Skulduggery
  Pleasant          
  
          author: Derek Landy
   published: April 2007
    publisher: Harper Collins
                        368 pages
                        

     
       "Mr Pleasant, you're dead."

     

       Stephanie Edgley has no idea that her Uncle's fantastic fictional tales are
       in fact, the stuff of reality. Nor has she any idea that the strangely clothed
       man at his funeral is actually a defective detective from the otherworld.
       Skulduggery Pleasant has a mystery to solve, and Stephanie's coming
       along for the ride. It's a world full of vampires, of daemons, and magic
       that co-exists with our own. The peace between them is being
       disturbed, the fate of the world is at stake, and Stephanie's name is
       on the Bad Guy's lips. But she's got her own new name to conjur
       with. Skulduggery Pleasant. Wiseguy detective. He's a fast-talking
       skeleton, and he's most-decidedly dead...

  

       The Gnome says

       Wow. This is a riproaring read. Those 368 pages race by at a breakneck
       speed, probably because the author has come from a screenwriting
       background. Now some folks may think it's too breathless, that this
       tale needs more flesh on its funky skeletal bones. But this Gnome
       loves its style. There's some fabulous banter between the heroine and
       her new boney buddy, and for once, we're not tripping over great chunks
       of doomladen exposition.

       I don't know about you, but there are an awful number of big weighty
       fantasy volumes out there that sit like doorstops on your shelving,
       Waiting To Be Read...

       ...In contrast, "Skulduggery Pleasant" is a breeze. Nimblefooted and
       hip to the beat. Mr Pleasant takes his cue from Death in the Discworld
       books. There's a bit of Jack Skellington there too, and Mr Bojangles
       from "The Corpse Bride". They're all mixed up in a big mystery bowl,
       to produce a new wisecracking, hardboiled, jazzy star. But better
       still, this fellow has weight. He has a past. He has form.

       Stephanie's exploits unearth a devilish plot to unbalance the world.
       There's also a villain who sports a Red Hand of Doom that would make
       even Hellboy jealous. And although the adventure reaches a tidy
       conclusion, the door is left open to so much more. Which is terrific.
       Bring it on!

       You know, every other new children's book is saddled with the label
       of being "The Next Harry Potter", and Mr Pleasant's self-titled tale
       is no different. The publishers have invested an awful lot on the launch.
       They're guessing he has the same crossover appeal. But this time,
       they might actually be on to something...

    

       Collectors

       Collectors should look out for signed First Editions of the book.
       Many are dated, too, with 2nd April 2007 being the UK
       publication date...

        

       ...Now let's get a bit naughty, and turn our attention to the proof copies
       of this hip and happening book. These are the readers copies, sent out
       to the industry in advance of publication, to whet the appetite. Now these
       aren't supposed to be put out for sale. It's a big no-no, in fact. But
       Skulduggery's two proofs are just so fab, I had to detail 'em here.
       Here in the UK, we had a shiny black cover with fantastic day-glo
       orange edging on the pages. And in the US, they got a slightly
       tweaked logo design, in oh-so funky green.

       They're difficult to photograph, but ain't they fab?

          


    

      Buy this book

   
      Skulduggery Pleasant        Skulduggery Pleasant
      UK Hardback edition....              The UK paperback...


    

      On the web


      Skulduggery Pleasant
      Mr Pleasant has his own mini-site, with info,
      downloads and more...

      Harper Collins
      And here's the publishers' home...



   
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