Series-ously Excited

As long as there have been series of stories published for children, there have been multiple authors writing about the same characters.  Traditionally, all the authors would write under a pseudonym, instead of getting credit for their work.  Think of the Nancy Drew books, or The Sweet Valley High series, if you're a little younger than I.  In recent years, some series have featured established authors whose names were emblazoned across the covers--the 39 Clues books come to mind.  But no matter how much I liked the series as a whole, there were always some books that I liked more than others, and some that seemed weaker to me.  I didn't always like each author's individual style, and that made some entries drag on for me.

Then, last summer I was given the first book in a new series called "Spirit Animals," the first of which was being written by Brandon Mull.  If you aren't familiar with Brandon Mull . . . well . . . you should pick up one of his Fablehaven books and give it a try.  He writes fantasy--good fantasy--with believable young characters and lots of action.  I gave Wild Born, his entry in this series, a try and really enjoyed it.  Basically, it takes place in a land where all children are tested at a certain age, and some are found to have a special bond with an animal.  Of course, there's an evil force intent on taking over the world, a lot of fight scenes, chases, and the like.  I really enjoyed it, but I didn't think too much about the series.

Recently, though, I thought I'd see if the second book was out, and I was thrilled to discover that it was written by Maggie Stiefvater, another author whose work I love.  She wrote the Shiver trilogy, which is about werewolves and teen romance and loneliness and yearning and healing.  They are beautiful books--supernatural and YA without being all hysterical and melodramatic like some other books that shall remain nameless.  She also wrote a book called Scorpio Races, which has the distinction of making me care about a horse story!  I just started reading Hunted, which is her continuation of the tale, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.

Now, one would think that it couldn't get any better than this for me, and I would have agreed with you.  Until I found out that Blood Ties, the third book in the series, is written by Garth Nix!  I've been a fan of Garth Nix for more than a decade, and not only because he wrote the Old Kingdom trilogy, one of which featured a librarian as the protagonist.  Woot!  I'm almost afraid who is on deck for the next book, as I'll be disappointed if it's not one of my particular favorites.  Maybe I should start recruiting people.  Julianna Baggott?  Jenni Holm?  Suzanne Collins?  Patrick Carman?  Who wants to wow me next?