Like so many of Pratchett's satirical inventions, The Fifth Elephant begins with an invitation. This one is both royal and engraved, requiring that Commander Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork constabulary attend as both detective and diplomat. The one role he relishes; the other, well, requires ruby tights. Where cops go, crime, of course, follows -- and an attempted assassination and a theft soon lead to a desperate chase from the low halls of Discworld royalty to the fat mines of Uberwald. Vimes's adventure is as profound as it is hilarious, sending up every aspect of modern life.