Rating: 
Summary: Maybe it's just me, but..
Review: ..I found this book dull. Although I am still a new-comer to the incredibly entertaining author, I found this one (out of the only 5 of his that I've read so far) to be the least entertaining. The story takes place in two main areas; Teppic's (the main character's) hometown, and the assassins guild. I found the assassins guild moments to be entertaining, but after reading the book, I have yet to understand why the entire assassins guild part of the book was included. It just seems like a huge build-up for a few minor tricks that Teppic busts out in his own city. Teppic acquires skills of being stealthy, climing up buildings, and throwing knives.... but for what? He only uses these skills a few times throughout the rest of the book (to climb the main pyramid, among others). It seems as if the whole time spent at the assassins guild is pointless, because in the middle of his stay there, he just so happens to get the news that his father died, leaving him the heir to the kingdom. The time spent in the kingdom is mildly entertaining, but drawn out a bit much. It makes the whole beginning of the book seem useless. The pyramid contractors are entertaining, and so are the embalmers, but they just seem to appear, and then later in the book just vanish. I would reccomend this book only to the hardcore Pratchett fans. Maybe I'm just crazy..
Rating:
Summary: Maybe it's just me, but..
Review: ..I found this book dull. I am going to reread it, though.
I would reccomend this book only to the hardcore Pratchett fans.
Rating: 
Summary: The journey into the Assassin's guild. What is a Handmaiden
Review: A delightful piece in the discworld series, this must have story depicts the life of P'Teppic(an assassin) the son of a Phaoroh in his attempt to govern his people. Being half man half god is a tough life, especially because of a certain advisor. He must now build the hugest pyramid ever.
Rating:
Summary: Not a Monumental Achievement
Review: A young prince from the kingdom of Djelibeybi is sent off to Ankh-Morpork for training at the guild of Assassins. His final exam is vividly imagined and well-told. But just after graduation his father the eccentric pharaoh of the realm, considered a god, dies, and young Teppic must return to ascend to the throne. His father's ghost gets to hang around and watch himself get mummified, and Djelibeybi begins building its biggest pyramid yet. In this book Pratchett throws in an awful lot of funny detail in: we get a send-up of Zeno and his paradox, a mockery of the whole notion of "pyramid power" (subject of many silly pseudo-science books that I remember from my childhood), and a nasty but mathematically inclined camel... in other words, a whole lot of bits and pieces with "Laugh! This is funny!" stamped on them... but they aren't, and I didn't. Teppic is never developed further as a character; although as the new pharaoh himself, he finds his orders constantly reinterpreted by his high priest. This makes for good satire of Egyptian government but results in a situation where nothing Teppic says or does really seems to matter. Teppic's love interest, Ptraci, is even less interesting; she is described as a voluptuous handmaiden schooled in the exotic arts of love, and scented with intoxicating perfumes. But rather than give her anything interesting to say or do, Pratchett simply takes her off-stage for most of the book, and focuses instead on nerdy quantum instabilities, reanimated mummies, a parody of the Trojan Wars, the Sphinx, the internal squabbles of the high priests, a bevy of bizarre gods, and a mishmash of other distracting details. Erotica is not Pratchett's style, and I wasn't expecting a real X-rated Kama Sutra send-up, but we don't get even a budding romance or a love-hate relationship; instead, we get a disappointing plot twist that effectively neuters the characters. Although I admire some of Pratchett's big ideas in this book about Egyptian culture's obsession with death and time, and found the story of Teppic's assassin's guild examination to be fun reading, the book ultimately becomes quite dull and hard to finish. This is a shame, because there is a the seed of a very good Discworld novel about Teppic the Reluctant Assassin buried in here, and that would have been much more fun to read. For a far better Discworld standalone read _The Truth_ instead.
Rating:
Summary: Not Pratchett's Best.
Review: As a relatively new fan of Terry Pratchett and his Discworld series, I was so impressed by what he wrote so far I started to believe that everything from the series will be brilliant and excellent. Therefore, despite the fact other books sounded better, I picked "Pyramids" at random. And also because
... All I can say is, even the best writers can make mistakes now and then - and that I will be more careful next time.
About the book: Pyramids is set in Djelibeibey, which is the Discworld equivalent of Ancient Egypt. The main character is Teppic, the son of the Pharaoh who gets sent to Assassin's school in Ankh-Morpork for a few years, only to come back exactly when his father dies and he becomes the new Pharoah of the kingdom. The plot gets complicated by the building of a pyramid which is bigger than any pyramid which has ever been built in the kingdom. This pyramid somehow twists the rules of space, time and belief to create a big mess.
Does this sound a big vague? To me it does - and the story feels confused and vague to the end. Many plot lines aren't fully explored, many characters aren't fully developed.. the plot is very thin, it feels as if it leads nowhere. Even the jokes in the book weren't as witty as the other Discworld novels I have read. It's a pity since the premise has a lot of potential, and Teppic is cool as the main character.
What can I say, I guess Pratchett is human after all, even great authors can do less than perfect every now and then. Was I disappointed? Yes. Will I continue to read more Pratchett novels? You bet! I guess I would recommend this book only to people who are absolutely die hard fans of Discworld.. for anybody else I would say, Skip this one.
Rating:
Summary: A nation with a lot of time on its collective hands ...
Review: Despite not featuring Unseen University or the witches of the Ramtop Mountains, this is my favorite Discworld book. After hinting at it in "Wyrd Sisters," Pratchett paints an engaging portrait of life in the Ankh-Morporkk Assassin's Guild. The suave, stylish, chic and, well, murderous life as an apprentice assassin is, against all logic, made sort of appealing and cool, like an academy for future James Bonds. Then our protagonist, Teppic, is cruelly jerked back to his reality -- he's the son of the pharoah in the Kingdom of the Sun, and his father has just died. The cosmopolitan Teppic has to face what are, to him, backwards and outdated customs the rest of the world has left behind centuries ago. He's right, of course, and the mystery as to what's really happening in his kingdom spins out at Teppic tries to adapt himself to life as pharoah, and try to drag the kingdom into modern times. Along the way, there is the ghost of his father, who mournfully watches his own body being prepared for the afterworld, a sassy handmaiden, and a mysterious and forbidding high priest. Toss in the greatest mathematician on Discworld -- not a biped, though -- a parody of Ancient Greece, and a graduate assassin turned pirate, and you've got a rollicking cast plunging towards a very local sort of doomsday. The ending is a touch ambiguous for my tastes -- Pratchett was trying to use a light touch and went a touch TOO light for my tastes -- but overall, this is an engaging, amusing and even somewhat thoughtful Discworld novel, and one that stands alone even better than most. By the order of the pharoah, this is strongly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Read The Books In Order
Review: First of all, I loved this novel. Teppic is a great guy who grows up as we read. The very name of Teppic's country, Djelibeybi, made me giggle, and the final exam in the Assassins' School had me at the edge of my chair until Teppic -- whew! -- makes the right decision. It's fun to look for the sources of Pratchett's plots (and satires). Did anyone else notice the similarities between this one and the first two of the Gormenghast trilogy? Not just Daddy's becoming a bird, but the dark ambience, Teppic's strange rivals and relatives, and the liberating finale. This book isn't my absolute favorite of Pratchett's (those accolades are reserved for the Watch novels and REAPER MAN), but it's a far cut above the Rincewind tales -- and better than the Gormenghast novels, since it examines all problems, including the hilarious ones, that trouble the inheritor of vast inbred territories.
Rating:
Summary: Gormenghast in Ancient Egypt
Review: First of all, I loved this novel. Teppic is a great guy who grows up as we read. The very name of Teppic's country, Djelibeybi, made me giggle, and the final exam in the Assassins' School had me at the edge of my chair until Teppic -- whew! -- makes the right decision. It's fun to look for the sources of Pratchett's plots (and satires). Did anyone else notice the similarities between this one and the first two of the Gormenghast trilogy? Not just Daddy's becoming a bird, but the dark ambience, Teppic's strange rivals and relatives, and the liberating finale. This book isn't my absolute favorite of Pratchett's (those accolades are reserved for the Watch novels and REAPER MAN), but it's a far cut above the Rincewind tales -- and better than the Gormenghast novels, since it examines all problems, including the hilarious ones, that trouble the inheritor of vast inbred territories.
Rating:
Summary: I Couldn't Stop Laughing!!
Review: Have you ever wondered why camels are so ungainly? The answer is in 'Pyramids' along with some of the most hilarious material ever to appear between the covers of a book. Terry Pratchett is the greatest "Funny Fantasy" writer in the world (disc or otherwise). I laughed so hard I nearly did myself an injury!! If you've never read fantasy, start with Terry Pratchett
Rating:
Summary: Why buy this book?
Review: I could write a 1000 word essay on why to buy this book but wouldn't do justice to the cause by half. So I'll just summarize: Terry Pratchett. DiscWorld Novel. 'Nuff said.
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