Liam Wren and the Dragon Wand by KJCartmell

If you're looking for something as captivating as the original series, check out KJ Cartmell's series about Liam Wren, set in the interlude between the Second Wizarding War and the arrival of the Next Generation at Hogwarts.

You will fall in love with Muggleborn Liam -- young, naive about the magical world (and about girls), but nobody's fool.  Liam Wren and the Dragon Wand, the first book in the series, follows Liam during his first year, when he requests to be sorted into Hufflepuff in order to join the new friends he met on the train.  He enters the magic world, learns his way around, gets involved in matters far beyond what first years usually do, and shows his strength of character and coolness under fire, while still remaining an eleven-year-old boy.  The powerful, mysterious Dragon Wand is a focus of trouble, intrigue, and finally resolution.

KJ fills his story with an outstanding cast of supporting characters, major and minor, all easy to keep track of because KJ gives each one a distinct, well-developed, believable personality.  (I am reminded of the ancient army of terra cotta statues of soldiers discovered buried in China; it is said that each statue has a unique face modeled from a real person in life.)  He is a master of managing his large cast, moving smoothly from one group of students to another group.  His writing style, is open, direct, pure story-telling, with an engrossing, imaginative take on how Hogwarts functions as a school and a culture.

The story focuses on all four Houses, but chiefly on Hufflepuff (Liam's House) and Slytherin.  Every facet of life at Hogwarts in 2006 is presented here.  The generous detail enriches our knowledge of the experience and culture of the school -- all those things that JKR never gave us -- but none of it is "filler."  It all captures your attention.  The level of intrigue and manipulation present as a matter of course in Slytherin society, both inside and outside the school, is eye-popping, and my hat is off to KJ for creating it.

If you are pulled into Liam Wren's world by reading this story, you'll be happy to know that KJ has continued his series up to Liam's sixth year (WIP), always fascinating and enjoyable.  Highly recommended.