An earlier arrival would have done much to strengthen this uneven novel. There is much fun to the tale once the smiling, sadistic elves actually appear, befuddling the townfolk with their beauty and illusion.

Only in the last third of the novel does he strike a successful balance among action, imagination and comedy. It's a tempting premise, but underdeveloped by Pratchett, who relies too heavily on his trademark humor, veering into the silly and sophomoric, to fuel the early portions of this fantasy. They've forgotten that elves are nasty creatures who live only to torture their prey-humans especially. Trouble is, almost everyone else in the kingdom of Lancre is eager to welcome the ``lords and ladies'' back. Only the three wacky witches, formidable Granny Weatherwax, crusty Nanny Ogg and scatterbrained Magrat Garlick, can ensure that the worst does not happen: the return of the elves. Worlds are weaving closer to one another, with unpredictable results. It's circle time on the Discworld portentous round depressions are showing up everywhere, even in bowls of porridge. This latest installment, however, is unlikely to widen his readership. The Discworld novels can be read in any order but Lords and Ladies is the fourth book in the Witches series.Pratchett (Small Gods) has won an ardent following with his tales of Discworld and his particular brand of comedic fantasy. Even in a world of dwarves, wizards, trolls, Morris dancers - and the odd orang-utan - this is going to cause trouble. And they're spectacularly nasty creatures.

Granny Weatherwax and her tiny coven of witches are up against real elves. Things who want to make mischief and play havoc with the natural order. Now Granny Weatherwax and her coven have really got their work cut out. The Lancre All-Comers Morris Team have got drunk on a fairy mound and the elves have come back, bringing with them cruelty, kidnapping, malice and evil. Unfortunately there's usually a damned good reason for there being walls between them in the first place - to keep things out. Fantasy fiction English fiction Its a hot midsummer night and the crop circles are appearing everywhere. Because sometimes, when there's more than one reality at play, too much dreaming can make the walls between them come tumbling down. It's Midsummer Night - no time for dreaming. The fairies are back - but this time they don't just want your teeth. The Discworld is very much like our own - if our own were to consist of a flat planet balanced on the back of four elephants which stand on the back of a giant turtle, that is. 'His spectacular inventiveness makes the Discworld series one of the perennial joys of modern fiction' Mail on Sunday

Lords and Ladies by Terry Pratchett