Night Watch

Quite possibly the best piece of fantasy fiction available. That's hyperbole, sure, but it's also me being serious as can be. Night Watch combines Pratchett's brilliant weaving of history and social commentary, with his masterfully conceived characters, who truly seem pulled from life. These people are in your town, they're in your memory, your history.

The storytelling is top shelf in this one. Every page leads to the next, unerringly. Every sentence leads to the next, unerringly. Every scene, every major plot moment, all lead straight to the finish with not a drop of ink wasted and not a single hole left unfilled.

If you're new to Discworld, go ahead and start here. Every other story on The Disc connects to this one in some way.