The byplay between Stephanie and Skulduggery, and particularly Skulduggery's occasionally world-weary remarks, made the pages fly by. Though full of dangerous escapes, epic battles, and magical books and artifacts, what I liked most about Skulduggery Pleasant was Landy's lightly ironic voice. Together with a cast of not-necessarily trustworthy allies, Stephanie and Skulduggery fight to save the world. She is aided by, and becomes something of a sidekick to, Skulduggery Pleasant, a walking, talking skeleton. Left alone at Gordon's house through circumstance, Stephanie, who has always craved adventure, finds herself under attack and drawn into an unexpected world of magic. Gordon leaves his home and most of his property to his favorite niece, Stephanie. Skulduggery Pleasant, Book 1, begins when a horror author named Gordon Edgley dies unexpectedly. I do think that the time is right this time, and that the series is going to be a hit. I agreed to take a look at the first book. As outlined in a May Publisher's Weekly article, they have issued paperbacks of the first three books, which were published earlier in the US, and will be publishing books four to six in the US for the first time this month. Will evil win the day? Will Stephanie and Skulduggery stop bickering long enough to stop it? One thing's for sure: evil won't know what's hit it.HarperCollins is in the process of reintroducing Derek Landy's Skulduggery Pleasant series here in the US, after the books did much better in Ireland and the UK. And if there's anything Skulduggery hates, it's torture. Though he's about to discover that being a skeleton doesn't stop you from being tortured, if the torturer is determined enough. When all hell breaks loose, it's lucky for Skulduggery that he's already dead. Pursued by evil forces intent on recovering a mysterious key, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source - the wisecracking skeleton of a dead wizard. But when he dies and leaves her his estate, Stephanie learns that while he may have written horror, it certainly wasn't fiction. Stephanie's uncle Gordon is a writer of horror fiction. Though you don't actually have a heart,' she said.

So you won't keep anything from me again?' With a pair like this on the case, evil had better watch out.

Meet the great Skulduggery Pleasant: wise-cracking detective, powerful magician, master of dirty tricks and burglary (in the name of the greater good, of course). Popular Crime & Action Series Expand submenu.

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy