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The story picks up where the first one left off, with Rincewind, Twoflower and the Luggage in dire peril. They're mysteriously saved and plonked down in the middle of a magical forest. Meanwhile an ominous red star has appeared in the sky of the disk and it appears to be growing each night. The Wizards of Unseen University want to read the Octavo to save the Disc, but Rincewind still has one of the Eight spells stuck in his head, so the hunt for the wizard is on.

I have no idea how many times I've read this, other than I'm sure this is at least my third time through. I had set my expectations of these first few Discworld novels based on a memory that they weren't all that good compared to later novels in the series, but to my happy surprise I found myself greatly enjoying this. This novel in a lot of ways, rather than The Colour of Magic, feels like the genesis of what the Discworld becomes.

In this one you get the introduction of the Librarian, Death's daughter Ysabell, Cohen the Barbarian and the beginnings of the more nuanced character of Death himself. This quote from Death regarding the rampant stupidity of the Star cultists could easily have come from a much later book:

NOT LIKE THIS. THE DEATH OF THE WARRIOR OR THE OLD MAN OR THE LITTLE CHILD, THIS I UNDERSTAND, AND I TAKE AWAY THE PAIN AND END THE SUFFERING. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND THIS DEATH-OF-THE-MIND.

All-in-all, it's the first inklings of the strong character work, social commentary and razor sharp humor that have made Pratchett a household name.

Very glad to revise my rating of this book to 5 stars and now I've very much looking forward to Equal Rites and Sourcery, neither of which I've reread before.