Night Watch, Pratchett. Yes. This was my first Discworld novel, though its Discworldness made no apparent difference to my reading. Pratchett’s writing is really quite solid, and I enjoyed Night Watch quite a bit: engaging characters, likable and detestable as required; flexible setting; compelling story.
I do not love Pratchett so much that I am going to become a completist, by any means, but I do think he is a reliable fall-back if I’m out of book with nothing else pressing.