Title: The Last Continent
Series: Discworld #22 (Rincewind #6)
Author: Sir Terry Pratchett
Genre: Low Fantasy
Trigger Warnings: Body horror (mild), violence (mild), death
Spoiler Warning: This book is 22nd in a series, but it (and this review) only contain mild spoilers of the previous Rincewind books.
Back Cover:
It’s the Discworld’s last continent and it’s going to die in a few days, except… Who is this hero striding across the red desert? Yes, it’s Rincewind, the inept wizard. He’s the only hero left. Still – no worries, eh?
Review:
I was going to start this review complaining about how even though the last Rincewind book was a great combination of profound themes and Sir Terry’s signature humor, this book didn’t have any of the thematic part at all. And then I realized that it does – but none of them are in Rincewind’s part of the story.
The book opens with a disclaimer that The Last Continent is not actually about Australia. It has to do that because without the note, you would think you’re reading about Rincewind in Australia. Even with the note, you’ll think you’re reading about Rincewind in Australia, but at least it’s self-aware about it. It’s the same over-the-top caracture of a culture that Pyramids did with ancient Egypt and Interesting Times did with China, just with Australia this time.
For as much as I love Rincewind the inept and cowardly wizard as a character, his adventures in Discworld Australia were not my favorite. The desert setting was a bit dry (pun intended), he didn’t stick with any individual character long enough for them to be interesting, and the crux of his plot was a bunch of space-time continuum shenanigans that Rincewind needed to fix and that I just didn’t find all that interesting. The beginning, where Rincewind was all by himself and surviving against all odds despite being completely inept, was the best bit of his part of the story.
Interestingly, Rincewind’s story is not the only one happening. A few of the previous Rincewind books had a B plot of some of the wizards at the Unseen University, but that functioned mainly as a plot device to explain how Rincewind keeps ending up in weird places. This book has a full second narrative following that same group of wizards through some different space-time continuum shenanigans that see them trapped on a deserted island. This plot is the one with the interesting themes – why humans put themselves at the top of the animal hierarchy and if they really deserve to be there is the main one, but it also functions as a funny but scathing commentary on academics and/or bureaucrats – and it’s the one I enjoyed the most.
The Last Continent was good. It’s not my favorite Discworld book, but I didn’t dislike it – it’s solidly in the middle of the pack in terms of my opinion. I was surprised by how much I liked the secondary storyline with the other wizards, and I’m curious if they return in future books (Rincewind or otherwise). And I hope Rincewind gets some better settings in the next couple books, because the more this series goes on, the more I like him as a character.
The Discworld series:
- The Colour of Magic
- The Light Fantastic
- Equal Rites
- Mort
- Sourcery
- Wyrd Sisters
- Pyramids
- Guards! Guards!
- Eric
- Moving Pictures
- Reaper Man
- Witches Abroad
- Small Gods
- Lords and Ladies
- Men at Arms
- Soul Music
- Interesting Times
- Maskerade
- Feet of Clay
- Hogfather
- Jingo
- The Last Continent
- Carpe Jugulum
- The Fifth Elephant
- The Truth
- Thief of Time
- The Last Hero
- The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents
- Night Watch
- The Wee Free Men
- Monstrous Regiment
- A Hat Full of Sky
- Going Postal
- Thud!
- Wintersmith
- Making Money
- Unseen Academicals
- I Shall Wear Midnight
- Snuff
- Raising Steam
- The Shepherd’s Crown
Bluejay Reads 