- "When you're rocked, hang on for dear life until you can see straight. Then let go and let him have it."
- — Rustica Strife, Skulduggery Pleasant: Last Stand of Dead Men
| Rustica Strife | |
| Character Information | |
| Taken Name | Rustica Strife |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Female |
| Birth | Unknown |
| Age | Unknown |
| Death | The War, Lord Vile |
| Magic | Seer, Sensitive |
| Titles | Boxer, General in Meritorious' Army |
| Location | Deceased |
| Relations | Ghastly's father (spouse) Ghastly Bespoke (son) |
Rustica Strife is the mother of Ghastly Bespoke. When she was pregnant with him she was cursed. As a result Ghastly was born with hideous scars over his face.
She was a boxer who, according to Skulduggery, once knocked a man's head clean off. She met her death at the hands of Lord Vile, whom she had attempted to defeat single-handedly. Her boxing being known as legendary, she's won 23 times consecutively. It is a trait she has passed on to Ghastly, and one that he particularly benefited from when he was younger, when made fun of his scars.
It is also mentioned in The Faceless Ones, that she defeated Serpine and Baron Vengeous, and some of Mevolent's best men just turned and ran. Ghastly's mother was also a Sensitive, particularly seeing the future. However, it was a gift she didn't want. One of her visions was that of a dark haired girl joining Skulduggery and dying horribly, a vision fulfilled in The Dying of the Light.
In Last Stand Of Dead Men, Ghastly mentions that his mother had often badgered Ghastly to find a nice girl.
She is a minor character in Hell Breaks Loose (which is where her name is revealed) and in chapter 10 she is described as "undoubtedly the single most feared general in Meritorious' army".