It seems only right that roughly a decade after joining Goodreads I should reread Darren Shan’s bibliography. Darren Shan was in fact the person who brought Goodreads to my attention all the way back in 2012. He had a link to his account on his website and when I clicked on it I felt like I was in some sort of reader heaven.

Is this book perfect? No. Is it worth a five star rating? No. But I am rating it that anyway purely based on nostalgia and based on the fact that when I first read it in 2008 after coming upon it in a B. Dalton books in the mall, it changed my life. It was the first book I ever read that I felt was written especially for me, and that is such a special feeling that I have been chasing ever since.

Well, I made it a goal of mine to re-read some old favourites this year, and it looks like i'm about to add quite a few to that list. I forgot how freaking good these books are! I put it on as a quick audiobook I found when scrolling through audible stories, and now I can't help but want to read the whole thing all over again.

Darren Shan's stories were introduced to me by my primary 7 teacher, who had a bookshelf in the classroom from which we could choose anything to read either when we'd finished our work or during the allotted reading time each day. This was the first one I picked up and I've adored everything Darren Shan has written since. My 10-11 year old self ate this right up! A freak show, a snake boy, a bearded lady and VAMPIRES? What more could I ask for?

I'm happy to report that my feelings remain the same more than 10 years later. I love this series and can't wait to continue with the rest!

I love this book because its full of adventure and horror it kept me hooked i was always wondering what was gonna happen next i wish i could read it again. I suggest people read it if your into adventure and horror books.It's one of my favorite books. I have not read the whole series yet but i am hoping to once i find them all. Overall it's a very good book so i very much do recommend this book.The part that was the most shocking was when Steve wanted to become a vampire! I was glad Darren stayed back at the show or we wouldn’t of known it had happened I love it when stories do that. When Darren stole Madam Octa it was scary because she was very dangerous and very poisonous after Darren stole Madam Octa he trained her and used the flute to do tricks when Steve came over Darren was exited and showed Steve the spider they wanted her to make a spider web over Steve’s mouth but then Darren’s sister Annie came in saw Madam Octa and screamed which made Darren loose focus and Madam Octa bite Steve.Later in the story when Steve’s in the hospital Darren meets Mr. Crepsley who earlier in the story is a vampire Darren bags Mr. Crepsley to give the cure to him but Mr. Crepsley wants to make a a deal first he said that if Darren wanted to save he would have to become his vampire assistant Darren finally says yes so they go to the hospital that night and give Steve the Cure. When the doctors came to check on Steve the next day he was better.Then they all go back to school one day at lunch the we’re playing football and their friend Allen got a cut on his knee Darren saw it and he slowly walked toward Allen and started to drink his blood! But he just makes a joke out of it but Steve doesn’t laugh at the joke Darren knew that Steve was curious. When it was time for Darren to leave and join Mr. Crepsley he gave Darren a potion so that he wouldn’t get actually die when Mr. Crepsley Broke his neck and threw him out the window. The had a funeral for him they all said their goodbyes and finally buried him after that.Soon later Mr. Crepsley dug Darren up as soon as Darren got out of the coffin he went to walk around as soon as he got out of the gates of the graveyard Steve attacked Darren he told him that when he was older he was gonna track them down and kill them. I loved the endings cliffhanger! I would love to read the book over and over once I finish the series that is. When Steve’s in that hospital it takes a toll on you it’s sad,scary,funny,and a thriller!

Vaya. Es mucho más oscuro de lo que yo pensaba para ser un libro middle-grade. Todavía es muy introductorio así que no sé muy bien hacia donde va la historia, pero es lo suficientemente interesante como para querer seguir.

Darren era un chico normal con amigos normales. Un día llega el Cirque du Freak a su ciudad y él y su mejor amigo Steve deciden ir. Sin embargo, las cosas no salen como esperaba y Darren termina haciendo un trato que cambia toda su vida.

Admito que vi la película y tenía vagos recuerdos de ella mientras leía. Así que sabía, al menos, lo que iba a pasar en esta entrega. Me gustó el tono y el ambiente oscuro y triste del libro, de la historia no puedo decir mucho porque es solo una introducción.

Darren no termina de caerme bien. Es un niño y toma decisiones bastante estupidas, pero como dije, es un niño. Y me gusta que mantenga ciertos pensamientos inmaduros de niños, incluso cuando otros más adultos pasan por su cabeza. Lo que más me gustó fue su relación con Annie, su hermana, podrían haber hecho cualquier otra relación cliché de hermana menor, pero no fue así. De hecho, Annie me pareció el personaje más inteligente y que mejor me cayó de todo el libro.

La relación de Darren y Steve claramente va a dar para más, sobre todo por el personaje de Steve. Este niño que ama las historias de terror y todo lo relacionado con muerte y sangre, pero que se sintió traicionado cuando Darren terminó con el destino que él quería.

Aunque es solo una introducción promete bastante y ya quiero leer los demás.

4.5 stars ...

This was super fun ...
and the narrator,
Ralph Lister,
was fantastic!

I finally started this series because the movie adaptation snuck its way into a conversation I was having with a friend; we both remembered enjoying the movie quite a lot, so I decided it was finally time to try the book series. I already had the files in my Kobo, even.

The book ended up being far simpler than I thought, the writing style is very childish. It's obviously a case of Artemis Fowl, as in "this is a book for children, so I don't have to make an effort!" on the writer's part. Meh. I know I'm not in the target group, "Why are you reading children's books anyway?", but that doesn't mean I can't review or read it. It's bothering me because the premise is very interesting, but the writing is just so plain and uninspiring (like the Artemis Fowl franchise)

So 2 stars for the first book in the series. I will be reading the next book, hopefully the writing will improve.

March 2018: Still a refreshingly quick walk down memory lane, but I'm actually going to finish the series this time :P

April 2015: a refreshingly quick read and a nice walk down memory lane

I made the mistake of watching the movie first and I think I’m the only one who really liked it!! So I wasn’t expecting Darren to be quite so young, or for the characters to be quite so reckless. They really tone that down in the movie I guess. The characters were sweet or interesting though. The plot was good, if not a little short. Not too dangerous and definitely humorous.

Overall, I enjoyed it and the narrator was fabulous!! The voices he made were just so fun and felt spot on!! Because of this, I think I’ll continue listening to the audiobooks. And it’s also because of the narrator that I gave four stars instead of three. He’s is
It’s that good.

It’s such a quick little listen that this series should go fairly fast. I haven’t decided whether or not I can recommend this or not. I’ll listen to a couple more of these and let you know in the reviews for book two or three. In a longer series for kids, sometimes you should be patient when forming an opinion. So read on I shall!!

Darren Shan is a young boy who’s fascinated by spiders. He and his best friend Steve go to a freak show and Darren’s eyes light up like a Christmas tree when he sees a very special act with a spider. Steve is interested in the spider’s handler, who Steve claims is a vampire. Darren however gets mesmerized by the spider. He craves it, he wants it more than he has ever wanted anything before in his life. So he decides to steal a poisonous spider from a vampire, what could possibly go wrong?


One of the best things this first book does is establish the friendship between Darren and Steve. When push comes to shove however, it’s clear Steve wouldn’t mind leaving his old life - including Darren - behind if he can get himself turned into a vampire. But there’s nothing Darren wouldn’t do to save Steve when he sees his best friend is about to die. That’s why I really like the choice Darren has to make at the end. It clearly establishes who he is as a person. The only way to save his best friend, is to betray him. And he realizes that will change everything. You just know there’s going to be devastating consequences to Darren’s actions.


Most people know this series from the books or from the movie but I actually got to know this series through the manga. So while I haven’t read all the books, I know there’s a lot of great things in store for anyone who wants to try this series.


This is just a book with a fascinating concept, pretty much executed to perfection. There are two strong protagonists with a lot of potential for greatness. The setting is slightly creepy and adventurous. It’s a really fast read yet also gripping and intense, making it hard to put down once you start reading. It’s just a little bit light on plot if you see it as a standalone story.

The first Cirque Du Freak book is a nice read that really pumped me up for Halloween. That being said it does have faults one of which is maybe I'm a bit out of the age range for this book. I believe everybody should be able to read children books of all ages and not be judge, but for this series I found myself thinking how I'm not the target audience which makes me feel really old. I found myself rolling my eyes at the dialogue/plot points because it seemed so unrealistic and childish seriously he just steals a spider from a vampire and leaves a note saying don't look for me also the characters felt basic and seemed to be lifeless at time pun intended.

There is some good things of course. For once we have a main character whose family life isn't messed up or not there. In fact Darran Shan the main character comes from a really good home life and actually loves his family including his youngest sister. shocking I know He likes school as much as a young boy can, he likes his friends and teachers and loves soccer. He is as normal as they come, other then having a obsession over spiders, it's refreshing to see a normal kid with a normal life in a middle grade book. Of course everything goes to hell for him halfway through but whatever.

I say read this if you want some brain candy before Halloween or you/your child want to start off on some horror without starting with Anne Rice/Stephen King.

The movie did a lot to good for this series

This book was very different than what I expected it to be. I didn't read the synopsis of the book, so I guess my shock at the book's contents was partly my fault. I basically just looked at free Audible books with vampires in it and this one popped up, so I listened to it. I'd recommend reading this book as opposed to listening to it though because I didn't fancy the narrator's voice very much. He sort of sounded like an annoying elementary school teacher who tried to dramatically change his voice for each character.

Before I dive into the rest of my review, it's important that you know that there's lots of mentions of spiders in this book. Spiders are a huge plot point and they are described in detail, so if you are afraid of spiders, then maybe skip this book.

The characters in this book lack depth to me and I couldn't connect to them at all. They were all deeply flawed and none of them interested me. Had I been reading this in elementary school or middle school and I identified as more masculine, I might've loved the characters though as they all seemed to be traditional teenage boys.

The end of this book surprised me with how sad it was. Normally I don't feel sad in a book if I can't connect to the characters, but the author does a great job of pulling on your heartstrings and I felt genuinely heartbroken over some of the stuff in the book. It says a lot about a book if I feel actual emotions from reading it, so that's why my rating is at around 3 stars.

Warning: the rest of my review will contain mild spoilers.


There were two parts of the story that made me say "wtf." To start off with, it was mentioned that Darren had murdered his pet tarantula by vacuuming it up. That's so messed up... Second of all, Darren seemed way more concerned about not ending up in jail as opposed to being concerned about his friend that was about to die. And we're supposed to believe that Steve is the evil one??

One last thought about this book was that Darren being able to sense things, like the ticket, felt very stupid and cheesy. It pulled me somewhat out of the story and it really did not flow with the rest of the almost believable creepiness that the story held.