I read this entire series when I was about thirteen or fourteen and I LOVED it, I coveted it, I bawled my eyes out ten times over, I was violently angry - wanted to jump between the pages and find a way to kill that grandmother (and mother to some extent) - and I grieved right along with the siblings when they grieved. Honest-to-god, to date, this remains THE book and series that has managed to produce such a wide range of emotions within me to such an extent - no other book has managed it. For that reason alone, it will remain one of the best stories I have ever read.