A friend of mine retired from tv work a couple of years ago, and has since written two young adult fiction books along the lines of the Harry Potter series. They're a fast read, and I really liked them - so did my kid. It was fun for us to read something together.
New book:
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kBvx15SeL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA278_PIkin4,BottomRight,-52,22_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg)
http://www.amazon.com/Treasure-Carpathian-Den-Saga-ebook/dp/B007PJBK26/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1337191527&sr=1-1 (http://www.amazon.com/Treasure-Carpathian-Den-Saga-ebook/dp/B007PJBK26/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1337191527&sr=1-1)
First one:
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HgVwId21L._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA278_PIkin4,BottomRight,-52,22_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg)
http://www.amazon.com/Crystal-Point-POGS-Saga-ebook/dp/B007PJ7GIS/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2 (http://www.amazon.com/Crystal-Point-POGS-Saga-ebook/dp/B007PJ7GIS/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2)