Collection
Genres
Publication
HarperPrism (1996), Paperback
Description
It's murder in Discworld! -- which ordinarily is no big deal. But what bothers Watch Commander Sir Sam Vimes is that the unusual deaths of three elderly Ankh-Morporkians do not bear the clean, efficient marks of the Assassins' Guild. An apparent lack of any motive is also quite troubling. All Vimes has are some tracks of white clay and more of those bothersome "clue" things that only serve to muck up an investigation. The anger of a fearful populace is already being dangerously channeled toward the city's small community of golems -- the mindless, absurdly industrious creatures of baked clay who can occasionally be found toiling in the city's factories. And certain highly placed personages are using the unrest as an excuse to resurrect a monarchy -- which would be bad enough even if the "king" they were grooming wasn't as empty-headed as your typical animated pottery.… (more)
Language
Original language
English
Media reviews
Feet of Clay is another in the sub-series of books about the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. It involves golems, and murder, and an assassination plot, and the Watch's new forensic alchemist, and the rightful king, and the problems of being a vegetarian werewolf. It manages to be both a fine fantasy and a
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unique police procedural, with some cogent things to say about the human urge for kings. And it is almost continuously hilarious. It is difficult to say anything else about this book without sounding like a jacket blurb. Let us simply note that Pratchett performs to his usual standard. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member pwaites
Feet of Clay is the nineteenth novel in the Discworld series. While you certainly don’t need to have read all nineteen first, you’d be better off if you picked up the two prior books following these characters, Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms.
In Feet of Clay, the City Watch discovers to murders
Honestly, my biggest problem with Feet of Clay is that it feels like it retreads a lot of familiar ground from Men at Arms. Let’s see, someone trying to depose Vetinari and reinstate the monarchy? I’ve seen that twice already.
The best thing about Feet of Clay is the introduction of Cheri, a dwarf who’s the forensic analyst and who wants to be openly female. For a while in the series now, Pratchett has had the idea of all dwarfs looking and presenting as male, but this is the first time he starts exploring that idea.
“You can be any sex you like provided you act male. There’s no men and women in the Watch, just a bunch of lads.”
I also really enjoy Cheri’s friendship with Angua. While I love Angua, she was pretty much the only female character in Men at Arms, but in Feet of Clay her friendship with Cheri is an important subplot.
Feet of Clay also touches on class issues – Vimes has to deal with his class identity and being married to the richest noblewoman in the city.
“And, while it was regarded as pretty good evidence of criminality to be living in a slum, for some reason owning a whole street of them merely got you invited to the very best social occasions.”
I continue to love Vimes. His strange mixture of cynicism and idealism is very compelling.
"The common people?” said Vimes. “They’re nothing special. They’re no different from the rich and powerful except they’ve got no money or power. But the law should be there to balance things up a bit. So I suppose I’ve got to be on their side.”
Anyway, I would recommend Feet of Clay to people who are a fan of the Ankh-Morpork city watch books.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
In Feet of Clay, the City Watch discovers to murders
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while the Patrician is being mysteriously poisoned. The result is a well plotted fantasy mystery where all the plot threads tie together well.Honestly, my biggest problem with Feet of Clay is that it feels like it retreads a lot of familiar ground from Men at Arms. Let’s see, someone trying to depose Vetinari and reinstate the monarchy? I’ve seen that twice already.
The best thing about Feet of Clay is the introduction of Cheri, a dwarf who’s the forensic analyst and who wants to be openly female. For a while in the series now, Pratchett has had the idea of all dwarfs looking and presenting as male, but this is the first time he starts exploring that idea.
“You can be any sex you like provided you act male. There’s no men and women in the Watch, just a bunch of lads.”
I also really enjoy Cheri’s friendship with Angua. While I love Angua, she was pretty much the only female character in Men at Arms, but in Feet of Clay her friendship with Cheri is an important subplot.
Feet of Clay also touches on class issues – Vimes has to deal with his class identity and being married to the richest noblewoman in the city.
“And, while it was regarded as pretty good evidence of criminality to be living in a slum, for some reason owning a whole street of them merely got you invited to the very best social occasions.”
I continue to love Vimes. His strange mixture of cynicism and idealism is very compelling.
"The common people?” said Vimes. “They’re nothing special. They’re no different from the rich and powerful except they’ve got no money or power. But the law should be there to balance things up a bit. So I suppose I’ve got to be on their side.”
Anyway, I would recommend Feet of Clay to people who are a fan of the Ankh-Morpork city watch books.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
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LibraryThing member reading_fox
Not one of his best, despite containing one of his funniest lines ever.
Although Vetinari the patrician is the most sucessful of Ankh-Morpork's ruler sin ensuring what the populace want is what happens (ie that tomorrow is much like today) for some the grass is always greener on the other side, and
This is a fairly typical of an early Pratchett book, although with less puns than some. There are many subplots that weave about before coming to some form of linked conclusion. However there is yet to develop that sophisticated deeper layer of caustic commentry on a topical issue that the later books so expertly manage. As always when Vime sis the star one of the key themes is discrimination - gender and race are pretty much equal in Ankh Morpock, because it's a man's world there. There a re a few brief lines devoted to politics and hereditary social status as well at the end a sly dig at religion: Dorfl the ceramic and fireproof athiest will debate the meaning of life in his spare time, but only with the priest of the most worthy god. An absolutely classic Pratchett line.
Although Vetinari the patrician is the most sucessful of Ankh-Morpork's ruler sin ensuring what the populace want is what happens (ie that tomorrow is much like today) for some the grass is always greener on the other side, and
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he is poisoned. The task of tracking down the culprit falls as ever to Commander Vimes and Captain Carrot of the City Wtach, and their newest recruit the alcemist Cherry Littlebottom. Vimes is very inventive in finding ways in which Vetinari was not poisened, while the rest of the Watch investigate a few other cases happening in the city, most worryingly some kind of unrest in the Golems.This is a fairly typical of an early Pratchett book, although with less puns than some. There are many subplots that weave about before coming to some form of linked conclusion. However there is yet to develop that sophisticated deeper layer of caustic commentry on a topical issue that the later books so expertly manage. As always when Vime sis the star one of the key themes is discrimination - gender and race are pretty much equal in Ankh Morpock, because it's a man's world there. There a re a few brief lines devoted to politics and hereditary social status as well at the end a sly dig at religion: Dorfl the ceramic and fireproof athiest will debate the meaning of life in his spare time, but only with the priest of the most worthy god. An absolutely classic Pratchett line.
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LibraryThing member bdamokos
It is a nice read, but not really memorable.
I liked it, as it features my favourite character, Carrot but it is not as funny as some other books in the series (like e.g. Guards! Guards!).
It features golems, witch makes this book interesting, though the readers do not get a chance to "see into their
I would recommend this book to fans of the Night Watch, or the Disworld fans who would like to read all the books, but this is not a good starting point, its just not funny enough or does not have concepts deep enough to pull the uninitiated Pratchett reader into reading all the books they can get their hands on.
I liked it, as it features my favourite character, Carrot but it is not as funny as some other books in the series (like e.g. Guards! Guards!).
It features golems, witch makes this book interesting, though the readers do not get a chance to "see into their
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heads" up until the end of the book, unlike in Going Postal.I would recommend this book to fans of the Night Watch, or the Disworld fans who would like to read all the books, but this is not a good starting point, its just not funny enough or does not have concepts deep enough to pull the uninitiated Pratchett reader into reading all the books they can get their hands on.
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LibraryThing member keristars
This is probably one of the best written Discworld books, so far (#19 in a series of...many more). It takes three plot lines and weaves them together in a very satisfying story involving the Watch, golems, Vetinari, and plenty of Clues. The mystery gets tidied up at the end with just enough red
Feet of Clay doesn't seem to parody or satire anything specifically, near as I can tell, though it does have a general theme of police procedurals and mysteries, as usual with the Watch. The other themes coming into play here are golems, nobility and the tracking of descent (again, something that has appeared before in the Watch books thanks to Carrot), and also a lot about hidden or heretofore unknown identities - Angua the werewolf, Cheery Littlebottom the female dwarf, Corporal C. W. St. J. Nobbs the (possibly) Earl...
Overall, I found the book to be tightly written with a good pace. Too many of the early Discworld books got tedious or boring about 4/5 of the way through, though the last few I've read (going in publication order) were much better about it, and this book didn't have the problem hardly at all. In fact, where it did start to get to where I wanted to skip pages, the tedium cleared itself up in a matter of paragraphs.
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herrings along the way to make it a fun ride rather than tedious.Feet of Clay doesn't seem to parody or satire anything specifically, near as I can tell, though it does have a general theme of police procedurals and mysteries, as usual with the Watch. The other themes coming into play here are golems, nobility and the tracking of descent (again, something that has appeared before in the Watch books thanks to Carrot), and also a lot about hidden or heretofore unknown identities - Angua the werewolf, Cheery Littlebottom the female dwarf, Corporal C. W. St. J. Nobbs the (possibly) Earl...
Overall, I found the book to be tightly written with a good pace. Too many of the early Discworld books got tedious or boring about 4/5 of the way through, though the last few I've read (going in publication order) were much better about it, and this book didn't have the problem hardly at all. In fact, where it did start to get to where I wanted to skip pages, the tedium cleared itself up in a matter of paragraphs.
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LibraryThing member Eat_Read_Knit
Someone's poisoning the Patrician, the golems are revolting and to top it all off a dwarf has joined the Watch. A dwarf who's acting (shock, horror!) like a girl! Vimes is in a flap, Carrot is imperturbable, Nobbs is (much to his dismay) in the aristocracy, and Colon is neck-deep in something
A very entertaining part of the Discworld City Watch series.
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distinctly smelly that probably shouldn't be mentioned in polite company.A very entertaining part of the Discworld City Watch series.
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LibraryThing member IAmAndyPieters
Ankh Morpork city watch is confronted with some gruesome and quite mysterious murders. Even Angua's nose cannot crack the case in a hurry, despite her growing frustration. Captain Carrot on the other hand takes a more patient and methodological approach and is all too happy to spend time with
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Angua. Central to all of this are a lot of golems. How do golems work, what makes them tick, and why is the biggest meanest looking golem I have ever seen running towards me screaming?!! Show Less
LibraryThing member conformer
Not quite on the level of the mind-bending and genre-twisting shenanigans of The Colo(u)r Of Magic, but then again, there's very little you can possibly screw up with sword-and-sorcery satire. Also, since this is technically the nineteenth of the Discworld books, it's almost expected that an author
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like Pratchett would want to branch out into other subgenres instead of sticking to the same hack-and-slash formula. To wit, Feet Of Clay is a capable murder mystery that stays within the confines of Discworld's major metropolis Ankh-Morpork; Pratchett even goes so far as to explicitly state his intentions through a character: "Keep the wizards out of this!"Because Discworld is his own, Pratchett isn't beholden to long-standing fantasy rules and regulations. And because his stories are only half-serious, half-practical, and 100% tongue-in-cheek, (whatever that means) he can play fast and loose with things other authors would be obligated to make into cookie cutters; the ecology of lycanthropes, the social castes of dwarves, (and the spelling thereof) the logic of magic, etc.His books are also easy to read, and not to hard on the brain; which is not to say they're dumb, rather, they're fluidly written so the pages slip by like so many gin-and-tonics, until you're nearly at the end and still quite buzzed for the effort. Show Less
LibraryThing member Greatrakes
One of the Watch novels. This one features all the old favourites and has Nobby Nobbs as a nob, Wee Mad Arthur and Dragon King of Arms. It also introduces Cheery Littlebottom as the dwarf forensic-expert. I like Cheery (now Cheri) - she adds a touch of CSI Ankh Morpork to the Watch - the crime in
This is one of my favourite Discworld novels, and has my favourite wordplay joke, the one about people demanding "the right to arm bears".
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this case being the poisoning of Vetinari. The feet of clay belong to a rogue golem, - this is also a golem emancipation book.This is one of my favourite Discworld novels, and has my favourite wordplay joke, the one about people demanding "the right to arm bears".
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LibraryThing member love2laf
The Watch books are always my favourite, and this is a good one. Plenty of satire, golems, and truly, truly awful puns (are there any other kind?).
LibraryThing member farnsworthk
This is a fun Discworld mystery involving golems. There are lots of dimensions to this one and I am starting to see why the City Watch characters are so beloved. I can't wait for the next one.
LibraryThing member isabelx
I can see why a lot of people say that the City Watch books are their favourite Pratchetts. There is the same wordplay and warping of Earth culture as in the other Discworld books, but underneath there is a much more serious mystery story.
LibraryThing member jayne_charles
The emergence of proper 'whodunnits' in Discworld. This is quite a well constructed mystery, with the usual jokes along the way. Also the introduction of the excellent Constable Visit, Discworld's answer to Jehovah's Witnesses.
LibraryThing member iamiam
In this fantastical procedural, Pratchett has completely found his feet, and made me forget Small Gods a few books ago. Funny, inventive, and clearly written form inspiration instead of following a previous book's structure by rote, this is one of the damned good Discworld novels. There's even a
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bit of 'life guidance' in here, without the use of a troll hammer. Show Less
LibraryThing member jnicholson
Vimes struggles to achieve work-life balance while someone is trying to poison the Patrician. Introduces the Golems of Ankh-Morpork. Another humdinger from Pratchett.
LibraryThing member M.Campanella
Feet of Clay
The humour is there – and Pratchett is famed for it – for all to see, and so that is probably one thing we can overlook easily enough, despite being for many people what makes his works enjoyable.
What made them enjoyable was also how well put together they were. Ideas that you
The ten dollar word for this is theme.
Playing with this can have a lot of effects. The one Pratchett seems to enjoy the most is irony. This irony can turn the discovering moment of who-dun-its (an essential moment for that genre that has become boring from over use) into something a little more wonderful. Some modern writers have tried to jazz up this moment by riddling their plots with pretzel twists. Pratchett does not do much to cover up his tracks in this respect, he just makes you enjoy those moments more.
Pratchett has found a game he plays well. But if you play with this further and further eventually you may be ‘accused of literature’ – as Pratchett has.
The humour is there – and Pratchett is famed for it – for all to see, and so that is probably one thing we can overlook easily enough, despite being for many people what makes his works enjoyable.
What made them enjoyable was also how well put together they were. Ideas that you
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encounter on page one, perhaps as a humorous anecdote, will return again and again as the novel progresses.The ten dollar word for this is theme.
Playing with this can have a lot of effects. The one Pratchett seems to enjoy the most is irony. This irony can turn the discovering moment of who-dun-its (an essential moment for that genre that has become boring from over use) into something a little more wonderful. Some modern writers have tried to jazz up this moment by riddling their plots with pretzel twists. Pratchett does not do much to cover up his tracks in this respect, he just makes you enjoy those moments more.
Pratchett has found a game he plays well. But if you play with this further and further eventually you may be ‘accused of literature’ – as Pratchett has.
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LibraryThing member kristenn
This one ended up feeling like an editor went overboard. The plot was much more complex but the explanations were missing. The what was clear but the why was given short shrift. And it seemed like some very interesting whys. He also went a little overboard on the side plots and secondary characters
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this time. Or at least both were less interesting than usual. Show Less
LibraryThing member 391
Feet of Clay, the third novel in the Watch series, involves a rogue golem and a very puzzled Sam Vimes. It appears someone has poisoned Vetinari, and two people have been found dead - ostensibly killed by a golem, a creature constructed of baked clay and brought to life by the words in its head. I
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really enjoyed this novel; it was suspenseful and compelling but also very well thought-out, and it brought up a lot of intriguing questions. Show Less
LibraryThing member Narilka
Murder in Discworld! Sam Vimes and the rest of the Night Watch are on the case, gathering Clues to solve the mystery. A couple new recruits join the Watch and are fun additions to read about. Underneath the humor and mystery is a sub-theme that Pratchett has a talent for. In this case it is the
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concept of "freedom." While not the best entry book for new Discworld readers, fans of the series will enjoy it. Show Less
LibraryThing member lorelorn_2007
Pratchett's allegorical glorification of British policing continues in Feet of Clay. And so what if it was never like this? I loved every last syllable.
LibraryThing member polarbear123
This is not my favourite Pratchett. Here is why. Yes there are the usual funny observations and the members of the Nightwatch are on top form as usual. However there simply is no satisfaction towards the end of the novel. How does the story end? It felt like Pratchett was unsure at some points.
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Slightly untidy endings bug me - I like them to either be tight or incomprehensible, but slightly untidy is irritating. Yes I know this all sounds silly but hey in the end its just my opinion, take no notice of me! Show Less
LibraryThing member auntieknickers
Some time ago, there was a study reported about Alzheimer's disease. The researchers had looked at the autobiographies a group of elderly nuns had written many years before, when they entered the convent. Their conclusion was that the nuns who had written dull, pedestrian autobiographies were the
[book: Feet of Clay] is my first foray into the delights of Pratchett's Discworld series, and it surely won't be the last. In a chart of all the books I found on a website, it's listed as a "whodunnit," and this is true, but it is much more besides.
The book takes place in Ankh-Morpork, the major city of Discworld, where Sir Samuel Vimes, Commander of the Watch, and his force of humans, dwarves, trolls, a werewolf and a gargoyle, are dealing with two major problems. Two old men have been murdered -- the curator of a dwarf bread museum (dwarves make weapons-grade bread) and a priest. Something off is going on with the city's golems, which may relate to the murders. And, there is the matter of the ruler of the city. Since Sir Samuel's ancestor, Old Stoneface, executed the last King, the city has been loosely ruled by a succession of Patricians. The current one, Lord Vetinari, is being poisoned. That much is obvious, but how? Why? And by whom? These questions aren't so easy to answer.
While it is a fine mystery story, Feet of Clay also has things to say about diversity, monarchy, and being true to one's essential nature. Pratchett lards his story with tossed-off allusions and humorous footnotes. Each creature has its own way of speaking, consistent with its nature (I particularly like the trolls). I found this book an excellent introduction to Discworld and will be visiting that fantastic place again soon.
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ones who developed Alzheimer's, and those whose writings were more creative did not. I imagine this very small study has been discredited by now, and if not, it would only take the reading of one book by Terry Pratchett, recently diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's, to toss it out. I can't think when I have read a book that shows the evidence of such a quick and inventive mind.[book: Feet of Clay] is my first foray into the delights of Pratchett's Discworld series, and it surely won't be the last. In a chart of all the books I found on a website, it's listed as a "whodunnit," and this is true, but it is much more besides.
The book takes place in Ankh-Morpork, the major city of Discworld, where Sir Samuel Vimes, Commander of the Watch, and his force of humans, dwarves, trolls, a werewolf and a gargoyle, are dealing with two major problems. Two old men have been murdered -- the curator of a dwarf bread museum (dwarves make weapons-grade bread) and a priest. Something off is going on with the city's golems, which may relate to the murders. And, there is the matter of the ruler of the city. Since Sir Samuel's ancestor, Old Stoneface, executed the last King, the city has been loosely ruled by a succession of Patricians. The current one, Lord Vetinari, is being poisoned. That much is obvious, but how? Why? And by whom? These questions aren't so easy to answer.
While it is a fine mystery story, Feet of Clay also has things to say about diversity, monarchy, and being true to one's essential nature. Pratchett lards his story with tossed-off allusions and humorous footnotes. Each creature has its own way of speaking, consistent with its nature (I particularly like the trolls). I found this book an excellent introduction to Discworld and will be visiting that fantastic place again soon.
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LibraryThing member fiverivers
What one might expect from Terry Pratchett: whacky humour, intimately realized world, twists, turns and nefarious deeds. In short, another installment of escapism at its best.
In this Discworld edition, Pratchett returns to our stalwart policing crew, The Watch, who become embroiled in a series of
In this Discworld edition, Pratchett returns to our stalwart policing crew, The Watch, who become embroiled in a series of
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dastardly murders, the question of what makes a thing a thing with rights, or just a machine, and the examination of class structure. All of this told with intelligence and aplomb. Show Less
LibraryThing member Aldrea_Alien
The golems were an interesting bunch, certainly when it comes to Dolhf, and I love the transformation Cheery went through over the course of the story.
Of course, with murders come clues and they were ... well, to be fair, some were a little odd at first. Vague enough to actually have me wondering
Though I enjoyed it, I’ve two niggles about this one. Firstly there’s the descriptions of the heralds themselves. I got all muddled in having three (or was it four?) being described one after the other. Maybe it was due to the late night I read that particular piece. Even so, thank goodness there’s a page in the front with the pictures.
Secondly it’s Angua. More precisely her insistence that something must eventually go wrong with her relationship and she’ll have to leave. So she always seemed all geared up to go. I never feel settled enough in the character to fully enjoy reading some her scenes. She just rubs me the wrong way.
Of course, with murders come clues and they were ... well, to be fair, some were a little odd at first. Vague enough to actually have me wondering
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how they got to where they got to from such information (yes, I peeked at the end and was puzzled until I reached where they’d solved it all).Though I enjoyed it, I’ve two niggles about this one. Firstly there’s the descriptions of the heralds themselves. I got all muddled in having three (or was it four?) being described one after the other. Maybe it was due to the late night I read that particular piece. Even so, thank goodness there’s a page in the front with the pictures.
Secondly it’s Angua. More precisely her insistence that something must eventually go wrong with her relationship and she’ll have to leave. So she always seemed all geared up to go. I never feel settled enough in the character to fully enjoy reading some her scenes. She just rubs me the wrong way.
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LibraryThing member DRFP
A Watch novel that, unusually, disappoints. I never saw why I should really care about the case involving the golems; my interest seemed to be taken for granted. The novel ends quite decently, but I wish those points had been better developed throughout the story.
Definitely one of the weaker
Definitely one of the weaker
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Discworld novels IMO. Show Less
LibraryThing member Moriquen
I have enjoyed reading this book a lot, even though I don't think it is the best Discworld novel so far. It was, for lack of a better word, cute ... Sort of a magical 'whodunnit'. I enjoyed reading about the beginning of the golems coming alive, or at least getting speach. Thanks again for sending
'But getting a grip would mean there would have to be a long, bottomless moment when he was not exactly holding on to the roof and not exactly holding on to the drainpipe and in very serious peril of holding on to the ground.'
'Commander, I always used to consider that you had a definite anti-authoritarian streak in you.'
'Sir?'
'It seems you have managed to retain this even though you are Authority.'
'Sir?'
'That's practically Zen!'
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it my way noname-blue.Some of my favourite quotes: (These quotes show exactly why I love Pratchett so much.)'But getting a grip would mean there would have to be a long, bottomless moment when he was not exactly holding on to the roof and not exactly holding on to the drainpipe and in very serious peril of holding on to the ground.'
'Commander, I always used to consider that you had a definite anti-authoritarian streak in you.'
'Sir?'
'It seems you have managed to retain this even though you are Authority.'
'Sir?'
'That's practically Zen!'
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