Sometimes extending into middle age ....

See for example: all Judd Apatow movies.

I was surprised when Emmett started his first umpiring job, how competent he was and how seriously he took it.

I think we've also seen with CJ that a lot of kids thrive with responsibility.

Well, I've caught up on Skulduggery Pleasant and I'm a little wrung out. How much did I love Valkyrie's breakup with Caelan? A whole lot.

I'm with you, Steph, I don't like that Tanith has a Remnant in her but I do enjoy Remnant!Tanith and Billy Ray, who is a fun villain in his own right.

When I moved away from home my mom was astounded that I handled things like cleaning, laundry, and cooking (for the most part) just fine. It wasn't that I was incapable of doing any of that stuff before, I just needed to go from a situation where I wasn't the resident with the best work ethic/least tolerance for mess to one where I was.

I'm with you, Steph, I don't like that

I love Billy-Ray Sanguine. I keep picturing him as a younger Brad Pitt. And I cannot get over Remnant!Tanith, GOD DAMN.

So, have you read all the way through Death Bringer?

Yup. So many revelations and so much stuff still to happen! i have been on pins and needles about the reflection for several books, I just know something is building there.

And put in a pre-order for End of the World though I feel VERY silly spending so much more for shipping than for the book.

I definitely want End of the World.

So, about Death Bringer: OMGWTF Fergus!!!!! I seriously about fell out of my chair at that. Easily my favorite part of the entire book.

I remain bemused by the whole Skulduggery is Lord Vile thing. If I don't look at it too hard, it works.

However, I kind of love that the reason Skulduggery came back from the dead was because Tenebrae worked necromancer mojo on Serpine's Red Right Hand dealie.

And I think that Big Shit is definitely in the works with the reflection. I even think that something might happen to make the reflection become Darquesse. Because if the reflection is a reflection of Valkyrie, then why wouldn't it be a reflection of ALL of Valkyrie?

I find the reporter who's planning to expose The World Of Magic just annoying. And I will laugh if he's just kind of disposed of within the first few chapters of the next book. I can see that happening, though. Build up the suspense, and then summarily dispose of the threat.

I almost feel sorry for China. ALMOST.

Finally, I cannot stop laughing at Scapegrace being just a head now. That will never stop being funny to me.

Damn you both. I just bought Death Bringer from a seller on Amazon. I was being SO GOOD, but I just can’t wait any longer!

I agree with you on all that. I have to wonder if Desmond is more than he seems. I mean, he threw a guy through a window. Can he really be as helpless and harmless as he seems? I kinda like the reporter, although I don't want the mortal world finding out about magic to be a big thing.

And I just realized moments ago that Skulduggery is to Ghastly as China is to Skulduggery. That's gonna be bad when/if it comes out. I am sincerely bummed that China's library was destroyed, though I am more ambivalent about her actual self.

Eta: sorry, Pix!

Oh my god, you're right about Skulduggery and Ghastly. Although I understand the distinction between Skulduggery and Lord Vile (it seems to be like Angel and Angelus), but I don't think that Ghastly will see it that way. At least, not right away, if at all.

I've been re-reading the books in backwards order recently (Death Bringer, Mortal Coil, Dark Days, The Faceless Ones), and I noticed that in Dark Days, there was the scene where Davinia Marr had a meeting in a deli with a man described as "the man with golden eyes." And then in Mortal Coil, the man with the golden eyes was in the scene in Roarhaven where the Torment buries Tesseract alive. And now I can't remember if the same character was in Death Bringer. But I'm assuming we're going to see the character again, and I'm wondering who it's going to turn out to be. Mevolent? Because it sure seems like the books are working towards the return of Mevolent.

What also struck me in the past few books is that Skulduggery has mentioned his family -- as in, parents and brother, not his wife and child, who we know died -- and so I'm wondering if any of his family is going to be introduced in the upcoming books. I can't imagine they'd be mentioned in more than one book and then just dropped.