Written by Kelsey Kenneally

Skulduggery Pleasant is the bestselling series by Irish author Derek Landy. Landy received several awards for Skulduggery Pleasant, including the Irish Book Awards in 2009 and 2010, was nominated for a Young Reader’s Choice Award in 2010, and won Irish Book of the Decade in 2010, as well as many other accolades.

The story follows twelve-year-old Stephanie Edgeley who inherits her late uncle’s mansion. While she is staying overnight in said mansion, she receives a mysterious phone call before being attacked. She is rescued by a man named Skulduggery Pleasant, who happens to be a four hundred-year-old sorcerer detective and a living skeleton. Stephanie, who later takes on the name Valkyrie Cain, begs Skulduggery to take her on as his apprentice, and he reluctantly agrees because she is holding his very expensive hat hostage. The pair goes on many thrilling adventures in their attempt to stop the terrifying Baron Vengeous from bringing back creatures known as the Faceless Ones.

Intrigued? Well, we’ve come up with a few reasons as to why you should read the series, or possibly even reread it!

1. All The Action/Fantasy/Adventure You Could Ask For

The story is chock-full of talking skeletons, evil sorcerers, beastly vampires, ancient legends, gritty action, and deadly gods. Each chapter is action-packed and hilarious, and Skulduggery and Valkyrie make a perfect, witty force to be reckoned with.

2. Unique Humour

Derek Landy’s sense of humour is unlike anything I have every read before. His unique blend of sarcastic, ego-centric characters and absurd dialogue will have the reader nursing stitches through every last page.

3. Badass Protagonist

Despite only being twelve, Valkyrie quickly proves to be skilled detective and not too shabby in a fight. She manages to both amuse and excite readers with her sarcastic humour, her complete disregard for authority, and her clever ingenuity in the face of adversaries straight out of nightmares.

4. Fast-paced and Clever

Landy delivers a story that keeps readers glued to every last word. This book has the power make you read 600 pages in one day and still be thirsting for more.

5. Perfect Introduction to Horror

If you have ever wanted to try the horror genre, but were too scared to try, look no further! Skulduggery Pleasant may qualify as an action/adventure novel, but it flirts with horror just enough to introduce you to the genre. The novel is every bit as gritty, gory, and horrifying as it is action-packed and humorous.

6. Branches into Adult Fiction

On the subject of perfect introductions to new genres, Skulduggery Pleasant also allows readers to make the jump from young adult to adult fiction. With its mature themes, explicit gore, and legitimately terrifying villains, readers will be totally ready to move out of the kids section of the library after completing this rollercoaster.

7. Brilliant World-building

Skulduggery and Valkyrie may live in modern-day Ireland, but their adventures are anything but ordinary. Both are part of an underground society of sorcerers living among normal people like us. The mixture of magic and gritty reality provides a setting unlike anything to grace library shelves since Harry Potter.

8. Unusual Characters

Besides Skulduggery and Valkyrie, the cast of Skulduggery Pleasant is as colourful as its humour. With characters like the sword-wielding mercenary, Tanith Low; scarred tailor, Ghastly Bespoke; and manipulative information-broker, China Sorrows, everyone is distinctive and memorable.

9. Beautiful Cover Art

If none of my other reasons have convinced you, consider the beautiful cover art! The Irish covers in particular display realistic characters and set the tone of the novel nicely.

10. Deserves More Publicity in the US

While Skulduggery Pleasant is a bestselling series in the UK, hardly anyone in the US has ever heard of it. Everyone I know who has read the series raves about it, but die-hard fans are few and far between on this side of the Atlantic. Many don’t know about the series, and only the first six books were released here in 2018 with more coming out this year. Now, Skulduggery Pleasant is readily available in the US for anyone willing to take the plunge!

What do you think of Skulduggery Pleasant? Tell us in the comments below!