A set of 8 paperback books from the City Watch Series, starring: Guards! Guards!, Men At Arms, Jingo, Feet of Clay, The Fifth Elephant, Night Watch, Thud! and Snuff

Meet Commander Sam Vimes and the City Watch

Sam Vimes is an old-fashioned copper. He, and the City Watch he commands, started in the gutter (one outside a pub), and Vimes takes care not to forget it, wearing extra thin boots so he can feel the streets of his city as he proceeds along them, cigar in hand, gimlet eyes peeled not just for crime, which being extremely cynical he suspects everyone of, but also injustice, which makes him very angry.

The Discworld books can be read in any order, but this is a particularly good place to start.

‘IT WASN’T BY ELIMINATING THE IMPOSSIBLE THAT YOU GOT AT THE TRUTH, HOWEVER IMPROBABLE; IT WAS BY THE MUCH HARDER PROCESS OF ELIMINATING THE POSSIBILITIES.’

Commander Sam Vimes of the City Watch is used to trouble. There’s always trouble in Ankh-Morpork.

But this is new: people are being brutally murdered and there’s no evidence of anything alive having been at the crime scene. At the same time, the most powerful man in the city has been poisoned and is clinging on to life by a thread.

It’s a conundrum of a case. With the help of Captain Carrot, the only watchman who knows the law inside-out; Corporal Cheery Littlebottom, an unconventional dwarf with an eye for forensics; and Constable Angua, a werewolf with an excellent sense of smell, Vimes tries to solve the mystery.

But time is of the essence, for something extremely dangerous is loose in the city, its red eyes glowing in the night …

‘Fantastical, inventive . . . laughter waiting to be uncovered on each page’ Observer

Feet Of Clay is the third book in the City Watch series, but you can read the Discworld novels in any order.

‘IT WAS SO MUCH EASIER TO BLAME IT ON THEM. IT WAS BLEAKLY DEPRESSING TO THINK THAT THEY WERE US.’

War is brewing on the Discworld.

An island has appeared from the ocean depths, right in the middle of the sea which separates the proud empires of Klatch and Ankh-Morpork. Of course, no one would dream of starting a war with the neighbours without a perfectly good reason . . . such as a ‘strategic’ piece of old rock, for instance.

But when a Klatchian Prince is almost assassinated, peace talks break down and violent nationalism begins to spread. Ankh-Morpork prepares to fight. Only thing is, they don’t have an army. Or much in the way of weapons.

Commander Sam Vimes and the ‘officially disbanded’ City Watch get caught up in a deadly political game where the enemy appears to be on both sides and no one will listen to reason.

And if they don’t stop this absurd war, no one will . . .

‘Generous, amusing and the ideal boarding point for those who have never visited Discworld’ Sunday Telegraph

Jingo is the fourth book in the City Watch series, but you can read the Discworld novels in any order.

‘WELL, HE THOUGHT, SO THIS IS DIPLOMACY. IT’S LYING, ONLY FOR A BETTER CLASS OF PEOPLE.’

Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is a long way from home.

Sent as reluctant ambassador to Uberwald, a mysterious region inhabited by dwarfs, vampires and werewolves, Vimes must learn the art of diplomacy. Fast. But when he uncovers a mystery with ties back home, the policeman in him can’t help but investigate. What could possibly go wrong?

Well, quite a lot actually. Vimes finds himself on the run through the frozen forests of Uberwald, armed with only his wits and the trousers of Uncle Vanya (don’t ask). And if he doesn’t make it, there’s going to be a terrible war.

But there are monsters on his trail. They’re smart. They’re fast. They’re werewolves.

And they’re catching up . . .

‘Precisely balanced . . . a cracking comic thriller’ The Times

The Fifth Elephant is the fifth book in the City Watch series, but you can read the Discworld novels in any order.