Another great book in the Darren Shan/Cirque du Freak series. A book that really is mixing well the action elements with the more dramatic one. We get to see Darren evolve in his new identity and even if he gain some we also get to see what he has to leave behind and what he will never be allow to have and this duality is something that make this series interesting and deeper then most kids series. I also really enjoy the vampire/horror part that make this series good and just achieved the right density of horror to be good and adapted to its public. Perfect in every way! I series I love as an adult and I series I would have kill for as a young boy!!

I really enjoyed this one! Better than book 2 but not quite as good as the first. Although the book was quite short, it packed a great plot and some really gruesome imagery. That is not to mention the terrific writing! I love following these characters on their journey!

This is a children’s book, and I’m rating it as such. However, I didn’t find the story as exciting or memorable as the first two books in the series. In this story, Darren Shan, Mr. Crepsley, and Evra the snake boy leave the Cirque and go to a city where a dangerous vampaneze named Murlough is killing people. While there, Darren befriends a girl named Debbie Hemlock, but he struggles to balance his human emotions with his vampire nature. It’s an okay read, not as gripping as the earlier books, but great if you’re learning English since the writing is simple

Cuốn hay nhất trong cả serie mà tình cờ đọc xong mình quyết lùng cả bộ sách :>
Mình cũng thích bản dịch "Địa đạo máu" nữa :>
Chiện ma cà rồng này khiến gỡ bỏ định kiến về vampire style sau hồi lỡ đọc cuốn Chạng Vạng :))) lol :))))))

Me gustó más que los otros ya que tiene una historia más clara y un "enemigo" que vencer, además, nos muestra un poco más del mundo de los vampirtos.

Darren ya bebe sangre humana, pero cuando un general vampiro visita el circo él, Mr Crepsley y Evra tienen que viajar a una ciudad. Ahí él conocerá a una chica quien será su primera novia, y también su primer encuentro con un verdadero peligro que amenaza su vida y la de sus amigos.

Como dije antes, este libro tiene una estructura más clara en cuanto a la construcción. Me gustó eso, porque ahora sí está dando la sensación de que la historia avanza. Ni hablar del tono oscuro, porque eso sigue, los personajes corren peligros reales y las consecuencias también lo son. Es genial que un libro que te amenaza con eso cumpla sus promesas.

Reiteraré mi amor por Mr Crepsley, no entiendo cómo Darren se pone a dudar de inmediato de él. En serio, Mr Crepsley es la criatura más adorable del mundo. Además, va aceptando su culpa al tiro, es super razonable. Lo amo. Él y Evra son los dos personajes que más me gustan, y obvio que espero lo peor por culpa de la amiga que me recomendó estos libros.

En fin, fuera de lo que sucedió no hay mucho más que comentar. Estoy ansiosa por leer los siguientes.

This one is the best in the series so far!

I loved the plot, the sweet romance in this one and the Christmas-y vibes.
I also adore the friendship between Darren and Evra Von. I like the snake boy since the first time he was mentioned in the first book, but there wasn't much development at first. He was barely mentioned.

But now, after his character development in the second book, in the third one we get to see more of their friendship and let me tell you, it's my favourite.

Debbie is a very good addition to the series and I hope she will re-appear later.
The General is also an amazing new addition and I loved the friendship between him and Mr. Crepsley.

I like where the series is going and hopefully I won't experience again what I did with the sequel.

4 stars.

A fun quick read.

Welcome to the third book by half-vampire Darren Shan. Tunnels of Blood is the third book in the Cirque du Freak series. A year has passed since Darren’s friend Sam passed away and Darren has learned more about being a half-vampire and a vampire’s assistant. Important business draws Mr. Crepsley away from the Cirque and he takes Darren with him and Evra Von the snake boy to keep Darren company. But there’s something wrong with their little trip. Mr. Crepsley disappears all night and when the news reports six dead bodies found—all found drained of blood—Evra and Darren have no choice but to try and catch the killer, even if the killer is Mr. Crepsley.

Plot

Tunnels of Blood is similar to that of The Vampire’s Assistant. It’s more of a filler book. The plot within this book is a plot by itself and doesn’t really further anything in the overall plot of the Cirque du Freak series. Honestly, the plot was a little more boring this time around. A good chunk of the book is about Darren and his girlfriend Debbie and, while I admit they were cute together, their interaction was still a tad bit boring. Actually, instead of being a filler book Tunnels of Blood is more like a set up book, as was the previous book. They’re both being used to set up the bigger plot in later books. The problem is that sometimes these books can be a little boring. They’re necessary but boring. Tunnels of Blood wasn’t too boring but it did take a while for the action to actually start.

Writing

The writing in Tunnels of Blood is the same as the last two book. It’s written by a young author (Darren, not the real-life author) so there are slight grammatical mistakes. I don’t get scared by books (or even movies for that matter) but other reviewers have said that the gore in this book is well written and very scary to them. You’ll have to take another reviewers word for it. There was a lull in the writing after Darren, Mr. Crepsley, and Evra got to the city but it picked back up after a while.

Characters

In this book we see some real development from Darren. We see his smartness put into action. Master Shan is good at coming up with plans. That’s a little strength from a character that is good to see. Darren doesn’t have much going for him as a young, barely-turned half-vampire, but he does have this. I like characters who do have weaknesses but also have a strength or two that’s not just the author bailing them out of a bad situation.

Mr. Crepsley is still an enigma to us. He’s particularly distant in this book but we do get to see a slightly softer side to him. It’s hard to put a read on his character just yet and despite the fact that I think we should know a little bit more about him as a character at this point, I’m willing to see where his character goes.

Things I Didn't Like
A big thing I didn’t like was how the main antagonist was made to be “crazy”. This is a terrible trope, especially in books targeted towards younger audiences. There are children with mental disorders who are made to feel bad for being different with their mental disorders and books with villains like this only help further that. Just as easily Shan could have made Murlough, our antagonist, just pure evil.

The only other big thing I didn’t like was how Mr. Crepsley was describing how he didn’t consider the vampaneze to be evil. He said that the vampaneze weren’t evil when they kill because of their beliefs. But beliefs can be evil. Mr. Crepsley likened it to a soldier doing his job. Does the soldier killing make him evil? Yes, if he’s killing innocent people and could avoid killing altogether. If the soldier doesn’t have to kill but does anyways he is evil. The vampaneze do not need to kill humans but they do anyways; they are evil. I can understand that Shan is trying to make Mr. Crepsley seem like a morally gray character but he isn’t; Mr. Crepsley is cosigning what the vampaneze are doing by accepting it.

Diversity

Debbie Hemlock is described as having dark skin so it’s safe to assume that she is black. But that also means that any character Shan doesn’t describe is automatically supposed to be white. There are no LGBTIAP+ characters, characters with disabilities, etc. This is my most consistent flaw with this series.

Overall
Tunnels of Blood was a little boring. It wasn’t boring all the way through the book but it did take some time for the action to start. We get to learn a bit more about the world of vampires and their more murderous cousins. We also get a black character who, unfortunately, isn’t really a main character. The books in the Cirque du Freak series are short so even when they’re a little dull you don’t have to suffer for too long.

Here is a link to my notes.

7.00 on CAWPILE

4.5/5 ⭐ AHHHHHH

I literally read this book in one day, in one sitting. IT WAS JUST SO ADDICTING. Also guys i am in love with Mr Crepsley, a 200 year old vampire. He's my bae

A foolish, bratty upstart vampire assistant lacks common sense and good judgement and has as much self confidence as he does stupidity. Someone hand this guy a gun now.

The opening two sentences were epic, “The smell of blood is sickening. Hundreds of carcasses hang from silver hooks, stiff, shiny with frosty blood.”

But soon after, Darren the vampire assistant was outright annoying. One of the most powerful, oldest and experienced vampires takes him under his wing. An equal from out of town delivers a secret message. The upstart gets sooky that he wasn’t let in on the secret and assumes the worst, with very little foundation. So he goes about solving the mystery of the stash of bodies found, as heard on the news, and unwittingly botches everything he touches. He puts his loved ones’ lives at risk, but he backs himself, sticking true to his belief that he was being heroic.

I can imagine my friend Rosh shaking her head at this book. The almost adult child gets away with so many misdeeds. He bosses around the master he is meant to learn from (no respect). He’s headstrong and uncompromising despite the dangers. He’s a blabbermouth, telling all the secrets to the wrong people. And then the conclusion of the story that everything works out in his favour. The master vampire apologises, hands over the lead, decides to give full trust away. I know it’s for a younger audience, and I’m not it but please…

I do sound overly critical…but main character differences aside, I did enjoy reading it. It was a quick vampire fix. I was in the dark, having read only this one and not the others in the series. Perhaps the master vampire had it coming, I don’t know. It was fast moving. The setting was good too.

There are twelve books in the Cirque du Freak series by Darren Shan and I read my way through all of them in about three weeks as a child! I absolutely loved them and was totally immersed in the world created by Darren Shan from the get go. October is just the perfect time to re-read them all! Especially when I have access to all the audio books.

This series is everything I remember. Creepy, full of gore and suspense, leaving you wanting more! All the characters are incredibly unique and developed. The story as a whole is different from comparison novels and you can tell with each book that there is much more of a story to come. Shan has written the books whilst planning ahead. Small details that suggest further meaning crop up later in the series and it is sheer genius and talent.

There is gore, which I enjoyed immensely. Also, some humour thrown in so it wasn't completely gross and disgusting all the time. It was a nice way to break things up so it didn't feel dark and bleak every step of the way. I was lucky enough to meet the author at Edinburgh Book Festival in 2019 and every sentence on every page of these books oozes his personality, humour and fantastic mind! You are completely immersed into the world of Darren Shan, Mr Crepsley and the Cirque Du Freak with just a few sentences.

I think this series will forever be a favourite of mine! Especially during the spooky season!