***Review*** Death Bringer (Skulduggery Pleasant #6) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book

“My power is practically limitless,” Melancholia said softly. “I’d describe the sensation to you but words would not be sufficient. To understand what it’s like to be a god, you’d have to be a god. Like me...”

The Death Bringer has risen.

Faced with a possible cataclysm that could change the world, Skulduggery and Valkyrie have seven days to uncover the Necromancers’ secret before it’s too late.

The clock is ticking.

Lord Vile is loose/

And after this one, nothing will

Ever be the same again.

Pre Read Thoughts

This is the latest Skulduggery Pleasant book and boy am I excited to read it. I stole this off my brother. He got this book as a birthday present off me; I’d pre-ordered it on Amazon especially and paid £9.99 for it. The RRP is actually £14.99 but this book is actually a proper hardback. The cover is pretty awesome; I love how it shows a graveyard and the shadows as it ties in with the Necromancers being a large part of the story. This is probably the best Skulduggery Pleasant synopsis yet as it actually tells you a bit about the story and sometimes it’s nice to have an idea of what the book is about.

Post Read Thoughts

***THIS IS BOOK 6. THEREFORE THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS. SORRY FOLKS***

I really enjoyed this however I don’t think it was quite as good as book 5 but that’s just my personal opinion and I know that some people disagree with me.  Some of the plot didn’t really appeal to me and I already have theories about the plots for future books in the series. These negatives were evened out by an amazing plot twist and some incredible action scenes. There’s even a new sub-plot and I’m really looking forward to seeing where it’s going.

Both Lord Vile and Darquesse appear in this. It was great to see them both as I’ve been wondering about Vile for the past few books and Darquesse is a character that I’ve been wanting to see more of. I didn’t like China’s storyline in this book. She’s one of my favourite characters and having her put in the position that she was. It wasn’t China. Valkyrie’s treatment of Fletcher in this was diabolical! I don’t want to see him treated like that ever again. I have a lot of love for Fletcher. Caelan is an idiot, hilarious, but a complete and utter melodramatic fool. Finally I just quickly want to say that I missed Tanith in this, a lot. She’s another one of my favourite characters and not having her involved felt weird.

Overall this is another ‘good but not quite there yet’ book. For me the fact that plots that were started in Mortal Coil were put on ice in favour of starting more new ones was a bit distracting. I’d like to see some of the loose ends tied up a bit better. I know that they’ll probably be answered in the next book but it doesn’t come out until next year. Although this didn’t appeal to me as much as the previous story I still loved this one and would recommend it to children, teens and adults  who like magical detective books.

My Rating

4 stars – enjoyable fun for all the family. I’m still waiting for the book that blows me away though and to be honest, I’m not that good at waiting. I definitely think that you should read all the books in this series that are out now and wait for the next book with me.

***Review*** Mortal Coil (Skulduggery Pleasant #5) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book

Meet Skulduggery Pleasant: detective, magician, warrior. Oh yes, and dead.

With Valkyrie struggling to protect her dark secret, Skulduggery and the gang are more vulnerable than ever, just as a plague of body-snatching Remnants are released upon the world...

Pre Read Thoughts

I managed to successfully prise this book out of my brother’s hands after a few hours of begging and looking cute... oh and I told our mum that I’d be quicker reading it first! He bought this off Amazon for a couple of pounds less that the £6.99 RRP because who doesn’t love a bargain? The cover is really dark and eerie with all the blues and greens. The back cover with Valkyrie stands out more for me than the front which has Skulduggery on it. That’s just my opinion though, you may think differently. The synopsis is short, sweet and very intriguing. That’s just how I like them!

Post Read Thoughts

***THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW AS THIS IS BOOK 5 IN A SERIES***

This series just keeps getting better and better now that it’s found its stride. I honestly didn’t think that Dark Days could be top but Mortal Coil comes along and does just that. The action sequences got my adrenaline pumping and there were some twists and turns that had me wide eyed with shock. One moment literally had me crying out as the plot went somewhere that I didn’t want it to. The pace now has slower moments so there’s time for the reader to catch their breath. I once again thought that the writing had improved. The plot is now less transparent and that means that the reader has to work for their answers.

This book has a mini story in the back: hooray! This means I now get to do a mini review. The story is called “The Wonderful Adventures of Geoffrey Scrutinous” which is an excellent, if slightly long, title and the story itself is just as good. It was laugh out loud funny and the characters were definitely at their best. I loved Geoffrey in this story, he had me constantly giggling and although he was always amusing there were moments when I didn’t blame him for how he felt. The story itself was solid and my favourite of the ones I’ve read.

I know which characters I want to mention but I just quickly want to say that there’s one scene with Darquesse that I adored, I hope that there are more in future books as it’s a really interesting plot line. Someone I’ve been meaning to mention but haven’t gotten around to until now is Kenspeckle Grouse. He’s one of my favourites in the series as he’s like the grandfather that I never had. I’d love for him to be real and treat me like he does Valkyrie. Geoffrey Scrutinous is an awesome character and I loved his batty fashion sense. The character was given a place in the book because of a competition. What an amazing thing to do and congratulations to the winner! Your character rocks. Tanith’s story had an interesting development in this one. I don’t want to say too much about it but I can’t wait to see where Mr Landy takes this one. I think I know what I’d do with it.

Overall the series has finally started to get going and is showing off all that potential I saw in book one. I don’t think I can take any more twists and turns in this series but I’m hooked and that means I guess I’m going to have to. This is a genuinely good book by any standard. It is superior to a lot of books that are aimed at older people. I definitely recommend this to fans of magic, or fans of detectives. If you like both then I’m assuming you’ve already read this series.

My Rating

Main story: 4 stars – Oh me, oh my. It just keeps getting better; this series might even earn itself a five before it ends.

Short story: 5 story – Hilarious, definitely a story that I’d read again and again, and recommend again and again.

Overall rating: 4 stars – It’s not worth five yet. It didn’t always have my attention. The author seems to be determined to get that elusive fifth star from me though and I love a tryer.  Maybe next time Mr Landy.

***Review*** Dark Days (Skulduggery Pleasant #4) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book

 “Valkyrie turned to the portal. The wind whipped her hair. She ran, straight into the yellow...”

Skulduggery Pleasant is gone, sucked into a parallel dimension. There is no official Sanctuary-approved plan to save him.

But Valkyrie’s never had much time for plans...

Pre Read Thoughts

Yes, that’s right folks, I’ve finally got my grubby little mitts on my brother’s copy of Skulduggery Pleasant 4. Now all I have to do is read it. I’m looking forward to delving back into the world of the skeleton detective as I’m suffering quite badly from Skulduggery withdrawal. As I have just said I have nabbed this off my wonderful brother (cheers dude!), I paid nothing but he bought it off Amazon for a couple of pounds less than the £6.99 RRP. (What can I say? He’s evidently a cheapskate.) The cover is very bright and colourful and it stands out even at a distance. The synopsis is short and to the point. I’m off to read this now. I can’t wait to finish it.

Post Read Thoughts

***THIS IS BOOK 4 IN THE SERIES! THIS MEANS THERE MAY BE SPOILERS ABOUT THIS AND PREVIOUS BOOKS!***

Wow! This is easily my favourite Skulduggery pleasant book so far. There was just something about this that the other books lacked. The pace just felt right whereas in the previous 2 books especially, I felt that there hadn’t been time for me to take a breath and analyse the goings on. The writing is improving with every book, although I still find that the fight scenes can still get jumbled. I liked knowing more about the evil plot and yet I didn’t know enough to scream at the book what they had to do to save the day. It made me appreciate how complex the story is and how many plotlines that the author is weaving  together.

Some really interesting things happen with the main characters because Skulduggery isn’t in the first ¼ of this book because of how book 3 ended. This means we get to see Valkyrie step up to the plate and be the leader instead of the sidekick. I am so pleased she got the chance as it made me love her even more. I’ve been wondering if she was capable of taking responsibility for her actions and she is which is definitely a good thing. Both Tanith and Fletcher Renn have bigger roles in this book due to Skulduggery being unable to help with their first mission. Fletcher in particular is a god addition as he’s so funny and has memorable hair. As a character he’s a grower, but once he’s done that you won’t be able to hate him.

Overall this is the book that has truly convinced me that books like Skulduggery Pleasant are the way forward for kids nowadays. It blends together lots of different elements and that  really adds depth to the book and makes it more widely accessible to girls and boys. The cliff hanger at the end just had me in shock. I hadn’t seen it coming and now I have to persuade my brother to hand over book five so I can find out what happens next. If you’ve only read the first three books because the flow was off then I recommend you carry on. This book really hots up the series.

My Rating

4 stars – I can’t say enough good things about this book. I think people should read it regardless of age or gender. It’s just a fun way to waste a few hours. The whole series is in fact, now I just have to go persuade my brother to allow me the pleasure of reading book 5. Wish me luck!

***Review*** The Faceless Ones (Skulduggery Pleasant #3) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book


Meet Skulduggery Pleasant: detective, magician, warrior. Oh yes, and dead.

You've seen it all before: some bad guy wants to bring about the end of the world. A few people get hurt, sure, but everything's all right in the end. Well... not this time.


Pre Read Thoughts


My brother finished this just in time for me to pick it up and read it. I don't think I'll be as lucky with the next book though. He finished it because I've been enjoying the series and I like to read as much of a series back to back because I get a better sense of the overall picture (and lots of other intelligent sounding stuff). He bought this off Amazon, I don't know how much he paid but it's currently £3.99 on there (it's a bargain!!!). The RRP is £6.99 though if you aren't a fan of online shopping (you'd save £3 if you made an exception though). The cover is very colourful. I love the purples and the oranges, it really catches my eye. The synopsis is amusing, I chuckled along to it.


Post Read Thoughts


***MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS AS THIS IS BOOK 3***

It's an enjoyable story but once again it never seemed to slow down. There were a few chapters were it looked like it would but then it just led to yet another action scene. It got a bit samey after a while. Valkyrie/Stephanie's family are once again only used to further the plot which is a shame as I'd love to see Valkyrie living the life of Stephanie Edgely more often. The writing is good, nothing jumped out at me as particularly horrific. There were a few funny scenes but this book is darker than its predecessors, probably because the original readers are growing older and can deal with it.

Like book 1 this has a short story at the end of it. It's called "The Slightly Ignominious End to the Legend of Black Annis" I know, ut's ever such a catchy title. I wasn't a massive fan of this, it just didn't do anything for me. It's about Tanith Low but it's written from the POV of Black Annis. I would've liked to know more about her as I didn't really understand what she was and what she could do. The ending was good though and the last few lines amused me.

I don't want to talk about Tanith Low, Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain/Stephanie Edgely because they seem to be the only characters I've talked about so far and there are many others. So I shall choose three random characters that made an impression on me. China Sorrows is probably one of my favourite characters. With every book she gets a slightly bigger role and I love the author for doing that. Finbar Wrong only had a bit part in this book but he really stood out for me. He's hilarious, one of the funniest characters of the entire series, I want him to get a bigger role. Finally I want to say a few words about Mr Bliss - he's scary, he's super strong, he's China's brother. What's not to like?

Overall a fun, quick read that kids should love. This series continues to stand out as ne of the funniest I've read in a while. I wouldn't give this to a kid just before bed as it contains many, many fights and they may start to think that they can hang upside down from the ceiling like a ninja (let's be honest, we've all done it).


My Rating

Main Story: 3 stars - Good but not brilliant. One day one of these books will blow me away though.

Mini Story: 3 stars - The other mini story was superior in every way. This one was "meh" in comparison

Overall Rating: 3 stars - No maths required. If you've read the first two books you should definitely pick this one up.

Playing With Fire (Skulduggery Pleasant #2) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book

You know how it is - you think you've saved the world, and then ANOTHER evil villain turns yp with an unbeatable monster and starts breaking things.

Oh yes, and you've got a skull for a head. A thirteen-year-old girl for a sidekick. And no clue what to do.

Pre Read Thoughts

I really liked book one so I decided it was worth stealing I mean borrowing book two off my brother. I don't have a clue what he paid for it but the RRP is £6.99. I think he got it off Amazon though so he will have paid a couple of pounds less. This cover isn't as colourful as the previous one and that saddens me. This is a kid's book but it feels really plain. There's an actual synopsis for this one though, and that can only be a good thing.

Post Read Thoughts


***MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS AS THIS IS BOOK 2***

The synopsis is misleading. It makes it sound like this book is written from Skulduggery's POV, when it's actually from Valkyrie's That really frustrated me as I like  a synopsis to be an accurate representation of the book. Anyway, I'll move on to the actual story now, once again I liked it. It had a speedy pace that never slowed down but sometimes I found myself wishing it would, I was exhausted by the time I'd finished! The writing was good, it didn't annoy me in anyway but it didn't blow me away either. At least I ended this book able to speak. There have been some were I haven't.

Valkyrie Cain is a good leading lady, I approve of her. She lives for the adventure and is slowly learning to think on her feet and that saving the world might not be everything. She doesn't sit around moping all the time, even when she misses her family life. Overall she's a pretty fun character to be with. Skulduggery Pleasant is her mentor and I love him. I love his humour, his disguise, his quick thinking but most of all I love his car. I want it, no, I need it, I am going to find a way into the books so I can steal it. (Not that I condone stealing. Don't do it kids!) Finally I quickly want to mention Tanith Low, she was in the previous book as well. I hope her role gets even bigger as the series goes on as I like her and she's pretty darn handy with a sword.

Overall an enjoyable book though it's missing a lull in action which would allow the reader to gather thoughts but I doubt the target audience cares about that. I would've loved a few chapters from either the reflection's POV or Valkyrie being Stephanie I feel that it could've added the dimension of seeing the contrast of worlds between Valkyrie and Stephanie. I want to see her interact with her family more as they're rarely mentioned unless they're used in a way to move the plot forward. I love the fact the the MC is a girl though as it makes these books more likely to appeal to girls as well as boys. I think this is better suited for kids as they will love the constant action.


My Rating

 3 stars - it's good. It's not brilliant though and it could've been. It's definitely worth a read around this time of year though, a skeleton detective, it's nearly Halloween. I think I may have just sorted out some Trick or Treat costume issues... anyway back to the book. I think you should let your kids read this and the first book. I hope they enjoy them in fact.

***Review*** Skulduggery Pleasant (Skulduggery Pleasant #1) by Derek Landy

On the Back of the Book


Meet Skulduggery Pleasant: detective, magician, warrior. Oh yes, and dead.

[Now, I think we all agree that that is the worst blurb in history so I'm going to use the Goodreads description.]

Goodreads Description

Meet Skulduggery Pleasant. Sure, he may lose his head now and again (in fact, he won his current skull in a poker match), but he is much more than he appears to be—which is good, considering that he is, basically, a skeleton. Skulduggery may be long dead, but he is also a mage who dodged the grave so that he could save the world from an ancient evil. But to defeat it, he'll need the help of a new partner: a not so innocent twelve-year-old girl named Stephanie. That's right, they're the heroes.

Stephanie and Skulduggery are quickly caught up in a battle to stop evil forces from acquiring her recently deceased uncle's most prized possession—the Sceptre of the Ancients. The Ancients were the good guys, an extinct race of uber-magicians from the early days of the earth, and the scepter is their most dangerous weapon, one capable of killing anyone and destroying anything. Back in the day, they used it to banish the bad guys, the evil Faceless Ones. Unfortunately, in the way of bad guys everywhere, the Faceless Ones are staging a comeback and no one besides our two heroes believes in the Faceless Ones, or even that the Sceptre is real.

So Stephanie and Skulduggery set off to find the Sceptre, fend off the minions of the bad guys, beat down vampires and the undead, prove the existence of the Ancients and the Faceless Ones, all while trading snappy, snippy banter worthy of the best screwball comedies.

[Much better. Now we can get down to reviewing.]


Pre Read Thoughts


I stole this book from my brother because he said that he thought I'd like it. By "stole" I mean "borrowed" by the way. I bumped it up to the top of my TBR for a favourites challenge that I'm taking part in on Goodreads. As I stole borrowed this off my brother I didn't pay anything for it, however I believe he paid £6.99 at WHSmith, it may have been part of an offer but I don't know. I love the front cover and the back cover for that matter. They're really eye catching and well drawn. The colours are bright and draw you to the book and the font is amazing. The synopsis, as we have already established, is a bit rubbish. Okay, it's more than a bit rubbish but I'm hoping that the book is much better.


Post Read Thoughts


I really enjoyed this. It appealed to me on so many levels. It was a simple read that was a nice change to Pride & Prejudice, which I'm also reading. The humour was right up my street, especially Skulduggery's. I spent a lot of time sniggering at him. The opening paragraph had me hooked. I felt like I was put straight into an interesting scene and that made me stick with the book. The writing in general was really good. It had a good pace and wasn't written just for kids (in my opinion. I found it thoroughly entertaining and I'm 20). The plot was a little obvious for me in places. I guess that this is because this is aimed at kids and they wouldn't think the way I did. I didn't let that bother me though and it's pretty much my only complaint. Sometimes I feel that a book is too long or too short but I thought this was the perfect length. It didn't feel like there was too much filler or not enough action.

This is normally where I tell you all about the characters but "my" copy of Skulduggery Pleasant contains a short story called "The Lost Art of World Domination" and I think it deserves a short review. I thought it was hilarious, I don't mean I had a little chuckle. I mean I was in stitches, I didn't know it was possible to laugh that much over a story. It was everything a short story should be and more. It only took me about 10 minutes to read it but boy was it worth it. I think I enjoyed it way more than I did the main story.

The narrator for this story is 12-year-old Stephanie Edgely and I confess: I liked her. She had more guts than a lot of other main characters I've read this year. She was extremely likeable and I found her reactions to things to be very realistic. I do think that she could have been more involved in the action sometimes but I get why she wasn't. The other main character is Skulduggery Pleasant. He takes Stephanie on as a sort of apprentice/partner. I loved everything about him, words actually can't describe what I loved about him and why. He had me laughing my head off many times with his antics and speeches.

Overall this is a light, fun, quick read that should entertain boys and girls. I found it captured my attention quickly and didn't get boring half way through the story as some books do. I definitely recommend this for kids and teens, it's a different way of looking at a mystery novel and the inclusion of magic means that it'll probably hit the mark with people who like magical novels. It's a great way to waste a few hours when there's nothing on the TV or just because you want to.


My Rating

This rating has three parts to it because of the short story. I wanted to evaluate them separately and then round together for an overall rating.

Main story: 3 stars - Enjoyable but nothing special. It could have been better.

Short story: 5 stars - Awesomeness. I love it, I may steal the book to read it again and again. The amazingness of this may be why the book seems to be lacking something in comparison.

Overall rating: 4 stars - You do the maths as to how the overall rating is 4. It's definitely worth reading this story if you want something a little different. I'm going to read the rest of the series now because I liked this one so much.