Kingdom of the Wicked (Skulduggery Pleasant)

SPOILERSSkulduggery Pleasant might be the single most creative series I have ever read. In each book, Landy manages to take the concept of a walking, talking, wise-cracking, skeleton detective and his teenage partner and stretch it on for seven books so far without making it boring. Each adventure, I feel like I have read something genuine and something more incredible than last time. Landy has slowly gone from good-guy fights bad-guy to the two good-guys who might be bad-guys are fighting corrupted-normal people and a delusional, godlike, pacifist. It's almost as if he's been building up to these phenomenal final books. Everything about them, I absolutely love. The humor- another reviewer referred to it as Landy's trademark humor- the plot, the tone, the writing, and the characters. Oh, god, the characters. The most impressive thing, about this series, is that he's never had the plot overshadow his interesting, interesting characters. And he's never had the characters overshadow the plot, though the characters are at the heart of the story. In short, Skulduggery Pleasant is just about my favorite series (yes, even better than Harry Potter) and everything about it enthralls me.Just a side note, you do realize what Derek Landy has been doing with all the two main characters' romantic interests, right? Fletcher, Celaen (hope I spelled that correctly), China (some people do like her and Skulduggery together), etc. In the end, it's all about Valkyrie and Skulduggery. Kind of ironic, considering their *ahem* alter egos.

"Kingdom of the Wicked", the seventh Skulduggery Pleasant novel, is also the first book in what is generally known as the final trilogy in the planned nine book series - one that promises to be even more serious and more grim than the second trilogy.That is not to say that the series' trademark laugh-out-loud humour is missing - far from it. There is plenty of humour in this book, just like in the previous instalments, but the plot is more complex and the choices and decisions our protagonists are facing are more serious than ever before. The series' central relationship between Valkyrie and Skulduggery has become even deeper, as they both struggle with coming to terms with Valkyrie's possible destiny.I've been a fan of the series since the very first book, but I have to say that to me, Landy's raised the bar considerably with the last two books - as good as the previous novels were, "Death Bringer" and "Kingdom of the Wicked" are on a whole new level; still funny as ever, still gory as ever (well, gorier - which the 11+ suggested age rating of "Kingdom of the Wicked", replacing the 9+ age rating of the preceding novels, reflects), but more serious, more complex and more mature in every way.

omg the Skulduggery Pleasant series are the best series EVER MADE IN THE HISTORY OF SERIES!! LIKE EVER!Derek Landy is so imaginative! i am on the seventh book and i am still not bored! Landy is just incredible! Everybody has to read the books!!!!!!! LIKE EVERYONE (10+ i mean! it is quite gruesome!)i hoped u liked my review! bye for now

Unlike other junior fiction that I have had to wade or skim through to encourage my children to read, the Skullduggery series is a romp. The action keeps my young son,(10), glued to the pages, and my older daughter, (14), appreciates the principal characters being mostly women.The series has captivated the kids, and we spend some quality time discussing individual character development and possible narrative directions.Some may criticise the graphic description of the conflicts, but it keeps the boys glued to the story.I prefer this magical landscape to the potter series, in that the war between good and evil is far more precariously balanced, both in terms of the underlying politics and the inner personal conflict.

I have loved every book so far in the Skulduggery Pleasant series - this is the most enjoyable and skillfully written young adult fiction I have ever come across (and if you're wondering, I'm not what you'd call a 'young adult' any more, but don't see why I ought to let that stop me from a good read).Blissfully free of grammatical error, logical flaw or mundane vocabulary, this book (along with the others in the series) has hilariously witty banter between characters, intensely exciting fight scenes (scenes is the right word for it, the visual imagery is rich) and a clever, engaging narrative-story. The characters just keep growing in depth!Although the book is self-contained and you could read it as a stand-alone, I wouldn't read this without enjoying the others first.

It's dark...very dark. At this point, I'm mostly reading to see where it goes. It definitely challenges a lot of expectations about episodic works of kids stumbling into worlds of magic and befriending skeletons.

Well of course the original is always best but this book wasn't far off. It had me on the edge of my seat all through the book and i finished in in a couple of days because it had me hooked right from the start. I really hope that if you havn't started reading the SP seiries that you start the moment you see this review as this book would make you want to read all the other books before this one. Derek is so clever, adding humor to horror and making amazing books!!!!! Please buy this book it is totally worth it!

As an avid reader of fantasy fiction I accidentally noticed the first Skullduggery book when it was released. Since then I cannot wait for each new installment which delivers the same wit and memorable characters spot on everytime with magic and action galore. The Skullduggery Pleasant books are for younger readers what Jim Butcher's Dresden Files books are for older readers. As an older reader though there is nothing that dissapoints in the SP series, a recommended read for all lovers of fantasy, the modern day setting with the underground magic community makes for entertaining reading.

I'll be honest. After the last Skulduggery Pleasant Book (Death Bringer) I was genuinely concerned that Landy had run out of ideas for this series. I actually said as much in my review on here. Because whilst Landy can clearly knock out sharp and witty dialogue until the cows come home, to be perfectly blunt the plot in the last book generally was below par for the series as a whole.Fortunately, Kingdom of the Wicked is not just a return to form, for me it is the best book in the series. I actually didn't expect it to be when reading the preamble, which details a mysterious situation where ordinary people are suddenly gaining magical powers, including three teenagers who develop powers far stronger than ordinary magicians. In fairness, that description isn't particularly standout.Fortunately, the description of the plot that the back/inside cover provides doesn't come close to even scratching the surface of where the plot actually goes in this book. The book does open with the 'humans are gaining magic' scenario, but Landy quickly throws out a number of distinct plot strands, all of which are intriguing. I'm sure other reviews will provide mini spoilers on what at least one of those strands is, because to be frank in the context of the series as a whole it will excite fans greatly, but I'm opting not to do that. Because if you've read the six books in the series up to this point, you deserve to read this book without anyone even hinting as to what happens.All you need to know is this; the stall in the last book was temporary. Kingdom of the Wicked is in many ways the definitive book of the series so far. The plot is exciting, clever, and littered with Landy's trademark characters and dialogue. And perhaps most importantly, it sets up the final two books in the series in the best possible way. If you're a fan of the series you'll buy this anyway, but even against that backdrop I can't recommend it enough.

Kingdom of the Wicked (Skulduggery Pleasant, Book 7) I have not personally read all the series, but my grandson began reading them as a grumpy pre-teen, scarcely putting them down except to eat!!!! I think this is high praise indeed and I believe is a good recommendation of the sheer reading pleasure these books generate. They are different and unusual. Let's face it, how often do you meet a detective who is a skeleton? This last one 'Kingdom of the Wicked' he requested as a gift, after obtaining 10GCSEs in August. He has been a discerning and avid reader since childhood, and hopes to teach English and History, and hopefully become a published author himself one day. I thank Derek Landy for the pleasure his unusual but very entertaining series of books has given my grandson.10/10 Kingdom of the Wicked (Skulduggery Pleasant, Book 7)

What can I say? Another masterpiece by Derek Landy here - and by far the best in the series yet. Any fan of Skulduggery Pleasant who hasn't yet bought this book definitely needs to; I won't give anything away, but "amazing" is just one small word to describe this latest installment. Just when you think you've figured something out about the plot when reading it, you'll be knocked away and given something completely different. I've never been more hooked on a book before and, honestly, I have no idea how I will stay sane until book eight is released.You will not be disappointed.

This book is amazing. The entire series is full of death and fighting and entertaining depression. The only thing I wish is that SKULLDUGGERY AND STEPHANIE (I dunno how to spell her sanctuary name srry 😂) WOULD JUST GO ON A DATE!!!! And I'm also rlly pissed about Stephanie's reflection I KNEW SOMETHIG WAS UP THEN I THOUGHT HE REFLECTION WAS GOOD THEN I DOUBTED THE REFLECTION AGAIN THEN THE REFLECTION AND STEPHANIE BECAME FRIENDS AND THEN THE REFLECTION GOES ON A FREAKING KILLING SPREE!!!!!😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡 By that I mean it's the best book ever😂 please make a skulduggery pleasant movie (I don't even care anymore if it isn't age appropriate )Derek..... your awsome

Without wanting to give away the plot, if you have read the previous books then you should read this book! There are a few things that we have all wanted to see from book one, but even if these things don't interest you, it is still a great book. Written in Landy's usual brilliant style, the plot contains some great villains. The main 'baddie' has understandable motives, and is a character that readers can sympathise with. The other villains are mis-guided, and are recognisable every day characters, the type of person everyone knows. And they have one of the things every villain must have; they make the reader HATE them. Throughout the book, you feel yourself looking forward to their comeuppance. This alone would make a great book, but Landy pulls ace after ace throughout the book, hooking the reader and stopping you putting the book down. Just read it. You won't regret it, but I can't tell you why.