註釋
This 100-page novella was written for World Book Day in the U.K. and Ireland. It takes place between books 6 and 7 of the Skulduggery Pleasant series, although it provides a great starting point for new readers and it's not necessary to have read the entire series beforehand. In just 111 pages, Derek Landy takes his readers on another epic journey with detectives Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain - unravelling mysteries, rescuing innocent bystanders and saving the world from complete annihilation all in an afternoon's work.
The End of the World is told through the eyes of mortal fifteen-year-old Ryan, a troubled, lonely teen who stumbles across the skeleton dectective's path when he inadvertedly discovers the key to the Doomsday Machine (a device capable of destroying the entire planet) in his local library. From that moment on, Ryan finds himself thrown into a world of magic and mayhem as the two dectectives race to save the world - and Ryan's life too.
I absolutely loved Ryan's character, particularly his reaction to the magical world he's introduced to and his perspective of Skulduggery and Valkyrie. Derek Landy's usual fast-paced wit had me laughing out loud, but by the time I reached the final page I was in tears. There's a fantastic twist at the end of the story, so cleverly laid out and so heartbreakingly sad, and that's what makes this short novella my absolute favourite story from Derek Landy's Skulduggery Pleasant universe.