Skullduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire

By Derek Landy

 Skulduggery and Valkyrie are facing a new enemy: Baron Vengeous, who is determined to bring back the terrifying Faceless Ones and is crafting an army of evil to help him. Added to that, Vengeous is about to enlist a new ally (if he can raise it from the dead), the horrible Grotesquery, a very unlikeable monster of legend.  Once Vengeous is on the loose, dead bodies and vampires start showing up all over Ireland. Now pretty much everybody is out to kill Valkyrie, and the daring detective duo faces its biggest challenge yet.

 But what if the greatest threat to Valkyrie is just a little closer to home?

 

 

And one of my new favorites does it again. Now, generally speaking, this story plot is much the same as the first book, but differs in execution and sheer hilarity as Skullduggery and Valkyrie try to defeat Baron Vengeous and prevent the rise of the Faceless Ones while battling one grotesque...Grotesquery.  And also, THAT my friend is a vampire.  Let the puns fly and the sarcasm drip as you are launched into yet another adventure/mystery of Skullduggery Pleasant. I just smile thinking about this series.

 

I give it a 4 out of 5 because I'm in love!

 

 

Favorite Quote: (Well, one of them)

“He looked at her. 'In order to finish, I'll have to have defeated six Infected, Dusk, and Vengeous himself.'

Yeah. So?'

The Infected I can manage.'

She frowned. 'And Vengeous? I mean, you can beat him, right?'

Well,' he said, "I can certainly try. And trying is half the battle.'

What's the other half?'

He shrugged. 'Hitting him more times than he hits me.”