By far the best so far in this series! Darren really grew as a character in this book, he started to realize that he has to accept this new life of his. Mr. Crepsley was perfect as always and even though I missed the circus and the other "freaks", I loved them being in a new location. The Hemlock family was a great addition, Debbie was adorable. And have I already talked about the ending? It was superb! You kind of knew what was going on wasn't real, but no other real solutions came to mind either. 4.5 stars for this one, hope the next one is just as good!

توی این جلد یکم از دست دارن حرص خوردم ولی

In this book we meet Debbie, Darren's girlfriend and a vampaneze. Very entertaining and a quick read!

Tunnels of Blood
Author: Daren Shan

"When he faced me again, he looked ashamed of himself. "I have gravely underestimated you, Darren," he said. "I will not do so again. I made a wiser choice than I realized when I chose you to serve as my assistant. I feel honoured to have you by my side."

Daren and the vampire Mr. Crepsley travel with the snake boy Evra to Mr. Crepsley's hometown after news reaches them that a series of unexplained murders have been taking place in the town.

Together they face many unexpected adventures that test their trust in each other.
The situation becomes even more complicated than it already is when Darren, as a half vampire, falls in love with a human girl named Debby....

Will they succeed in tracking down the murderer?

This book is a valuable addition to the Cirque du Freak series. The author adds many new twists to the already very extensive storyline.

This is the first part in which a romance begins to develop between two characters. In my opinion, the mystery surrounding the Vampanese clan is further developed in this book, which makes you curious about their history and way of thinking. New friendships are formed and the bond of trust between the characters becomes stronger.

There are a number of elements in the storyline that can be experienced as shocking by young children.

Trigger warnings:
Murder, violence, kidnapping, blood, death and grief

Väldigt svag första halva. Det var som att Darren och Evra medvetet undvek den självklara förklaringen varför Mr Crepsley var i staden. Men historien blir lite bättre i andra halvan. Mestadels för världsbyggnaden, så det väger ändå upp till en 4a

Think of me when Christmas comes around, as you're biting into your turkey and ham. Do you know what I'll be biting into?

Damn it, a childrens book making me cry. This is definitely the best one so far in this series. I didn't think that until that ending took a major turn last second. There's no chance of seeing that coming. How this is a childrens book is beyond me. This is excellent adult material!! Who doesn't love a good vampire series.

**spoiler alert**
Really though, this was surprisingly good. I'm so sad that Debbie and Darren couldn't be together. They were such a cute couple. Darren's last goodbye was cute, though, and he saved her life and evras, so I'm much happier with that outcome than where I really thought it was going.

This book features only three big characters—Darren, Crepsley, and Evra. I liked having them on their own for a change, pretending to be a family, and almost living a normal life. Darren and Evra are from a completely different world, yet they get a taste of normal human teenage life for a little while. It was like a vacation from the fantasy world.

I don’t remember which book it was, but I think it was this one…there was a pretty dark part in the beginning where Darren comes across a group of normal kids, boys about his age, and they ask him to join in a game of street hockey (I think). He accepts, and when he starts playing around with the hockey stick, he accidentally ends up breaking both the legs of one of the boys…they are terrified, and he awkwardly gets away and goes back to Mr. Crepsley. I wonder what ever happened to that kid…

Debbie is a new character introduced in here, and while it seems extremely random, she does come back much later in the series. She’s kind of a two-dimensional character and mostly just serves the purpose of being a love interest, but she’s still a nice character regardless, with welcoming and hospitable parents. It gives a soft glow to the otherwise gloomy feel of these books.

Murlough (sp?) was the villain in this book, and he is the first we see of the other race of vampires in this world—the vampaneze. It’s a strange name, I’ll admit, but the group does make a huge impact for later in the series, and this was a good way to introduce us. With just one first, to see how even just one operates, before we see an entire army. The fact is, they’re dangerous. They hold strongly to their beliefs (just like the vampires do) and they are ruthless and will stop at nothing to be able to drain humans entirely of their blood. And they’re not necessarily wrong—that’s what makes the story so compelling.

I feel the need to emphasize again that even though Shan put his own modern spin on the vampires in this series (like most modern writers do), it’s still dark and monstrous and screams “vampires”. There are good and bad ways to put originality into things. This is a good way.

There is a major twist at the end, a bigger one than the previous two books. It really does a good job tricking the readers, as it looks like the characters are planning to do one thing, and then at the last minute…you see they were doing something entirely different all along. They had you fooled, in a good way.

Review: https://hiplibrariansbookblog.com/200...

This book is number three of the whole Cirque du Freak series. This book unparticular is about the main character Darren and his mater Mr. Crepsley going on an adventure. They are leaving the Cirque du Freak (the freak circus they attend for being vampires) with one of the performers, a half snake and half man, Evra Von. They are leaving to the city where Mr. Crepsley lived before he got turned into a vampire. But one thing he is keeping from Darren is that a ‘Vampaneze’ is living in Mr.Crepsley’s city in the tunnels, feeding off the humans that wander the streets.
How Darren discovers there is a ‘Vampaneze’ living in the city is that on the news they discover bodies turning up everywhere. But there’s a twist, Darren thinks Mr.Crepsley is the killer! Darren and Evra go on a mission to follow Mr.Crepsley and see if he is the killer for sure. If he is Darren is going to kill him, if not he won’t. Fortunately Mr.Crepsley was also on the hunt for this killer, the ‘Vampaneze’ (Murlough).
Murlough was on the hunt for this man but Mr.Crepsley was there to stop him. But, Darren went to far this time and stopped Mr.Crepsley from doing that. Murlough is now free and Darren and Mr.Crepsley have to find him. But do you know what Murlough has? No? Evra! What will they do?
I absolutely love this book and would recommend this series to everyone! Whether you like romance, mystery, thriller, fiction, nonfiction, or adventures because this book will keep you on the tip of your seat from the beginning to the absolute end!

Riding the extreme high from the second book, I sought this one out for purchase and finished in one sitting like the others. Being that it is a little over two hundred pages, packs plenty of action within it's paper walls, and delivers outstanding suspenseful scenes filled with genuine drama, emotion, and powerful contradictions, it's a breeze to absorb, leaving you wanting even more at the end.

While I did not like this one quite as much as the powerful, unforgettable second, this was still a more than worthy followup. Darrens life is changing all the time, and for this novel the author has taken us a bit out of the circus world for awhile. The change of pace may have seemed a turnoff since I love the circus angle so much, but the new world introduced develops even heavier level into both Darren and Mr. Crepsleys characterizations, internal struggles, and realizations. There is now an added mystery element and new villain to boot.

The "villain" was sarcastically dark, truly demented and cruel, and added a more grown-up element to the tale. Really, after the tragic endings of the first and second books, I can highly recommend this to adults who are not even really into Young adult styles. Yes, the first started off awkward but it continues to where it shines for all readers in whatever age group they fall in.

To kids this is an exciting world to fall into, filled with childlike wonders and amazing monsters, a great protagonist to latch onto. For teenagers they recognize many of the issues Darren is going through and would be absorbed with the incredible details of the story which is unique and rich with suspense, thrills, and fun. For adults this brings with it a fascinating child that speaks to the adult in all of us, with adult characters we wish to know more of and about, bringing that beloved fairy-tale aspect to our lives.

A bit weaker than the others, it focuses more on developing friendships and the evolution of Darren's character in a different setting. Sadly I do not yet have the fourth to continue exploring this interesting world, but I shall soon. I shall promise myself that, life is better lived when indulging in pleasures and mental treats such as these.

Another thrilling book.
I fear of running out of words for reviews - which these books, in my humble opinion, deserve more than anything.

I think with this book finished, the inspiration for the movie is as well. I mean a little at least, seeing how Murlough... Morlough? Is dead and that was the end of the movie. Well not JUST that but you know what I mean.

Darren got braver and stronger, getting him to stand up against Crepsley when he thinks that the latter is up to evil. Something he wouldn’t have dared to do, in the other books. Even though it made a mad killer escape, even Crepsley was in good spirits about it.

I also love Darren's talent to get attention and friends anywhere he goes, now making a girlfriend, who also invites him to Christmas.
Which after Morlough... we will call him Mad Mo - so after Mad Mo kidnaps Evra, Christmas will be THE day.

Darren's plan to get to Mad Mo, after meeting him on the street and concluding that he really IS mad and evil, is to make him think he got Darren and that Crepsley vanished to get the Generals, then apparently swapping his girlfriend for his bestie. And tadaa evil Mad is dead and all is good. Until the next book. I am excited.
Also I wanna see more of Gavner.