Reviews

The Last Hero by Terry Pratchett, Paul Kidby

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lizziestudieshistory's review against another edition

3.0

Hovering between 3 and 3.5 stars - I haven't made my mind up yet!

This was an incredibly fun read. I've not experienced an illustrated Pratchett before (I've only read Eric as a plain text copy) and Kidby's fantastic images really enhanced the story!

I loved seeing the strange collection of heroes - Rincewind, Leonard of Quirm, and Captain Carrot! - band together to save the Disc from the reckless actions of Cohen and the Silver Hoard. The little interactions between Carrot and Rincewind were hilarious and could only have been made better by having MORE of them. As two of my favourites it was a pleasure to see them meet in the most unexpected of circumstances (astronauts?!)

As usual I disliked the Silver Hoard and Cohen the Barbarian - they're just not characters I enjoy reading about and embody EVERYTHING I hate about traditional 'hero' characters... There's a reason I tend not the read sword and sorcery fantasy! However, their send off was suitably mad and I hope to never see them again.

My main complaint about this book is that it felt too long in the set up and then the rest of the plot was rushed through. The preamble with the Wizards and Guilds discussion with Vetinari about what to do over Cohen going to the Hub was slightly too long... And then the interesting bit with the building of Leonard's Kite, finding the crew, the launch, and then stopping Cohen felt like a whirlwind! Pratchett put the same number of plot beats into this little book as he would into his full sized novels, so the pacing felt a little bit off and we didn't get as much character as I would have liked.

Saying this I really did enjoy The Last Hero and it was a pleasure to see Kidby's art weaved into the story and elevate the plot!

ymberlenis's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

dreamingofspaceships's review against another edition

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4.0

You read an entire book thinking it is a "minor Pratchett" but then it goes and makes you tear up and laugh simultaneously as much as pretty much any other book has done *and* has incredible lines like:
“...if we wanted people to fly, we would have given them wings."
"You gave me wings when you showed me birds.”

joceyreads's review against another edition

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4.0

Oh this was fun!! And wow, Paul Kidby’s illustrations are beautiful! Rincewind is not my favourite series but this is a really fun installment. In part this is because a lot of the plot involved Leonard of Quirm inventing and building a flying machine. Carrot was a fun addition that I didn’t expect, and he’s brilliant. Coen and the Silver Hoard are ridiculous and fun. Quite a good Discworld book, made even better by the fabulous illustrations.