While others focus their attention on vampire love triangles, pubescent demi-gods or starving teenager battle royale, I would like to divert that attention to more distinguished forms of entertainment. Say, of men in tailored suits. Well, one man. A skeleton, really. Who casts spells. And drives a vintage Bentley.
Good, I've got your attention. Bear in mind that the views expressed here are not meant to be taken as fact, nor should you assume that any of the aforementioned series are bad in any way. (Heck I've read or seen adaptations of all of them and thoroughly enjoyed them)
But there could be some more love out there for a certain undead detective out there. Mind you, there will be spoilers,i.e. don't read too intensely if you want to start the series yourself. So without further ado, I present to you
Skulduggery Pleasant
A description in three parts
1. Story
It's the world of human fantasy. Every part, every creature of it, is a piece of the dreams and hopes of mankind. Therefore, it has no boundaries.Our story starts, as all stories start, with an inconspicuous event. The passing of Irishman and chidren's fantasy novel writer Gordon Edgley and the reading of his will, in which he leaves everything to his 12 year old niece, Stephanie, much to the dismay of her relatives.
Also present is the enigmatic former 'partner', mister Skulduggery Pleasant.
Steph decides to stay overnight in her uncle's mansion, when she is attacked by a not quite human assailant and subsequently rescued by detective Pleasant, guns and fireballs blazing.
"Listen up, honey, magic is real, your uncle knew it and seeing as you just got targeted by some very bad men, you'll be up to your neck in this until I find the one responsible for this."
Needless to say, little Stephanie tags along after this, meeting the likes of Ghastly Bespoke - a tailor of battle-resistant outfits -, China Sorrows - glamorous information broker - and Tanith Low - English agent and monster hunter.
Mages were not born with these, sometimes silly sounding, names, but take on a second name to preved themselves from being manipulated through name-magic; a very nasty control effect, which Stephanie experiences firsthand. This leads her to take on the name Valkyrie Cain to escape the effects
These encounters all lead to the retrieval of an artifact tied to Stephanie's ancestors (the Scepter of the Ancients), running from vampires (which are more akin to werewolves in the Pleasant-verse) and a final showdown between Skulduggery and the mage who killed him, Nefarian Serpine.
Nefarian, robbed of his edge as Pleasant cannot be killed like he was last time, obviously loses, whilst Valkyrie saves herself by displaying the first signs of a prodigious sorceress.
The first novel suffers, like most in a series do, from information overload. The writer has to set up the world and its limitations, create compelling characters, set up the transition from 'normal' to 'grand revelation' as well as finishing a tale in case your novel does not prove to be the break out hit you thought it would be.
Something has to give, and usually it is the story.
Luckily, this is remedied in later novels, with minor plot elements turning into major themes for later novels.
And fortunately, the main villains, who ultimately are defeated, tend to play second fiddle to the dastardly henchmen they have, who live to thwart the heroes another time.
Among those are shadowspider monstrosities, turncoats and assassins that can ignore walls.
And of course, the threats grow larger as well, with body snatchers and Lovecraftian horrors being some of the more memorable foes.
2. Dramatis Personae
In our darkest hour we're all just shades of greyTo keep your readers interested, not only need your characters be powerful, independent and interesting, they should also be inherently flawed. Because without that they would not be memorable.
Skulduggery Pleasant
Suave, sarcastic, skeleton. Skulduggery used to be human, until Nefarian Serpine killed his family and subsequently him during the Great War. His rage was so great, however, that he came back, animated his bones and has been going strong since. His methods are questionable sometimes and he can be a cold hearted killer if needed.
Valkyrie Cain
Little Val has everything going for her, last survivor of the Ancient race, magical wunderkind, with her powers growing and diversifying every novel. Unfortunately, this also means she is slowly sliding down the right path, lying to her parents, employing the same scare tactics as Skulduggery and occasionally dipping into some Necromancy.
China Sorrows
Everybody loves China. No, really, any person that lays eyes on her falls in love with her. A trait very handy when extracting information for profit. Calculating, emotionless and yet, she tends to be more on the heroes' side.
Then again, there are those nasty rumours that she used to be the leader of this Lovecraftian cult as well as the one who betrayed Skulduggery's family.
Ghastly Bespoke
Ghastly might be the most sincere of the lot. Taking up trade as a tailor after the Great War, making the most battle-resistant yet splendid looking clothing available. Turning himself to stone to protect his friends and later
returning to life and being the same rock solid horribly scarred lovable giant he was before.
Tanith Low
Who better to fill in as a role model than a kick-ass swordswoman. Tanith is the epitome of physical prowess, mixing up slashes and quips whilst still looking out for her combat partners. This leaves her a bit emotionally stumped, though.
Vaurien Scapegrace
The Killer Supreme, a man who has turned murder into an art form. Or in his case, more of a theoretical discourse on the possibilities of killing people. Every series needs a comic relief henchman and Vaurien fits this part to a T.
Being turned into a zombie might have made him even more incompetent.
Dusk
Brilliant by day, feral by night. Dusk is one of the few vampires who actually uses supernatural medicine to keep from turning into the mindless monster that is a nocturnal vampire. Known to hold a grudge for a very long time, Dusk is as merciless as he is vindictive.
The Torment
Another Macchiavellan mastermind/monster. Dishevelled, disinterested and quite destructive. The Torment is the leader of a group of rogue mages, who willingly seclude themselves from mage society. He also turns into a monstrous arachnid-spewing eight-legged freak at a whim.
Billy-Ray Sanguine
Every series needs a villain you love to hate. Billy-Ray makes it that much easier. Blind assassin, check. Can move through floors and walls, double check. Has an enchanted razor that leaves permanent wounds. We have a winner. Add to that his Texan accent and psychopathic tendencies and you have a villain as cool as a cucumber.
3. World Building
You better wake up. The world you live in is just a sugar-coated topping. There is another world beneath it — the real world. And if you want to survive it, you better learn to pull the trigger!Characters in a vacuum are nothing. They need rules and a playground to use them in. Luckily, Pleasant-verse provides enough of it.
Leaving aside the fact that there are task forces assigned specifically to convince the general public that 'magic does not exist,' the entire mage network is quite organised, with each country having their own Sanctuary governing them. This leads to a fragile balance between the Sanctuaries, every one of them waiting for the slightest slip up to swoop in and take control. A situation made even more precarious by the Irish Archmage (much like a Hogwarts DADA teacher) being killed off every single novel.
Mages come in two main flavors: Elementals, who throw fireballs, walk on water and hover; and Adepts, who buff their own physical capabilities to turn into frontline fighter-mages. Both have their pros and cons and most neophytes like Valkyrie have until they reach the end of their puberty (well, an event which takes place between 16 and 20) before they have to lock in their discipline. Of course there are other options to choose from, clairvoyancy, necromancy and teleportation, but most mages of those schools have a certain natural predisposition towards it.
Every single mage is influenced by the Great War. Due to their incredible longevity, most of the mages that fought the War are still around. Fragile alliances made back then still resonate in the present and nobody is completely clean. All are morally grey, some more so than others.
Monsters abound as well, ranging from other malevolent wizards to the Faceless Ones, god-like entities locked away millennia ago, now thought to be myth. Zombies, vampires, goblins, Spring-Heeled Jack, they all make an appearance, while not feeling like the monster of the week.
All in all, the detective noir inspired atmosphere, combined with sarcasm and contemporary urban fantasy just work for me. So if Meyer or Collins do not tickle your fancy, why not try some Derek Landy.
