by Derek Landy
ages: 10+
First sentence: “Gordon Edgley’s sudden death came as a shock to everyone — not least himself.”

I haven’t had this much fun reading a book since… well, since I read Anna Smudge.

Stephanie is your normal 12-year-old girl. That is, she thinks she is, until her uncle dies a mysterious death (well, the doctor’s say it’s natural, but we know better, don’t we?), and she inherits his house. She stays there one night, and is summarily attacked by a strange man demanding a key and saved by a strange man that turns out to be a walking, talking, fire-wielding… skeleton. She decides to fall in with the skeleton, Skulduggery Pleasant of the title, and discovers a whole world of magic, and, yes, danger and excitement.

There’s a lot of similarities to Anna Smudge — not just a precocious 12-year-old who can figure things out and save the world — but in style. I loved the combination of sass (not really snark or sarcasm) in the banters between Skulduggery and Stephanie. I loved the world that Landy created, with magic and mages and sorcerers; a world, not unlike Harry Potter’s, that exists parallel to our own. It was an exciting plot, too — possibly a tad on the violent side for younger readers — one that was full of twists, turns, and daring escapes. I enjoyed the power that Stephanie had (aside from it being plausible); it’s always nice to see our main character doing the rescuing and thinking rather than just running around having things happen to her. Very, very cool.

It’s the first in a series, for those who love series, but it’s also a good stand-alone book. And have I mentioned that it’s a whole lotta fun?