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Must put in a vote for... Steerpike from the Titus Groan books. Not the very best character perhaps, but one of the all-time great villains. Brilliant, witty, talented, devious and utterly ruthless, a self-made demon. You spend most of the books 'on his side' and you feel sorrow at his...

Influences... Not sure about this, but getting all analytical... 1. Jacqueline Wilson - because she shows how simplicity of style can be far more emotive than sophistication. 2. Henry Williamson (author of Tarka the Otter... and dubiously right-wing politically, but hey) - because he was...

'Children's' books I have a theory actually: children are generally more intelligent than adults. Less knowledgeable, more naive, yes, but smarter in terms of quickness of understanding. I think we peak at age 12 and then it's all downhill from there. Perhaps that's why all the best child...

No accident... Rather charitable to suggest that Paolini only achieved huge success 'by accident' (implying that he was a bit embarrassed to be suddenly immensely popular). Paolini is actually a genius at self-publicity. For example, he managed to arrange a three-way telephone interview that...

Plagiarism, no... CP definitely isn't a plagiarist, no... at least, no more than any one else. There is nothing new under the sun, after all. A more serious accusation would be a lack of originality. Originality meaning, in this case, having something of his own to say, using the standard tools...

Unusual SF novels Good recommendation of Cloud Atlas there - a stunning book all round, for anyone. Anthony Burgess is well known of course for A Clockwork Orange, but another favourite of mine is his book 'The End Of The World News'. An apocalypse-based SF novel, with the curious...

Eragon/Eldest I came across Christopher Paolini when I worked in marketing children's books. From as much as I read of Eragon, I formed this opinion of him... To write such a book as a teenager (he wrote it aged between 16 and 19) is remarkable, and he definitely deserves praise for that...

Artemis In some ways Artemis Fowl has always been a good guy. Yes, he's a criminal... but he couldn't be the hero of the books unless you were on his side. He's I think what they call an anti-hero - someone who manages to win sympathy with the reader despite not conforming to the typical image...

A must-have book by her (though not a novel) is 'The Tough Guide to Fantasy Land'. A genius spoof of every fantasy cliche you've ever come across, done as an A-Z guide for tourists. In the same vein as the humour in Terry Pratchett's earlier Discworld books, but with more emphasis on tearing a...

Best Stephen King book... The best Stephen King book for kids (or, in my opinion, for anyone) is The Eyes of the Dragon. A real departure for him, a great old-fashioned medieval-style fantasy set in the kingdom of Delain. A prince is accused of poisoning the king his father and is imprisoned...

Sad to say... Seen the film but not read the book (oh how I hate it when people say that). But I do remember thinking how terribly SAD the film was, in so many places. I was only young at the time (the ideal age for it, really) and I just felt bludgeoned by one heart-rending scene after...