'Darkness isn't the opposite of light, it is simply its absence . . . what was radiating from the book was the light that lies on the far side of darkness, the light fantastic.'

The Discworld is in danger, heading towards a seemingly inevitable collision with a malevolent red star, its magic fading. It needs a hero, and fast.

What it doesn't need is Rincewind, an inept and cowardly wizard who is still recovering from the trauma of falling off the edge of the world. Or Twoflower, the well-meaning tourist whose luggage has a mind (and legs) of its own.

Which is a shame, because that's all there is . . .

'His spectacular inventiveness makes the Discworld series one of the perennial joys of modern fiction'Mail on Sunday

'Incredibly funny, compulsively readable' The Times

The Light Fantastic is the second book in the Wizards series, but you can read the Discworld novels in any order.