Harry Potter
by JK Rowling – I’ve just reread these, reading the last six in about seven
days, and they left me with a MASSIVE book hangover which only went away when I
read the spellbinding River Daughter by Jane Hardstaff. It’s easy to see why so
many people love them so much – Rowling’s characters are wonderful, her plots
have clever twists which make them rewarding rereads, and there are so many
truly magical moments. (Many involving Neville!)
Charlie Bone
by Jenny Nimmo – When growing up, Nimmo’s Magician Trilogy – especially The
Snow Spider – was one of my favourite series. Since that’s a trilogy, though, I’ll
pick her more recent, but perhaps lesser-known, Charlie Bone series. It’s
similar to HP in many ways – a young boy goes to a magical school, makes
friends, and gets involved in battles against strong powers – but it’s a
shorter, quicker read and is hugely exciting.
The Dark Is
Rising by Susan Cooper – Incredibly atmospheric, The Dark Is Rising and The
Magician Trilogy are the two series which I went back to again and again when I
was a teen. The Dark Is Rising tells the stories of three ‘ordinary’ children,
Simon, Jane and Barney Drew, and Will Stanton, Last of the Old Ones, as they’re
caught up in a centuries long struggle. Book one is about the three Drews,
books two and four are about Will, and books three and five see them work together.
They’re a truly brilliant series with roots in Arthurian legend which never
fail to delight.
The
Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander – For some reason I only read the
entire series of these relatively recently despite having enjoyed the first two
growing up. They get better as the series of five progresses – book four, Taran
Wanderer, is a stunning coming-of-age tale which adds hugely to the sequence
despite being slightly off-track as far as the main battle is concerned, while
book five, Newbery medal-winner The High King, is one of the few fantasies to
ever make me cry. An outstanding sequence.
The Wolves
Chronicles by Joan Aiken – I’ve never actually finished these, for some reason,
but have read the early books – particularly Black Hearts in Battersea and
Night Birds on Nantucket – dozens of times. Dido Twite, the street urchin
introduced in Black Hearts, is one of the all-time great characters in children’s
literature, and Aiken’s writing stye is glorious.
Skulduggery
Pleasant by Derek Landy – This is the only other one (out of the completed
series, at least) which I haven’t finished. I’m still putting it on, partly
because the books I’ve read are a brilliant mixture of exciting action and
hilarious humour, and partly because Caitlin is a massive fan, and she’s one of
my go-to people for MG recs.
Wereworld by
Curtis Jobling – Sensationally strong world-building, brilliant characters who
develop superbly, outstanding action and some wonderful romance makes this epic
fantasy a six-book series to go back to again and again and again.
GONE by
Michael Grant – Like Wereworld, the character development in this one for
numerous characters is absolutely fantastic. I don’t read sci-fi often and I’m
not that keen on gory – you need a strong stomach for parts of this – but despite
these biases against it I was a HUGE fan.
Department
19 by Will Hill – This is the only series on the list that’s incomplete, and
the last book, Darkest Night, is up there with Non Pratt’s Remix as my most
anticipated read of the rest of the year. Hill’s characters are great, his
world-building is stunning – brilliantly playing off the Dracula story but
bringing it right up to date – and the last two books have raised some really interesting
questions about heroism, villainy, and the place of vampires in his world.
Kat
Stephenson by Stephanie Burgis – I said I wanted series longer than trilogies;
thankfully this JUST qualifies – there are three novels about Kat as a young
teen and a novella about her as an 18-year-old. She is my absolute favourite
character since I started reviewing (and probably ever); a wonderfully loyal,
brave and awesome heroine.
What did you
do for your Top Ten Tuesday this week? Share a link in the comments!
I've reread the HRry Potter series many times, though never in seven days. I read The Snow Spider and I think the sequel, years ago, but only once. Interestingly, I'm rereading The Dark Is Rising right now! :-) I haven't read all the Dido Twite novels, but I do love the alternative universe aspect. Chronicles of Prydain is great, but again - only read it once. If you can get hold of them, I recommend Ruth Manley's Plum Rain Scroll trilogy - a lot like the Alexander books, but set in Japan.
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