Men at Arms
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| Terry Pratchett The Discworld series 15th novel – 3rd City Watch story  |
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| Outline | |
| Characters: | The City Watch Havelock Vetinari |
| Locations: | Ankh-Morpork |
| Motifs: | |
| Publication details | |
| Year of release: | 1993 |
| Original publisher: | Victor Gollancz |
| Hardback ISBN: | ISBN 0-575-05503-0 |
| Paperback ISBN: | ISBN 0-552-14028-7 |
| Other details | |
| Awards: | |
| Notes: | Adapted as a play by Stephen Briggs. |
Men at Arms is the 15th Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett first published in 1993. It is the second novel about the Ankh-Morpork City Watch on the Discworld.
[edit] Plot
Edward d'Eath, an Assassin and son of a down-and-out noble family, is determined to track down the lost heir to Ankh-Morpork's throne, and place him as leader, no matter how many people he has to kill.
Meanwhile, Captain Samuel Vimes, captain of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, is confronted by new problems. About to be married to Sybil Ramkin, richest woman in Ankh-Morpork, he has to deal with the new recruits first: a dwarf, a troll, and a werewolf, representatives of ethnic minorities in the city. He also has to figure out who stole a mysterious device from the Assassins' Guild and solve a string of gruesome, seemingly random murders.
As the story progresses, it is made clear that d'Eath has stolen the 'gonne,' the disc's first firearm. He meant to use it to set the rightful king on the throne, but the device appears to have a strange mind of its own. After d'Eath takes it to Dr. Cruces along with his evidence of the king's identity, he is murdered by Dr. Cruces who then becomes a puppet of the gonne.
The Watch foil his attempt on the Patrician's life, losing Cuddy in the process, and Vimes and Carrot tail him into the sewers. After a brief struggle, Vimes manages to take the gonne and corner Cruces in his office in the Assassin's Guild. With Carrot's help, he resists the weapon and Carrot, learning of his heritage, kills Dr. Cruces with his distinctly non-magic sword. The gonne is destroyed, and Vimes takes over in the revived post of Commander of the Watch.
[edit] Translations
- Въоръжени мъже (Bulgarian)
- Muži ve zbrani (Czech)
- Te wapen (Dutch)
- Relvis mehed (Estonian)
- Vartiosto valmiina palvelukseen (Finnish)
- Le Guet des Orfèvres (French), the 36 Quai des Orfèvres is one of the addresse of Paris's Prefecture of Police
- Helle Barden (German) (Meaning "bright (clever) bards", though "Hellebarde" means halberd)
- אנשי המשמר (Anshey HaMishmar, lit. Men of the Guard) (Hebrew)
- Uomini d'arme (Italian)
- Zbrojni (Polish)
- К оружию! К оружию! (Russian) (Meaning To Arms! To Arms!)
- Oružane snage (Serbian)
- Hombres de armas (Spanish)
- En man på sin vakt (Swedish) (Meaning A man on his guard)
[edit] External links
| Reading order guide | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lords and Ladies |
15th Discworld Novel | Succeeded by Soul Music |
| Preceded by Theatre of Cruelty |
3rd City Watch Story Published in 1993 |
Succeeded by Feet of Clay |
