Clara’s Verdict
Eric is the slightest of the Discworld novels in length, and knowing that helps you enjoy it for what it is. At under four hours it is a brisk, playful detour: a teenage demonology enthusiast botches a summoning and lands not a biddable demon but Rincewind, the least helpful wizard on the Disc, plus the ever-menacing Luggage. From there it becomes a whistle-stop tour through time, space and the afterlife.
I find it best approached as a comic interlude rather than a main course. The story was originally conceived as an illustrated book, and it retains that quick, sketch-like quality, more a string of bright set pieces than a fully developed plot. But the jokes land, the Faust parody is affectionate, and Rincewind’s exasperation is always good company.
It will not convert a sceptic, and devoted readers rank it as minor Pratchett. As a short, funny palate cleanser between the bigger books, though, it does exactly what it sets out to do.
About the Audiobook
Eric is the ninth Discworld novel and another outing in the Rincewind thread, though as ever the books can be enjoyed in any order. Its hero, if that is the word, is Eric, the Disc’s only demonology hacker and not an especially good one. All he wants is the standard package of three wishes: to be immortal, to rule the world, and to have the most beautiful woman alive fall madly in love with him.
What he conjures instead of a tractable demon is Rincewind, probably the most incompetent wizard in the universe, along with the hostile item of travel accessory known as the Luggage. With this unpromising pair at his side, Eric is swept into a ride through space and time that soon has him wishing, quite fervently, that he had never been born. It is Pratchett riffing on the Faust legend with his usual glee, short, silly and studded with sharp little jokes about the perils of getting exactly what you ask for.
The Narration
Colin Morgan returns for this instalment, and across a compact three hours and fifty-eight minutes he keeps the whole thing bright and quick. The brevity suits him; there is no room for sag, and he keeps Eric’s teenage bravado and Rincewind’s weary panic bouncing off each other nicely. As with the other Penguin productions, Bill Nighy handles the footnotes and Peter Serafinowicz voices Death, small pleasures that give even this minor entry a sense of occasion.
It is an ideal listen for a single afternoon or a long errand. Morgan never overplays the comedy, trusting Pratchett’s phrasing to do the work, and the short running time means it never outstays its welcome.
What Readers Say
With a 4.5 from 5 reviews, Eric draws a small but affectionate response, tempered by the honesty Pratchett fans tend to bring. Jinxxx, a self-described big fan, calls it a great Discworld novel and insists that anything with Rincewind is the best mix of chaos, disaster and fun. F. M. Havicon, rating it four stars, is more exacting, noting that the story does not work quite as well stripped of its original illustrations and drifts in places into what feels like a first draft, while still finding enough good material to recommend it.
The shorter notes are fond. One listener simply calls it very good and enjoyable; Ian, on a mission to reread the whole series, was glad to catch this one he had missed and found it brilliant as expected. A third reader, rating it three stars, judges it a fun but minor side-adventure that could easily be skipped, yet was nice to revisit. The picture is of a slight, likeable entry that pleases the faithful without pretending to be top-tier Pratchett.
Who Should Listen?
This is for existing Discworld readers who want a quick, comic top-up, for fans of Rincewind and the Luggage, and for anyone in the mood for a short, silly listen that asks little and gives a steady stream of laughs. Newcomers might start somewhere meatier, but as a brief detour it is thoroughly pleasant.
If you have an afternoon and a fondness for comic fantasy, this compact adventure is an easy one to slot in. Listen to Eric on Audible
