I loved this trilogy in middle school, and it's still just as eerie and atmospheric as it was to me half a lifetime ago. The plot is pretty standard (chosen girl goes on quest to save the kingdom) but the details make it fun. I love that there is an Old Kingdom where magic still exists just on the other side of the wall from Ancelstierre, a world with cars and boarding schools and near-disbelief in the old ways. The bells and the gates of death still give me chills.

My re-read of the audio version by Tim Curry was so good.