Skulduggery Pleasant

Skulduggery Pleasant

The covers of the Skulduggery Pleasant books
First series Skulduggery Pleasant Playing with Fire The Faceless Ones Dark Days Mortal Coil Death Bringer Kingdom of the Wicked Last Stand of Dead Men The Dying of the Light Second series Resurrection Midnight Bedlam Seasons of War Dead or Alive
Author	Derek Landy
Country	Republic of Ireland
Language	English
Genre	Detective, dark fantasy, children's literature, young adult fiction, war, horror, thriller, coming-of-age, comedy, dark comedy, satire
Publisher	HarperCollins
Published	2007–14 (first series) 2017– (second series)
Media type	Print (hardcover and paperback) Audiobook eBook

Skulduggery Pleasant is a series of dark fantasy novels written by Irish author Derek Landy. The books revolve around the adventures of fledgling detective Valkyrie Cain, her mentor Skulduggery Pleasant, along with other friends and allies. The central story concerns Valkyrie's struggle to stop evil forces threatening the world and her internal struggle to resist the darkness within.

Since the release of the first novel in 2007, Skulduggery Pleasant, the series has been praised by both readers and critics. The following novels were released each year afterward, with the exception of the fourth and fifth novels, Dark Days and Mortal Coil, which were both released in 2010. Landy was initially contracted to write three books, with any further books depending on how well the first trilogy sold. The success of the first novels ensured that the deal was extended first to six books and in 2011, HarperCollins signed the deal for the third and final trilogy.^[1]

In July 2016, Derek Landy announced via a video blog that although the Skulduggery Pleasant series was complete, the series as a whole was still set to continue with a sequel series, the first book of which was released on 1 June 2017, titled Resurrection.^[2][3] On 2 April 2020, Seasons of War, the fourth book in the second series, was released.^[4] It is the beginning of the second (and final) trilogy of that series. In October 2020, the title for the fourteenth book was revealed as Dead or Alive, which was released in April 2021, while the fifteenth book will be released in 2022.

Summary[]

First series novels[]

Skulduggery Pleasant[]

Stephanie Edgley's uncle passed away leaving her a fortune including his mansion. While staying there, she was attacked by a strange man and was rescued by Skulduggery Pleasant, a mysterious skeleton mage. Together with Ghastly Bespoke, China Sorrows and Tanith Low, Stephanie and Skulduggery tried to stop a plot for world domination of Serpine, an evil wizard. Serpine wanted to rule the world with the Scepter of the Ancients, a weapon used to defeat the tyrannical gods called the Faceless Ones. Serpine was the murderer of Skulduggery and his family in a war four hundred years ago. But Skulduggery returned from the death mysteriously as a living skeleton.

After obtaining the Scepter, Serpine created an immortal fighter called the White Cleaver. During a fight with the White Cleaver, Ghastly used magic to petrify himself to avoid being killed. Serpine then invaded the Sanctuary and killed two Elders with the help of the other traitorous Elder. He tried to use the Book of Names to control the World but all three Elders' consent was needed to read from it.

During the fight with Serpine in the Sanctuary, Stephanie glimpsed her True name in the Book of Names but could not remember it before the Book of Names was destroyed. Skulduggery destroyed Serpine with the Scepter, breaking the Scepter's power in the process. Afterward, Skulduggery offered to take Stephanie on as his assistant and apprentice because she is a descendant of the Ancients. Stephanie decided to takes the name of Valkyrie Cain.

Playing with Fire[]

With Serpine dead, the world is safe once more. At least, that's what Valkyrie and Skulduggery think, until the notorious Baron Vengeous makes a bloody escape from prison, and dead bodies and vampires start showing up all over Ireland. With Baron Vengeous after the deadly armour of Lord Vile, and pretty much everyone out to kill Valkyrie, the daring detective duo face their biggest challenge yet. But what if the greatest threat to Valkyrie is just a little closer to home…?

The Faceless Ones[]

As a number of teleporters are mysteriously murdered, Valkyrie and Skulduggery learn that it is quickly linked to a fanatical cult named the Diablerie, who seek to open a portal with the goal of returning the Faceless Ones to the world. With the assistance of cocky young teleporter Fletcher Renn, Valkyrie and Skulduggery have very little time to track down a mysterious man named Batu, stop the Diablerie, and prevent the return of the Faceless Ones. This one will have deadly consequences. Do panic. They are coming.

Dark Days[]

Skulduggery Pleasant is gone, sucked into a parallel dimension overrun by the Faceless Ones. If his bones haven’t already been turned to dust, chances are he’s insane, driven out of his mind by the horror of the ancient gods. There is no official, Sanctuary-approved rescue mission. There is no official plan to save him. But Valkyrie's never had much time for plans. The problem is, even if she can get Skulduggery back, there might not be much left for him to return to. There’s a gang of villains bent on destroying the Sanctuary, there are some very powerful people who want Valkyrie dead, and as if all that wasn’t enough it looks very likely that a sorcerer named Darquesse is going to kill the world and everyone on it. Skulduggery is gone. All our hopes rest with Valkyrie. The world’s weight is on her shoulders, and its fate is in her hands. These are dark days indeed.

Mortal Coil[]

Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain are back — just in time to see their whole world get turned upside down! While they struggle to protect a known killer from an unstoppable assassin, Valkyrie is on a secret mission of her own. This quest, to prevent her dark and murderous destiny, threatens to take her to the brink of death and beyond. And then the body-snatching Remnants get loose, thousands of twisted souls who possess the living like puppets, and they begin their search for a being powerful enough to lead them. Facing such insurmountable odds, Skulduggery, Valkyrie, Ghastly and Tanith can trust no one. Not even each other!

Death Bringer[]

The Necromancers no longer need Valkyrie to be their Death Bringer, and that’s a good thing. There's just one catch. The reason the Necromancers don't need her anymore. Because they've found their Death Bringer already, the person who will dissolve the doors between life and death. And that's a very, very bad thing… 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.

Kingdom of the Wicked[]

Magic is a disease. Across the land, normal people are suddenly developing wild and unstable powers. Infected by a rare strain of magic, they are unwittingly endangering their own lives and the lives of the people around them. Terrified and confused, their only hope lies with the Sanctuary. Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain are needed now more than ever. And then there's the small matter of Kitana. A normal teenage girl who, along with her normal teenage friends, becomes infected. Becomes powerful. Becomes corrupted. Wielding the magic of gods, they're set to tear the city apart unless someone stands up against them. Looks like it's going to be another one of those days…

Last Stand of Dead Men[]

War has finally come. But it's not a war between good and evil, or light and dark – it's a war between Sanctuaries. For too long, the Irish Sanctuary has teetered on the brink of world-ending disaster, and the other Sanctuaries around the world have had enough. Allies turn to enemies, friends turn to foes, and Skulduggery and Valkyrie must team up with the rest of the Dead Men if they're going to have any chance at all of maintaining the balance of power and getting to the root of a vast conspiracy that has been years in the making. But while this war is only beginning, another war rages within Valkyrie herself. Her own dark side, the insanely powerful being known as Darquesse, is on the verge of rising to the surface. And if Valkyrie slips, even for a moment, then Darquesse will burn the world and everyone in it.

The Dying of the Light[]

The final book of the first series. The War of the Sanctuaries has been won, but not without its casualties. Following the loss of Valkyrie Cain, Skulduggery Pleasant must use any and all means to track down and stop Darquesse before she turns the world into a charred, lifeless cinder, drawing together a team of soldiers, monster hunters, killers, criminals… and Valkyrie's own murderous reflection. The war may be over, but the final battle is about to begin. And not everyone will get out of here alive…

Second series novels[]

In October 2019, following a joint interview alongside Eoin Colfer, Landy confirmed the original and preferred title of Resurrection and the sequel series as a whole to be Valkyrie Cain, after both series' main protagonist, a title previously considered for both Playing with Fire and the first series as a whole, attributing its continued official disuse to an unnamed HarperCollins executive.^[19]

Resurrection[]

A lot has changed. Roarhaven is now a magical city, where sorcerers can live openly. Valkyrie Cain has been out of action for years, recovering from the war against her alter-ego Darquesse, which nearly destroyed her and everyone else. Some things never change though: bad people still want to do bad things, and Skulduggery Pleasant is still there to stop them. When Skulduggery learns of a plot to resurrect a terrifying evil, he persuades Valkyrie to join him for just 24 hours. But they need someone else on their team, someone inconspicuous, someone who can go undercover. Enter Omen Darkly. Student at the new Corrival Academy. Overlooked. Unremarkable in every way. 24 hours to save the world. One sharply-dressed skeleton. One grief-stricken young woman. One teenage boy who can’t remember which class he’s supposed to be in. This cannot end well…

Midnight[]

For years, Valkyrie Cain has struggled to keep her loved ones safe from harm, plunging into battle — time and time again — by Skulduggery Pleasant's side, and always emerging triumphant. But now the very thing that Valkyrie fights for is in danger, as a ruthless killer snatches her little sister in order to lure Valkyrie into a final confrontation. With Skulduggery racing to catch up and young sorcerer Omen scrambling along behind, Valkyrie only has twelve hours to find Alice before it’s too late. The clock is ticking…^[20]

Bedlam[]

On a desperate journey to recover her sister's lost soul, Valkyrie Cain goes up against the High Sanctuary itself, and there’s nothing Skulduggery Pleasant can do to stop her. With Abyssinia's grand plan about to kick off in a night of magic, terror, and bloodshed, it falls to Omen Darkly to save the lives of thousands of innocent people. And as the madness unfolds around him, as hidden enemies step into the light, and as Valkyrie is sucked into a desperate, lawless quest of her own, he has no choice but to become the hero he never really wanted to be — or die in the attempt.

Seasons of War[]

War is coming. To avert catastrophe, Skulduggery and Valkyrie are sent on a secret mission that takes them away from everything they know, to a forsaken land of magic and grim, unrelenting terror. It is here that Valkyrie will have to fight the hardest – not only against the enemies who want her dead but also against her own self-destructive impulses. And it is only by crawling through the darkness that she will be able to once again stand within the light…^[4][21][22]

Dead or Alive[]

In a matter of days, the world will change. Billions of lives will be wiped away in a final, desperate search for Alice, the Child of the Faceless Ones – she who is destined to bring about the return of humankind's ancient overlords. To prevent this, Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain have one last – terrible – option: the assassination of Damocles Creed. With protests stirring in the magical city of Roarhaven, with riots and revolutions on the horizon, Valkyrie must decide who she wants to be: the hero who risks everything for a noble ideal, or the killer who sacrifices her own soul for the fate of humanity. The decision must be made, and time is running out.^[18]

Short stories and novellas[]

The End of the World[]

In June 2011 Landy posted on his blog that he would be writing a short story about Skulduggery called The End of the World.^[23] It was released in late February 2012 to coincide with World Book Day 2012. The Australian release of this novella came with an additional short story titled Just Another Friday Night. Deleted scenes from Skulduggery Pleasant were included. It is set a few months after Death Bringer. It was included in the 2014's short story collection.

Tanith Low in... The Maleficent Seven[]

A spin-off novella featuring Tanith Low taking place between the seventh and eighth books was released on 28 March 2013 in the U.K & Ireland and 1 April in other countries. The cover and title were released on 7 December 2012 after several delays, with Landy stating it to be his favourite book cover ever.

This time, the bad guys take the stage. Tanith Low, now possessed by a remnant, recruits a gang of villains – many of whom will be familiar from previous Skulduggery adventures – in order to track down and steal the four God-Killer level weapons that could hurt Darquesse when she eventually emerges. Also on the trail of the weapons is a secret group of Sanctuary sorcerers, and doing his best to keep up and keep Tanith alive is one Mister Ghastly Bespoke. When the villains around her are lying and scheming and plotting, Tanith needs to stay two steps ahead of her teammates and her enemies. After all, she's got her own double-crosses to plan – and she's a villain herself… It's a good day to be a bad guy.

Armageddon Outta Here[]

Armageddon Outta Here is a collection of all the previous short stories and novellas published in the series along with 3 new short stories, 1 new novella and a sample chapter from the final book.^[24] It was released on 3 July 2014.^[25] The order below represents chronological order, as they as listed in the collection, as opposed to their original publication date.^[26][27]

• Across a Dark Plain: 1861: The Dead Men traversed South Dakota on the hunt for their target, Nefarian Serpine.
• The Horror Writers' Halloween Ball: 1986: Gordon Edgley and Skulduggery Pleasant attend the party of the enigmatic Sebastian Fawkes.
• The Lost Art of World Domination: Set after Skulduggery Pleasant, Scaramouch Van Dreg manages to capture Skulduggery Pleasant. Originally included in Skulduggery Pleasant.
• Gold, Babies and the Brothers Muldoon: Set after Playing with Fire, The Muldoons kidnap babies and hold them to ransom. Originally included in Playing with Fire.
• The Slightly Ignominious End to the Legend of Black Annis: Set after The Faceless Ones, Tanith Low encounters Black Annis for the first time. Originally included in The Faceless Ones.
• Friday Night Fights: Sometime before Dark Days, The story of how Valkyrie Cain and Caelan met each other.
• Myosotis Terra: Set after Dark Days, Skulduggery and Valkyrie search for Myosotis Terra. As part of a competition, a short story was written in 2011 with the winning entry featuring as a character. Some European editions of Mortal Coil contained this story. It was re-released in the tour edition of the 2012 Australian tour edition.
• The Wonderful Adventures of Geoffrey Scrutinous: Set after Mortal Coil, Geoffrey Scrutinous and Skulduggery Pleasant search for Elwood Satchel. Originally included in Mortal Coil.
• Just Another Friday Night: Sometime before Death Bringer, Tane Aiavao and Hayley Skirmish meet with a cursed family.
• The End of the World: Set after Death Bringer, Skulduggery and Valkyrie attempt to solve a mystery surrounding Deacon Maybury, Ryan and the Doomsday Machine.
• Trick or Treat: Sometime before The Maleficent Seven, Tanith and Billy-Ray Sanguine continue their quest to destroy the God-Killers. In October 2011, Derek Landy posted a Halloween special on his blog, a short story featuring Tanith Low and Billy-Ray Sanguine, titled Trick or Treat.^[28] It is a prelude to The Maleficent Seven as it deals with the God-Killer weapons.
• Get Thee Behind Me, Bubba Moon: Set after Kingdom of the Wicked, A haunted house is investigated.
• The Button: Set after Theatre of Shadows: Skulduggery and Valkyrie attempt to avert the cause of the world's destruction. Derek Landy announced on 14 December 2012 that from 21 to 22 December, a short story relating to the Mayan 2012 apocalypse theory would be available on his blog, titled The Button. It was eventually included in the short story collection.^[29]

The paperback (29 January 2015) contains three more short stories:

• Death and Texas: Set between Friday Night Fights and Dark Days.
• Theatre of Shadows: Set between Get Thee Behind Me, Bubba Moon and The Maleficent Seven.
• Eyes of the Beholder: Set between The Maleficent Seven and The Button.

Going Once, Going Twice[]

An additional short story was later published to the Skulduggery Pleasant website in 2018: Going Once, Going Twice: Set between Dark Days and Mortal Coil.^[30]

Skulduggery Bites[]

On 20 March 2020 Landy started posting a choose-your-adventure-type story to Twitter.^[31] It ended on 1 April 2020.^[32] It had readers vote in a poll at the end of each day he posted the tweets to decide something in the story.

The story follows Valkyrie and Skulduggery going to America to investigate a witch. It introduces the concept of "Horts", essentially people outside of the fictional universe who consume entertainment (that is actually real in the fictional world) and have choices as to what happens.

The Skulduggery Pleasant Grimoire[]

A reference guide book, The Skulduggery Pleasant Grimoire, was published on May 27th, 2021.^[33]

Accolades[]

Skulduggery Pleasant won the Red House Children's Book Award,^[34] the Bolton Children's Book Award^[35] and the Staffordshire Young Teen Fiction Award.^[36] The book was also recommended for confident readers (9+) by the Richard & Judy Children's Book Club in 2007. It also won the Portsmouth Book Awards in 2008, having been selected by school children in Portsmouth, as well as winning Irish book of the decade in 2010.^[37] Also, in 2009, it won the Kernow Youth and Grampian Book Awards by a majority vote. It had also been nominated for Young Reader's Choice Awards 2010 in North America and it won Irish Book Awards in 2009 and 2010.

Reception and reviews[]

This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: it should cover more than just the first book. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (April 2020)

As the first four novels released, immense popularity and positive reviews have been given to the novels. Many critics praised Derek Landy's way of writing due to his large gallery of characters.

• Phillip Ardagh (The Guardian):

It's exciting, pacy, nicely handled and it's fun. There's nothing worthy about it, and it's all the better for that. And, I might add, it's self-contained. Landy may well revisit these characters – I sincerely hope he does – but it's a pleasingly rounded tale, which is refreshing in these days of endless open-ended books of never-ending series.^[38]

• Nathan Nicholls (Whitby Gazette):

There is no expense spared by Landy in this book and I would have to say that everyone who could be bothered to read it, would definitely be drawn into it and certainly enjoy it. (...) Something for everyone and everything for someone, Skulduggery Pleasant is easily my book of the year so far. Read it!^[39]

• Christina Hardyment (The Independent):

Landy is an established horror writer, and the combats between Skulduggery, Serpine and his legions of Hollow Men and vampires rival the climaxes of the Potter films for hair-raising effects; it isn't often that writing makes you feel as if you are watching a film.^[40]

• The Times:

Derek Landy's debut, Skulduggery Pleasant (...) has a distinctly Horowitzian humour and verve to it, being a detective story featuring a wizard's skeleton as hero. When Stephanie's uncle dies, she discovers his horror stories weren't fiction, and that evil forces are after her for a mysterious key. Wisecracking madly, the duo must survive each other as well as Hell. At the end of it, readers of 12+ may well be regretting their consumption of chocolate eggs.^[41]

The series did not prove popular in the US,^[42][43] and the publisher stopped releasing there after the third book.^[42]

Film adaptation[]

A film adaption was in development under Warner Brothers but according to Derek Landy, the script was "the worst thing [he had] ever read", with Skulduggery Pleasant a "skeleton body who somehow retained his head and face", and a musical number where he danced to Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror".^[44] In December 2010, Landy announced on his blog that the movie rights were back with him.^[45] In October 2019, Landy confirmed he had written a new screenplay draft, adapting the first novel and elements of a short story. In interviews with the Irish Examiner and The Nerd Daily in March and April 2021, Landy confirmed he was continuing the development of a screenplay.^[46][33]

References[]

External links[]

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