Hiya! Did you not find the climax rather anticlimactic? ... Maybe just me then.
If you enjoy children's/teenage literature (I do - my excuse is vetting it for ds1's consumption ) you might enjoy the Garth Nix books. I've just finished reading Sabriel, Lirael, and Abhorsen, and enjoyed them immensely. Powerful characters, and fascinating plots. Unlike Nicholson very satisfactory conclusions with all the loose ends neatly tied up! Amazon review of first one is here
It is a bit dark - not scary - but quite deep. It's all about necromancers, and the dead and stuff. Not the sort of book I would have even picked up if I'd known, and not the sort of book I'll let ds1 anywhere near ... but I found them gripping!