Guards! Guards!

Discworld, Book 8

By: Terry Pratchett, Ben Aaronovitch - afterword

Narrated by: Jon Culshaw, Peter Serafinowicz, Bill Nighy, Ben Aaronovitch

Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

The audiobook of Guards! Guards! is narrated by impressionist and actor Jon Culshaw, best known for BBC Radio 4’s Dead Ringers, and for the Doctor Who audiobooks and dramas. BAFTA and Golden Globe award-winning actor Bill Nighy (Love Actually; Pirates of the Caribbean; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) reads the footnotes, and Peter Serafinowicz (Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; Shaun of the Dead) stars as the voice of Death. Featuring a new theme tune composed by James Hannigan.

'NOBLE DRAGONS DON'T HAVE FRIENDS. THE NEAREST THEY CAN GET TO THE IDEA IS AN ENEMY WHO IS STILL ALIVE.'

The city of Ankh-Morpork is in turmoil, its citizens revolting. Again.

A shadowy secret brotherhood has summoned a dragon to spread terror throughout the city, intent on overthrowing the Patrician and ruling in his place. Too bad the dragon has ideas of its own...

It's up to Captain Sam Vimes and the ramshackle Night Watch to stop it. Only problem is, the Watch are more used to dealing with mobs than dragons.

And if they can't bring down this fire-breathing tyrant and reinstate their own, slightly less dangerous one, Ankh-Morpork might be lost. For ever...

With an afterword by Ben Aaronovitch.

Guards! Guards! is the first book in the City Watch series, but you can listen to the Discworld novels in any order.

The first book in the Discworld series - The Colour of Magic - was published in 1983. Some elements of the Discworld universe may reflect this.

©1989 Terry Pratchett (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"This is one of Pratchett's best books. Hilarious and highly recommended." (The Times)

Enjoying the new versions

I’ll always have a soft spot for the original recordings, but I enjoy the production quality and voice acting of the new versions.

Stupendiferous!

Recommended for everybody! I have waited with anticipation for over a year and am not disappointed.

loops back to beginning in the final 30 seconds

I appreciated the narrator's consistency with matching a character voice to that character's dialogue. Nobby's voice acting is a perfect match for the personality, and Vimes is fairly good. I don't know yet that I liked it enough to re-purchase the rest of the Watch arc with this narrator -- it depends on the studio quality on Men At Arms, which is written as much more of an ensemble story.

the best

Sir Terry' is a masterful writer and this is some of his best work

1st disk book

It was a million to one chance but it might just work and so I laughed and cried and had a good time.

Great book great performance

You just can’t find a less than entertaining Terry Pratchett Discworld book. This is no exception.

Better than the original recording, great afterword, and one of Pratchett’s best

Great reading, my favorite so far of the new recordings. Excellent voices, timing, everything. Loved the afterword. This has been one of my favorites for a long time, and relistening to it had me almost laughing out loud with him as Sargent Colon asked if they might have a dartboard. Wonderful experience.

Worth the wait!

The city watch series is my second favorite, after the Death series, and I was waiting for the day they were available.

That day has come, and it is glorious - Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz were a given, and Jon Culsaw carries the narration and cast perfectly. If you know the story, you know what to expect and this DELIVERS!

Very listenable read of a classic

The guard books are some of my favorite of the Discworld books, and it’s lovely to have a reader that handles the material so well. I really enjoy that the voice of Death is by someone else.

It is a learning experience for everyone!

This is a fantastic take on Guards Guards, everyone is richly spoken, and you can hear the dirt in the voices of the long timers to the city.

Rumbling growls fit the alcohol blasted throat of Vimes, Colon is mild, Bobby is greasy with a smokers voice, and Carrot is innocent and idealistic as he should be.

Vetinari has a surprising rumble to him,but works with his early nihilism, and Sybil sounds appropriately worn down from her life till now.

Does it replace the older version? No, it is simply a delightfully different version.

If making Ahnk Morpok sound extra grungy is something you would enjoy, this us the telling for you.