Witches Abroad

by Terry Pratchett

Paperback, 289 pages

English language

Published Sept. 5, 2005 by Corgi.

ISBN:: 978-0-552-15296-9

(147 reviews)

Be careful what you wish for...Once upon a time there was a fairy godmother named Desiderata who had a good heart, a wise head, and poor planning skills—which unforunately left the Princess Emberella in the care of her other (not quite so good and wise) godmother when DEATH came for Desiderata. So now it's up to Magrat Garlick, Granny Weatherwax, and Nanny Ogg to hop on broomsticks and make for far-distant Genua to ensure the servant girl doesn't marry the Prince.But the road to Genua is bumpy, and along the way the trio of witches encounters the occasional vampire, werewolf, and falling house (well this is a fairy tale, after all). The trouble really begins once these reluctant foster-godmothers arrive in Genua and must outwit their power-hungry counterpart who'll stop at nothing to achieve a proper "happy ending"—even if it means destroying a kingdom.

28 editions

Niko reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett

I do love witches

4 stars

A story about stories. Granny Weatherwax has jokes!

jonn reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld, #12)

Story about stories, winning, losing and a fair amount of headology

5 stars

Pritchett has found a way to make witches even more "metal" than they were in the previous books. The portrayal of them riding the brooms forming a wing is absolutely badass. The story starts with an inevitability of an old witch losing and unfolds into an adventure planned out by her in quite some details.

Diverse set of characters, plot twists and wit. My favorite quote is exploring the perception of justice and the willingness to act upon it:

“Let’s throw her off the tower,” said Magrat.

“All right,” said Nanny. “Do it, then.”

Magrat hesitated. “Well,” she said, “when I said let’s throw her off the tower, I didn’t mean me personally throwing her off, I meant that if there was any justice she ought to be thrown off—”

“Then I shouldn’t say any more on that score, if I was you,” said Nanny, kneeling carefully on the crunching …

Diverse set of characters, plot twists and wit. My favorite quote is exploring the perception of justice and the willingness to act upon it:

“Let’s throw her off the tower,” said Magrat.

“All right,” said Nanny. “Do it, then.”

Magrat hesitated. “Well,” she said, “when I said let’s throw her off the tower, I didn’t mean me personally throwing her off, I meant that if there was any justice she ought to be thrown off—”

“Then I shouldn’t say any more on that score, if I was you,” said Nanny, kneeling carefully on the crunching shards.

Roy Adams reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld, #12)

Three witches in a boat trying to stay afloat

5 stars

A wonderful retelling of Cinderella and other fairy tales with modern sensibilities and exploration of the consequences of easy magic solutions. Some very good headology was used to motivate the other witches to help Magrat be a fairy godmother.

Dustin reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld, #12)

Brilliantly borrowed stories

4 stars

Another very funny books in the witches series. So many brilliantly interwoven stories and borrowed ideas and themes. I had to laugh out loud a few times and will definitely continue my journey into the Discworld universe!

Eduardo Santiago reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

Glad it’s over. Written after Wyrd Sisters but it feels earlier: disjointed, gag-driven, even mean-spirited. Nanny and Granny come off as hollow caricatures. I don’t need to read this one again.

Avarla reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (14))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I forgot there is so much quotable and memorable material in here!
Granny is at her best and Nanny’s postcards are simply hilarious. The mother of all fairytale retellings, Witches Abroad goes behind the narrative and mixes fairytales, urban, I mean rural, myths, and meta text into a enchanting narrative.

Jack Miller reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (12))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I ended up enjoying this Discworld novel, but I can see why people generally don't rank the Witches series very highly (and I say that as someone who's read Equal Rites / Wyrd Sisters as well).

The first half of this book I was in danger of putting it down (like I did with Moving Pictures) because it seemed like a bunch of disconnected chances for the three witches to comment on real-world cultures from a sort of backward Lancre (rural UK) point of view. There's comedy there, but it's not so compelling.

I'm glad I stuck it out for the second half, however, because once the witches finish traveling and start to pursue the main plot it becomes a lot more interesting and coherent. Exploring the nature of stories and their unrealistic expectations, and even adding some interesting depth to the magic of Discworld. The end, in particular, really …

matt reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (12))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I've enjoyed every Weatherwax adventure, but Esme is particularly great in this one.

ghostchaser reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (12))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Headaloge

drizzy reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (12))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Witches are always fun. And stories are too as long as someone keeps an eye on them.

betty reviewed Witches Abroad by Terry Pratchett (Discworld (14))

Review of 'Witches Abroad' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

The one where the Witches set out to see the Discworld: or, actually, not, but that is the effect. Probably worth reading just for the way Nanny Ogg folds, spindles, and mutilates the French language, and several others that fail to clear her path quickly enough.

Although I really wish I knew what that joke Granny Weatherwax keeps on telling was when it was alive.