My latest read Evernight by Ross Mackenzie, immediately grabbed me by the throat and pulled me in from the very first chapter.
This is the perfect book for lovers of fantasy stories, who are ready to have go to a darker place. The Evernight is an ancient and black hearted spell in a dark world of magic where White Witches & Hags battle for power. This is fantasy at it's most epic, and just the right amount of darkness and horror to thrill but not terrify MG readers, although there are some very descriptive horror sections (Mrs Hester regaining her youth by sucking the soul from a young girl springs to mind).
Our hero Lara and her friends finds themselves embroiled in a battle of wild magic and danger as they try to stop the Evernight from destroying the world adn the Mother Tree, the source of all magic.
I read the Chapter 'Cotton's End out loud to my 10yo, a short chapter but filled with suspense and horror and his response was 'OK I HAVE to read this after you'. He's a big fan of fantasy fiction, and now in Y6 he has along with several of the other boys in his class developed an interest in darker fiction, so this will be perfect for him.
Warning - this is not for the sensitive reader, but those who crave adventure excitement and a little shadow to their fiction are going to LOVE Evernight.