So I'm going through a bit of a DWJ phase and have just finished the Howl trilogy and all the Chrestomanci books. Does anyone have any recommendations for which to read next? Thanks!
I think in general her earlier books are better than the later ones, and the children's ones much better than the adult ones (which are all later).
Having said that I love DWJ and have all of her books, and have reread most of them many many times
The Time of the Ghost isn't scary, it's more of a who done it really, and really good. I love Power of Three, Archers Goon, The Ogre Downstairs, Homeward Bounders, Dogsbody and Fire and Hemlock best of the stand alone books. I think the series mostly start with a really good book and then the later ones aren't so good, except for the Dalemark series all of which are among my favourites.
Of the adult ones my favourite is a Sudden Wild Magic. Deep Secrets is quite good and but I was disappointed with the Merlin Conspiracy.
The ones I go back to time and again are the ones where she interweaves myths with her storylines. She's just so amazing at doing that. So the dalemark quartet and fire and hemlock are the ones that resonate on a really deep level and leave something behind after you've read the last page.
Yes, I think the ones with the slightly deeper messages are interesting, like Homeward Bounders which has interesting ideas about home and what it means to be a slave (and the ending always makes me cry), and she touches on what it really means to be a god (or have godlike powers anyway) a few times too. I think her later books have more adventure and less thinking in general. Fun, but less resonant. I still wish she was still writing though, so sad to hear that she died a few years ago.
