Stephanie's uncle Gordon wrote horror fiction. At least that's what Stephanie thought - until he died and left her his estate. Then she discovered that though his books may have been horror, they weren't exactly. . . well, fiction.
Plunged into a terrifying world of vampires, evil villains and Hollow Men, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source: Skulduggery Pleasant, the wise-cracking skeleton of a dead magician. When all hell breaks loose it's lucky for Stephanie that she's not your average twelve-year-old girl - and it's lucky for Skulduggery that he's already dead.
Will evil win the day? Will Stephanie and Skulduggery stop bickering long enough to beat it? One thing's for sure: the bad guys won't know what's hit them.