Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire facts for kids
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| Author | Derek Landy |
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| Cover artist | Tom Percival |
| Country |  Ireland |
| Language | English |
| Series | Skulduggery Pleasant |
| Genre | Children's novel, Fantasy novel, detective novel, comedy novel, adventure novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
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Publication date
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1 April 2008 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 351 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | 0-00-72570-58 (first edition, hardback) |
| OCLC | 877986693 |
| Preceded by | Skulduggery Pleasant (2007) |
| Followed by | The Faceless Ones (2009) |
Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire is young adult and fantasy novel written by Irish playwright Derek Landy, published in April 2008. It is the second of the Skulduggery Pleasant series and sequel to the novel of the same name.
The story follows the sorcerers and detectives Valkyrie Cain and Skulduggery Pleasant and numerous magic-wielding allies as they try to prevent Baron Vengeous and his forces from resurrecting the Grotesquery and returning the Faceless Ones to the world. The book would not see release in the US and Canada until 2018. HarperCollins Audio also publishes the unabridged CD sets of the books read by Rupert Degas.
In 2009, it won the award of Senior Irish Children's Book of the Year.
Contents
Plot summary
One year after the events of the first novel, Valkyrie Cain (formerly known as Stephanie Edgely) continues to work with Skulduggery Pleasant, an undead skeleton detective, capturing villains on the behalf of The Sanctuary, now ruled by Thurid Guild in a new location after the massacre in the previous Sanctuary.
Soon, Baron Vengeous (one of the original three Generals of Mevolent) escapes his prison and begins searching for the armour of Lord Vile, another of Mevolent's Generals with which he will be able to resurrect the Grotesquery, a hybrid monster made from a Faceless One's remains with the power bring back the Faceless Ones. Arriving in Ireland, he meets an accomplice - a vampire named Dusk who owed a debt to him. He orders Dusk to kidnap Valkyrie Cain. Dusk infects two humans to help him. Meanwhile, a skilled London woman named Tanith Low arrests Springheeled Jack after a fight.
After losing to Skulduggery Pleasant, Baron Vengeous goes after China Sorrows who was once part of a cult that worshipped the Faceless Ones and also included Serpine and Vengous himself. The Baron confronts China Sorrows in her apartment whilst Valkyrie is visiting. Valkyrie hides whilst China and Vengous talk. Vengeous reveals that he was released from prison by an assassin named Billy-Ray Sanguine who promptly arrives along with Dusk. A battle ensues during which Valkyrie reveals herself and defends China. Valkyrie Cain is soon chased by Billy-Ray Sanguine who can travel through earth and buildings. After being a struggle, Valkyrie is saved by Tanith Low. In the process, Valkyrie steals Billy-Ray Sanguine's razor, his primary weapon, leaving the psychopathic assassin with a grudge against her.
Valkyrie and Skulduggery along with a convict called Vaurien Scapegrace went to the Magician's village of Roarhaven to find a mysterious man called the Torment who has information they need. After a battle in a seedy pub with some thugs (including a giant) and an unpleasant incident with some giant, unnatural spiders, they find the Torment and ask for his help. The Torment says he will only help them find the Grotesquery if Skulduggery kills Valkyrie who is descended from the Ancients whom the Torment despises as he thinks any power will corrupt civilization. Skulduggery takes Valkyrie around a corner and they summon her Reflection, a living mirror image of Valkyrie who she uses as a decoy, enabling her to live a double life. Skulduggery takes Valkyrie's reflection before the Torment and shoots it. The Torment is satisfied and tells Skulduggery the whereabouts of the Grotesquery. He and Valkyrie return Scapegrace to prison and go to Bancrook Castle to find the Grotesquery, unfortunately Vengeous's minions have already obtained it. Soon after, Skulduggery and Valkyrie take the reflection back to Valkyrie's house. Valkyrie touches the mirror to absorb its memories and remembers what it is like to be shot. Valkyrie then notices that whenever she tries to look back in her memories one part always remains blank and she cannot pin it down. She realizes that her reflection hid something from her, and finds it disconcerting and dangerous. However, she goes on with Skulduggery without mentioning it to him.
Skulduggery and Valkyrie find Vengeous, Dusk, his Infected and Sanguine with the Grotesquery. To approach Vengeous, Skulduggery kidnaps Dusk. Soon after Vengeous sees him, Skulduggery shoots the Infected and has a fight with Vengeous, in which Vengeous wins, forcing Valkyrie to reveal she was with Skulduggery. On a chase to try to escape, Valkyrie is instead kidnapped by Sanguine who takes her to an old abandoned church to the Faceless Ones, where she is taken before the altar. Vengeous awaits her there. The evil sorcerer cuts the palm of Valkyrie's hand and spills some of her blood onto the Grotesquery's body before using the Armour's shadow powers which mingle with the blood. Skulduggery subsequently arrives and rescues Valkyrie. After stealing the Grotesquery, Valkyrie is incapacitated and wakes up in hospital. Whilst wearing a 'respectable' blue hospital gown, Skulduggery wears a pink one decorated with bunnies and elephants for the doctor's amusement. Skulduggery turns the lifeless Grotesquery over to the Sanctuary's top scientist, Kenspeckle Grouse, to take apart the hybrid. However the Grotesquery has already absorbed a lot of power from Vile's armour and Valkyrie's blood and wakes up in the middle of the night whilst being operated on. He kills the scientist's assistants and three Cleavers, then goes after Valkyrie. Skulduggery and Tanith arrive and the three of them attack the Grotesquery before escaping. Meanwhile members of Sanctuary's all across the world are being murdered by assassins to distract people from Vengeous's plan. Billy-Ray Sanguine has also released Springheeled Jack from prison and sends him after a Sanctuary official in London. After discovering that he is being manipulated by Vengous in a plan to bring back the Faceless Ones, Jack kills his victim.
Skulduggery works out that Vengeous is actually a pawn in someone else's plan and accuses Thurid Guild of being in league with this mystery benefactor. In a rage, Guild fires Skulduggery who decides to go after Vengeous anyway. Valkyrie begrudgingly goes to her family reunion as a distraction to Dusk. The Torment meanwhile has discovered that Valkyrie is alive and goes after her only to be confronted by Skulduggery and Tanith Low. The Torment transforms into a giant spider but Skulduggery and Tanith defeat him nevertheless. Valkyrie is subsequently attacked by vampires and forced to flee. Dusk corners her and vows that when he has transformed her into a vampire he's going to set her loose on her parents while in her bloodlust. Valkyrie stabs Dusk in the leg with the syringe he uses to curb his vampiric side whilst he is transforming and as a result he is caught between vampire and human and put in intense pain. Springheeled Jack comes and rescues her and defeats Dusk so as to frustrate Vengeous's plans because he doesn't want the Faceless Ones to return and because Sanguine, who works with Vengeous, has betrayed him.
Meanwhile China is attacked by Vengeous in an underground car park. The dark sorcerer, with Lord Vile's Armour, murders China's bodyguards Sev and Zephyr, then beats her unconscious before taking her to Clearwater Hospital which is serving as his headquarters. Accompanied by Tanith Low, Mr. Bliss and some Cleavers, Skulduggery and Valkyrie go to Clearwater Hospital and battle with the Grotesquery which due to being part Faceless One is virtually invincible. Mr Bliss is incapacitated but the Cleavers mercilessly attack the Grotesquery and almost overpower it when Vengous arrives along with China whom he has taken captive and together with the Grotesquery he kills the Cleavers and puts some other Cleavers and Tanith Low into unconsciousness using a Necromancy wave. He then beats Skulduggery and Valkyrie into submission. Valkyrie tricks Vengous into releasing her, saying that she will join him but she releases China who attacks Vengous and the Grotesquery, giving Valkyrie time to free Skulduggery who joins in the assault against Vengous, tearing off his helmet and his breastplate before shooting him in the stomach. In a swoon, Vengous crawls toward the Grotesquery but his god kills him. The Torment subsequently arrives as a reinforcement and tries to kill the Grotesquery but he is defeated. In the ensuing battle Valkyrie uses Tanith's sword to stab the Grotesquery through the heart, killing it. But before it dies it utters a terrible scream, signaling the Faceless Ones where Earth is before it dies.
Sanguine is then seen meeting his mysterious master who reveals that he had never expected the Grotesquery to succeed but he knew that when it was vanquished, the beast's dying scream would alert the Faceless Ones spirits as to the whereabouts of the Earth meaning that all he has to do now is open the door. The mysterious man then pays Sanguine and takes his leave.
Valkyrie is later seen talking to Skulduggery on a pier. They reason that they must find out who Vengeous and Sanguine were really working for and if Thurid Guild is in league with him. Skulduggery ominously tells Valkyrie "Bad things are coming." They are subsequently attacked by a vampire and the book ends with them going into battle once again.
Characters
Valkyrie Cain
Skulduggery Pleasant
Baron Vengeous
After escaping prison, Baron Vengeous, war criminal and former General of Mevolent alongside Nefarien Serpine and Lord Vile, returns to Ireland, killing a Sanctuary agent who recognises him. He joins together with Dusk, a vampire who owed Vengeous an undisclosed debt, and Billy-Ray Sanguine, who broke him out of prison; using the two men as his chief henchmen, Vengeous begins to enact his plan to revive the Grotesquery and achieve his deceased master's goal of bringing back the ancient Gods known as the "Faceless Ones".
Billy-Ray Sanguine
The eyeless straight razor-baring William Raymond "Billy-Ray" Sanguine breaks Vengeous out of prison using his digging abilities.
Dusk
The vampire known as Dusk reluctantly works with Vengeous in order to pay back a long-standing debt he is owed by him.
The Grotesquery
The Grotesquery is fusion of the remains of a Faceless One and several other creatures capable of opening the portal for them to come back, provided it is active around the time of a lunar eclipse, built with the intent of resurrecting the Faceless One whose remains are a part of it, brought back using a combination of Lord Vile's armour and Valkyrie Cain's blood.
Kenspeckle Grouse
Kenspeckle Grouse, described as a cranky old man, is a doctor who fixes Skulduggery's and Valkyrie's injuries and continually lectures them both about Skulduggery's decision to train Valkyrie. Despite his disapproval, he has a soft spot for Valkyrie, strongly expressing his dislike for Skulduggery in his presence.
Awards
In 2009, Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire was awarded the title of Irish Senior Children's Book of the Year.
