (the protagonist of the first couple of books) puts in a small cameo.

I have to agree with other reviewers on a few points. Vetinari, in this volume, lacks his wonted reserve and understatement. That episode with the goblin potion seems gratuitous - it comes out of nowhere, then leads nowhere. His tendency towards footnotes has advanced to a distracting degree. And the whole industry behind smelting and forming steel on such a scale seems undeveloped, in which it reminded me of another book.

Still, this offers a lot to enjoy. Pratchett's research about steam engines is impeccable. He really brings the engineering ("sliding rules" and all) and the machinery to life. He notes some of the many branches of train fanaticism (at least one of which I grew up with). He even translates some of the marketing possibilities into Ankh-Morporkian terms. As always, tells a story I enjoy in the scintillating wordplay I've come to expect. Then, through it all, he pushes the inclusive social agenda, with people (or whatever) of both genders (if any) taking their various places in society. Social equality doesn't mean monotony of course; golems and goblins have different needs, interests, and abilities. Each one, however, is free to find his or her (or whatever's) own way to contribute.

This might be one of Pratchett's lesser works, but that's just on the Pratchett scale. It still blows the sneakers off just about anything by just about anyone else.

-- wiredweird

I am a loyal Terry Pratchett fan. For the most part, I love the Discworld series, though there were a couple that I did not like as much as others. Was this my favorite? Hmmmm....probably not, BUT, that did not mean Raising Steam wasn't a good read. I was laughing in the first five muntues and I love the Patrician, while his character was not the same I still enjoyed his quips, but he doesn't come off the same. There is a little too much "technology" that doesn't blend well, and some things that just don't fit. But otherwise, I enjoyed it. Good job Mr.Pratchett....and God Bless.

You can read this as your first Discworld novel, but I think starting from the first book has given me more enjoyment as I have really gotten to see the characters develop and interact. This does make a difference and I can appreciate some of the humor that I might have missed otherwise. It is very hard to write a review for this series, because I am afraid of giving something away, but I will warn you to read it slowly, and enjoy it....I have learned to pace myself and fully relish this series. If you are a fan already, you will not be dissappointed, if you are new to the series, go back about ten books at least and work your way to this one....believe me, you will be hooked and you will have and amazing journey. If you are really smart, start from the first book....and make room on your shelves!

First off I wanted to say something about the most negative reviews. In my opinion a lot of them are from people who went into the book expecting it to be bad, and they can't hide their glee at finding that in places the writing style has changed. Luckily the reactions from these people turns out to be totally and completely over the top.

Onto my review. The first issue to address is whether his illness and the resulting move to dictation has changed his writing style. The answer is that in some small way it maybe has, there are some sections where the writing doesn't have the usual fluency and drive. There are also a few isolated sentences that don't make much sense. Oh well, not exactly the end of the world and in truth after a few chapters I'd adapted and anyway Pratchett is so far ahead of any other author that a few mistakes matter not a jot.

That's the negativity out of the way, other than that the book is just an excellent Discworld novel. Its enjoyable, its positive, its difficult to put down, everything you'd expect. If you liked his previous books you'll like this one too.

Onto one other aspect that I think is annoying some of the reviewers, namely the progression you see in the Discworld itself. My memory of the early books is that despite their interesting aspects many of the characters fitted classic fantasy archetypes. Wizards, warriors, werewolves, vampires, etc. In this book, and in some the other recent books, you've seen the emergence of new types of characters. Journalists, businessmen, engineers. That's because Ankh Morpork is moving forward, becoming more modern. Personally I love that but some of his fans don't seem to like change.

In summary I'd put this one near the top in terms of enjoyment and recommend it highly. I hope Pratchett keeps going but if it is the last one he writes then its a good end to a phenomenal series.

I have loved this author for years. His earlier works were a bit more hilarious, but there is plenty of humor here. It is a bit more grown-up and subtle. Like when the little goblin gets all upset that Moist calls him by a nickname, and then spends the chapter calling him "wet" and "soggy" and things like that. The tyranny of a tiny egomaniac. Every one of Pratchett's characters has some little idiosyncratic thing that makes them special. They live on, even after you close the book.

Mostly, I found the book sweet and comforting, like a visit with old friends. Thanks for that, Terry.

I love Terry Pratchett's Discworld, his fertile imagination and his playful humour with words and this book was no exception. I really enjoyed reading it, laughed aloud on several occasions and couldn't resist reading bits out! The first steam engine on the Disc, named Iron Girder, attracts the attention of just about every faction - including the Patrician Lord Vetinari. The book culminates in a race against time along track being built almost as fast as the train is travelling.

Sadly, bearing in mind Terry Pratchett's illness, this had the feeling of a valedictory, having cameo roles for so many of the characters in previous stories. I enjoyed seeing them again, but if felt like a farewell. Such a shame, but a great yarn.

I've been a fan of Pratchett's for years now. While more of a fan of his earlier "DISCWORLD" stuff, I have enjoyed reading all of his novels. They're always entertaining and, more often than not, will bring a smile and/or a laugh along the road from the front cover to the back cover. If you've been keeping up with his DISCWORLD series then you obviously have to read "RAISING STEAM"

I'm a huge Pratchett fan, and I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I didn't. Where there is real heart in most of the Discworld books, this seemed contrived, and didn't seem to have a really clear focus, The familiar characters were almost caricatures of themselves, and the new characters curiously monochromatic. Even Death was subdued. Still worth the read, but it does not stand up well against the first two Moist von Lipwig books.

After reading the book and feeling disaffected, I came here to browse the reviews and found myself moved to write my first. (While this review is a response in general to some of the negative reviews, it is not aimed at any specific reviewers and the association I'm making here with the grags is not meant necessarily as an association with readers who disliked the book.)

Firstly, this book fits firmly into the pattern of the Moist von Lipwig series, which focused on an intensive study of a particular institution as it develops and on its societal effects (with the post office and the financial sector at the heart of the first two). Secondly, it reflects an ongoing movement in Pratchett's works away from traditional conflict and plot and toward exploration. Coupled with the difficulties and problems associated with Pratchett's changed relationship with text (his Alzheimer's leaving him unable to read, forced to dictate his work), all of this adds up to considerable change from his distinctive tone and voice in his past works, a change detectable in the other books he's written in the past half-decade, but much more marked here.

It's tempting to pathologize this text, therefore, and some of the reviews here have done so. But I think doing so strips Pratchett of his agency as an author (indeed, some here are claiming he didn't write this book at all and point to changes in style, tone and character to do so). Most telling for me is the strong emphasis on change as a concept in this book, coupled with an insistence on a positive future. Pratchett knows about these changes, may have made some of them deliberately, and makes them into the subject and content of the story. Pratchett's most vibrant works in the past have been challenges, taking what readers (and especially fantasy readers) expected and calling it into question. While I didn't get what I expected from Raising Steam, I'm forced to ask myself whether I really wanted another book just like all the other books, despite the fact that there are so many that they no longer challenge me as a reader in the way they used to do.

This book isn't as interested in wit, in satire, in clever dialogue, in the kind of characterization Pratchett's so well known for, or even in the vibrant villains he's offered in the past. It's an exploration of the railways and the implications of their development, yes, but it's interested in travel in ways that the Long Earth series is (making me think Pratchett's role in that series must be greater than I first thought), and it's interested in groups of people, in ideas, and in allegorical associations. You'll be disappointed going into this novel expecting it to be like Moving Pictures only 24 years later.

Raising Steam also has an elegiac tone. Death's brief and disappointing cameo suggests, not his absence, but his pervasive presence. This is a book written by someone thinking about his legacy. And, while I don't think it rises to the brilliance of King Lear, I think that like Lear, it will take time before people fully appreciate what it's doing. Imagine a man on a train, traveling into the future, knowing that it will involve his death, reflecting back on his youth, but also thinking of the children running after the train, eager for the future, seeing new beginnings in what will be his end. That's what this book is about.

And after reading through comments here, I can't help but read the crisis within the dwarf community generally, and the grags specifically, as an allegory aimed not at the Muslim world but at a world Terry Pratchett knows far more intimately. As people develop an increasing awareness of misogyny at science-fiction conventions, this book offers a glimpse of a community full of people (mostly bearded people) with a strong work ethic who get very little sun and who often disagree, sometimes violently, over tiny matters, who are struggling amongst themselves about change in their community. A group with problems with women, to the extent that it treats women who openly express their femininity differently from everyone else ("fake geek girls"). A group where the vast majority wouldn't actually have a problem with change, per se, but where a minority who insist nothing needs to change hold a goodly amount of sway.

Knocking down clacks towers isn't an allegory for terrorist attacks, it's an allegory for crashing websites. The dwarfs are nerds and geeks, and the grags are those who resist change, those who miss the days where one could look across a convention hall and see only men, those who police a community which is slowly becoming inclusive and who see the victory of people wanting to join that community as a defeat because it means change. I can't help but wonder whether Rhianna Pratchett's experiences, and perhaps the tone of some of the letters Terry must have received after announcing that she would be taking over the Discworld from him, influenced this story heavily.

In sum, I think this book is written as an allegorical challenge to many of those who will be reading it. If we are the dwarfs, are we more like Ardent or like Albrecht? Are we determined to stop this train into the future, to freeze geekdom (or the Discworld series) at the spot in time where we liked it? Or will we be dancing on the train?

Many people have criticized this book for not being up to previous Pratchett standards. I feel different. Mr. Pratchett has spun a tale of conflict between those people who see something new and visualize how it will improve the future and those who see the same thing and think only of how it will destroy the past. It was a story I thoroughly enjoyed. One thing I noticed while reading, Mr. Pratchett referenced virtually every major character that has appeared in his Discworld series. It gave me the feeling that this was a farewell tour. I hope I am wrong in this.

I'm not sure what the drama is in these reviews. His writing style definitely changed from the earlier novels to the more recent ones, but it has been an evolution, and it is certainly still Sir Terry. I am one of those who prefer these later novels-- more subtle, pointed, and nuanced, I think. I'm also a little bigger on the non-wizard characters, generally. I think Raising Steam is funny, endearing, and a great capstone to a great world.

There's enough written in the other reviews, so I won't rehash. However the most striking part of the book is its general 'feel.' Personally, it seems like Sir Terry is saying goodbye with this one. Virtually every major Discworld character has an appearance, and Moist (much like Vimes in the recent books) feels at his most human: sometimes vulnerable, sometimes overwhelmed, sometimes caught off guard, but always true to himself.

Personally, I loved it. I very much hope it's not the last we see from Pratchett's pen, but I feel like he has given us a grand tour of his world with this one.

A fast-paced look into the beginnings of the industrial revolution for Discworld. This novel traverses events over the course of about a year rather than the typical one-off adventures readers have become accustomed to. Humor is also toned down giving way to more thoughtful character development.

Pratchett's recent novels since his diagnosis have really moved away from fun adventures toward social and historical introspection/commentary.

The Disc is getting darker and I also have to wonder is every new book we've been getting is the last.

It definitely helps to have read some of the previous Disc World books prior to reading this one, especially the several based on the Moist Von Lipwig character (e.g. Going Postal) and Thud! where the Koom Valley accord was agreed to, and to understand the back history on the goblins. Pratchett is definitely getting more linear in his books and so they more so need to be read in order than some of the earlier works. There are some smaller inside jokes you'll miss if you haven't read everything, but the book is still pretty funny. His hysterical footnotes are back which I love.He also seems to strongly hint at some sequels, which is good news.

I blame Doubleday. They're allowing Terry Pratchett to destroy his legacy. If Terry did, in fact, write this, then they are culpable for a complete lack of editorial support. If he did not write this, then they need to put another name on the cover and stop exploiting millions of Discworld fans.

Yet another novel from the British master of the humorous serious story.
This one is about the rise of an industry, and the effect is has on individuals and society as a whole.
A man has mastered the steam engine, and gets backing from a wealthy man to develop a machine that will haul cargo and, incidentally, people. The Patrician taps Moist von Lipwig, already head of the Mint and the Postal Service, to oversee negotiations for rights-of-way for the the new railroad.
There are sub-plots, of course, involving the dwarves and their internal politics.

Moist von Lipwig is called upon by Lord Vetinari – this time to deal with something most dastardly indeed: steam locomotion.

Dick Simnel is a bright chap who happens to figure out how to contain, and utilize steam for locomotion. The question is will this help bring the world together or help to tear it down? Moist is joined by Adora Belle Dearheart, of course, and finds himself at work for Sir Harry King and Lord Vetinari as Ankh-Morpork struck up a deal with the railroad to move, among other things, Vetinari to Überwald to visit a certain someone.

At the same time, Dwarfish fundamentalists seek to overthrow the current Low King of the Dwarves in a palace coop. The problem is that the current king needs to get home as quickly as possible, which means the railroad. Enter Moist and Commander Vimes and a race against time and external threats to make right the Low Kingdom.

Of course, Pratchett fans will love this. Specifically fans of both the Vimes and Moist series. What’s interesting is that Pratchett threw most of the protagonist from his last several series together in this one in a sort of all star cast of funny and it worked! Vimes and Moist play off each other very well. Vetinari gets to exercise his awesome evilness at times, although unseen, of course. And characters from all over the Discworld make an appearance. All that to say that anyone who enjoys any of the Discworld series will love this one. Funny as always but building towards more.

A note about the audio book: Stephen Briggs is once again magnificent in his dry, wry delivery of every silly pun and sarcastic note. It is a pleasure to listen to him and if you have the time the audio book remains my recommended method of reading Discworld.

This book was provided by the publisher for review.

Raising Steam is a abrupt departure from Terry Pratchett's other novels, and it took me almost a third of the novel to understand what it was all about. In writing about the breakneck pace of innovation, and the resultant earthquakes that progress inspires in culture, Sir Terry has created a novel that clips along like the steam engines it describes. A story that is the written equivalent of a J.J. Abrams movie, moving from event to event as though it were on rails. In doing so, the story and the characters are pared down to their ideals, the icons that each of them represents, the nucleus of a fairy tale. Whether the character is named Moist von Lipwig or the Scoundrel with a Heart of Gold, Sam Vimes or the Bad Man for a Good Reason, the essence of each shines through, the archetype that each character represents bringing texture and context to the fable. And in Raising Steam, Sir Terry creates a world as we all hope, in the depths of our hearts, could actually exist. We read every day about the deadbeat husband who abandoned his family, the corporation that kills with negligence in the name of profit. Sir Terry's characters take the roles that we hope they will, the imperfect man who will nonetheless strive for perfection because it is what he feels his children deserve, he bystander who stops standing by long enough to stop a greater injustice. "All things strive," as Sir Terry wrote in Thud! and in this particular fairy tale, the characters strive to hold an uncertain future together because uncertainty is better than nihility. Raising Steam is very much a modern fairy tale, one that should not be summarily dismissed as "unlike his other books," or that Pratchett is "losing his faculties." To do so misses the concept of what the author has created, and illustrates the insidious trap that Sir Terry describes throughout the novel.

Like the other reviews of Raising Steam I have read and rereread most Discworld novels. So I was wondering why I could barely read one page of this story before I put it down. Now I think I understand. My advice to prospective buyers or readers would be: Go back and reread The Truth, or Feet of Clay. I'm not going to speculate on who or why R.S. was written. I am not going to finish it, and you'll be better off not starting.

Another major turning point had come to Anhk-Morpork, Dick Simnel has created “Iron Girder” and the steam railway has arrived. Although there is a group of monks who are concerned that this is not the correct time for steam power, their emissary to the Unseen University is assured by the Arch-Chancellor that if steam power has arrived, it must indeed be time for steam power. Circular logic seems to work well on the Disc. Unfortunately, this machine adds fuel to the anger of certain elderly and extremely conservative draws who against modern inventions and modern thinking persons, such as the Low King. Lord Vetinari decided that the invention is good for the city and assigns Moist von Lipwig as go-between on all matters concerning Iron Girder and her followers. There are adventures and adventurers, excitement and political games to witness until the end of the book leaves you wondering what will be the next modernization to arrive in Anhk-Morpork.

It's a pretty good addition to the series. It's another story in the Moist von Lipwig series. It meanders at times, but comes back to point. It was also a whom's whom if some past Discworld characters. For 5 stars, it needed more Oook.

Terry Pratchett writes brilliantly. His use of the language to whimsically paint images like the one in the title above is unsurpassed. The vehicle is DIscworld and this story is the invention of trains. There are extremists to deal with and very interesting inter-species issues. The metaphors, clever one liners and analogies pile up on top of each other. "Nonchalance is very difficult to fake." "Making money is good, but there is no pockets in a shroud."
Read this book it will make you laugh out loud. Even if you have read enough Pratchett to see the jokes coming from the Sto Lat Plain.
"You learn by your mistakes, if you're lucky."

Former con man Moist Von Lipwig has already conquered the postal service, the telegram, and the national monetary system. Now the Patrician of Ankh Morpork sics him on a new invention - the locomotive. This is not, in some ways, one of Pratchett's most sublime Discworld books, but it's certainly a good one, and it makes a darned fitting ending to the Moist Von Lipwig series. Obviously I would not recommend that a new reader pick up the story here - go back to "Going Postal" if you are new to the Discworld and want to start with the Lipwig cycle. This is the character's victory lap, as he has now drug his world kicking and screaming into a time of civil rights, the technological age, and the information era. Fans will enjoy getting to know supporting characters and obscure (but often name-dropped) locales a little better.

When Discworld fans learned that Sir Terry Pratchett had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, there must have been a collective groan heard ’round the real world, not only for his illness, but that one of the brightest, funniest writers in recent times may never be able to enchant his fans with the lives of the magical saga of the denizens of Ankh-Morpork, Quirm, the Uberwold and the Ramtops, all of Discworld. How would these strange but entertaining folks’ lives turn out?

Pratchett, the master of the sneaky simile and purveyor of the protracted pun, surprised us all when he continued to satirize the human condition with his latest, and perhaps last, Discworld novel. RAISING STEAM brings that medieval universe into more modern times when a brilliant young blacksmith develops a steam engine.

Pratchett brings his favorite characters back for a curtain call and adds a new protagonist, a straight-talking human being named Dick Simnel. Dick introduces a monstrous mechanical device, the Iron Girder, that revolutionizes transportation and commerce to Discworld. When clacks --- the Discworld equivalent to the telegraph --- first showed up in THE FIFTH ELEPHANT and then again in GOING POSTAL, telecommunications turned Discworld on its edge. This was a truly upsetting event, since Discworld is a flat planet and making its citizens edgy can be a dangerous thing.

Sentient beings could send instant messages to other sentient beings, and when it was discovered that goblins, formerly swatted or squished, had a talent for manning the towers, many equal-opportunity barriers both cultural and physical were broken. When a railroad made travel to the places formerly just accessible by the clacks, and beings could meet face to face with communicants they had never met, no end of trouble could ensue. And now, a non-sentient or magical object (dare we say being) takes center stage as the magnificent Iron Girder struts her stuff on rails of steel.

Every species known to science and a few known only to Grimm’s fairy tales have risen to power in the whimsical world of Pratchett’s genius imagination. Watch Commander Vimes and his interspecies police force, the former scoundrel Moist von Lipwig, Lord Vetinari, the Low King of the Dwarfs, and even MORT, who speaks only in uppercase when he makes the last visit any of the characters will ever encounter, all take a bow. These 40 magical novels that began in 1983 with THE COLOR OF MAGIC have introduced a growing number of fans to witches, vampires, trolls, dwarfs, dragons, golems, wizards and goblins, each applying their very special talents to ruling governments, guilds and clans.

When the world of dwarfs, always a quarrelsome lot, faces civil war and insurrection after the true believers of their god, Tak, begin destroying public property because of their religious tenants, Dick Simnel, Moist von Lipwig, Lord Vetinari and a multitude of Discworldians --- from giant trolls to miniscule goblins --- join forces to bring peace to their planet on the Iron Girder. RAISING STEAM makes the avid Discworld fan want to revisit the collection from the very beginning. Here’s a toast to Terry Pratchett, who has entertained and enlightened his millions of fans for over three decades.

Reviewed by Roz Shea

I'm going to have to echo other one-star reviewers. This really doesn't seem like it was written by Terry. The plot (such as it was) wandered, the characters didn't act at all like themselves, and there was the clumsiest deus ex machina ending I've ever seen in a Discworld book.

I'm not really sure why there are so many negative reviews of this book. I have read almost the entire Discoworld series and while this was not my favorite of them I still enjoyed it very much and it felt like it was Pratchett writing it. Many of the reviews seem like conspiracy theories or just plain whining. Writers change throughout their careers, and they should; otherwise, we are just reading the same story over and over again.

One can't help but be sensitive when reviewing a Pratchett book these days. Terry has been open about his illness and how it's changed the way he works, but Narrativium is a powerful force for his fans, and perhaps maintains their enthusiasm a little more than is warranted. Raising Steam is (loosely) the third book in the "Moist" trilogy, based around a pardoned conman who goes on to create several of the "modern" institutions of Ankh-Morpork. Wheras Banking and Postal services have been the previous subjects, Raising Steam focuses on the evolution of the Railway, and (as is typical with all Pratchett's works) is based on some fairly detailed research about early rail, although compressing decades into mere months for reasons of plot. Tacked onto the side is a civil war amongst the Dwarves, with the grags (previously introduced in Thud!) becoming terrorist insurgents. This is an old Pratchett theme, and the usual anvils are dropped in a generally pleasant manner. As neither Dwarves, Trolls nor Golems are remaining as an underclass to be pitied / emancipated, Terry returns to Goblins as per Snuff. I just wish Goblins were more interesting, or their cultural distinctiveness was explored more. Unfortunately, the righteous anger somewhat FEELS tacked on, as does a fair amount of the main plot itself as a superstructure to hang stories about trains on.

Pratchett goes on in exhaustive detail about railway development, as well as some of the seismic changes this technology brought about. Although Moist is still the main protagonist, Terry revels in having Harry King spending wealth earned from the midden to buy his way into polite society as a proto-industrialist. Along the way, Pratchett inserts dozens of vignettes in service of either the a) or b) plots which (although well written in and of themselves) are basically exposition that weighs down the main plot. There are also a few curious side-twists that serve the sense of mysticism which has been a feature of Pratchett's writing over the past few years.

here are also exhaustive cameos from pretty much every character in Ankh-Morpork. As in Snuff, these mainly feel like nods to the past rather than vital parts of the present (although the appearance of Vimes adds a certain gravitas). Sadly, the real let-down for me were the ways in which the main protagonists are deployed. Vetinari is no longer the inscrutable tyrant with his hands on the puppet strings but a frustrated old ruler, struggling with the crossword and making vague threats to Moist to keep the plot moving (however, his latest torture involving kittens is well worth the cover price). The nominal villain of the book, the grag Ardent, is essentially a cut-out pantomime of xenophobia and violence, He inspires no fear, or anger, or curiosity as to his motives. Moist himself is no longer the scheming conman of Going Postal nor the Making Money's self-doubting figure drawn between respectability and self-respect. Although Pratchett constantly references his crookedness and shiftlessness, there's little indication in the story itself. Moist has become a trickster whose role is to fulfil whatever role the plot requires.

And perhaps that's the real problem I had with this book. Past Discworld books have been relentlessly driven by character, but this feels as though the characters have been shoehorned in in order to serve the plot's requirements, which as I previously mentioned, is more or less an excuse for Pratchett to riff on trainspotters, the French (er... Quirmians) as well as his interest in how multiculturalism actually works on the ground floor (which for dwarves, would be the top floor, I'm sure). So the book feels more like a remix of old elements in service of exposition rather than a new story that sucks the reader in with concern for its characters. It's possible that the lore and continuity of Discworld has finally reached critical mass, with storytelling unable to escape from the event horizon of the compressed 39 preceding books.

Having said that, the loving detail put into the prose is still wonderful, and there are glimpses and flashes of wit, humour and invention which prevent the book from being a chore to read. Re-reading, on the other hand, no longer presents the temptation of pleasure which it once did.