A book close to Harry Potter?

[Steve]

---  Liz Stephens <cute_janers at ...> wrote:
>
> My brother got me hooked on the Artemis Fowl books.  
> I think they are awesome, and I haven't been able to
> put them down.  ...

bboyminn:

I'll second the Artemis Fowl Series. While the basic
premise, especially of the Fairy world, is a bit silly,
there is, none the less, a very suspenseful and captivating
mystery underlying each story. The books are a short easy
read with intriguing characters and as I've already said
a real fun thrilling suspenseful mystery contained therein
as well as delightful humor.

I was curious about the series for quite a while but I 
thought it might be too childish. I found a paperback of
the first book for a very low price and from then on I
was hooked. I now buy each new adventure as soon as it
comes out in hardcover. Though sadly, I believe their is
only going to be one more after the current 'The Lost 
Colony'.

Another series that I greatly love, though other readers
have mixed feelings, is 'The Inheritance Trilogy' (Eragon,
Eldest, final book not yet published - Christopher Paolini).
Some claim it is predictable and derivative, but I found 
interesting compelling characters and a captivating story 
filled with magic and adventure; a thrill a minute. I can't
wait for the final book to be published later this year. 

For an interesting read for those who like the magic genre,
I found 'The Bartimaeus Trilogy' to be enjoyable. It wasn't
as thrilling as Harry Potter, as suspenseful as Artemis 
Fowl, or as action packed as Eragon, but it was an 
intersting read with a captivating story, and with a nice 
plot twist at the end. One of the interesting aspects of 
this series is that it uses a completely different model of
magic than the Harry Potter series.
(Bartimaeus Trilogy - The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem's 
Eye, Ptolemy's Gate - Jonathan Stroud)

Just a few thoughts.
Steve/bboyminn