Darren Shan was just an ordinary schoolboy - until his visit to the Cirque Du Freak. Now, as he struggles with his new life as a Vampire's Assistant, he tries desperately to resist the one temptation that sickens him, the one thing that can keep him alive. But destiny is calling... the Wolf Man is waiting.

So I finally made my way back to the Cirque Du Freak and in my second outting overall I will admit it was quite enjoyable this a series written for 14 year olds but shouldn't be read by them, as it's just overly graphic with blood and gore, now i loved all that but might be a bit much for some younger readers. Now sadly this is not as great as the first book, but the reason for that is because Darrens life as a vampire/half vampire is only just beginning so i understand that things currently will be quite slow, in setting up this new greater world, more about the Cirque and it's proformers and the new creatures of this secret world. So i forgive the book for being slow and full of foreshadowing, and just because i gave the book a 3 doesn't mean it's bad, it's just a stepping stone to bigger and greater stories! And a lot is set up, for example Darrens struggle with being half vampire, not wanting to lose his last threads of humanity by drinking blood, which at first I understood, but eventually i got the the point near the end where I just kept thinking, "just do it already" as it does play itself out and gets boring quick. But im interested in seeing what this stepping stone book is setting up and im sure what comes next is just grand and epic, so I will visit the Cirque De Freak again maybe in the close future, we will see.....

3.6/5 Stars GoodReads ⭐⭐⭐

48/100 liters of blood

بهتر از جلد یکش بود حس می‌کنم

This series is just marvelous!! And it has a praise by J. K. Rowling on the cover. What do you need more to start reading it! Seriously this is the best old kids/ young teens book/series since Harry Potter! Nothing less! It is fun, has very original characters, we don't fall into stupid clichés and stereotypes, it has a solid and dark story and I just having a great time reading it. Highly recommend!!

4.25 stars

“I don’t think a good person can do evil things.”

I have to admit, chapter one spooked me. I don’t like the sound of my footsteps when I’m out walking at night because they seem to echo and make me think that I’m not alone – the fact that Mr. Collins does find the sound comforting made it worse for me.

Throughout this book Darren left lots of torturous cliff-hangers at the end of a few chapters which made it impossible to put this down.

I really enjoyed the conflict between Darren and Mr. Crepsley. Neither of them seem to care for the other but at the same time there’s moments when I think they do. Darren has said some awful things but I can get why, he’s scared, he’s lonely and he’s going through a lot of changes – and I don’t just mean puberty.

I hate, double hate, loathe entirely – Des Tiny! He gives me the creeps. But I do rather like the Little People.

I loved the introduction of Sam and R.V - and the storyline that followed even if I have spent the last half hour crying my eyes out.

I really like Evra too, he’s a really interesting character. I wouldn’t mind bunking with him and his sleep crawling snake at the Cirque Du Freak.

I cannot wait to start book 3 but at the same time I’m dreading what’s to come in Tunnels of Blood.

I liked this book slightly better than the first, but it still has some flaws. The narrator of the audiobook is not the greatest and the writing style is not very complex, but the characters grew to be more likable in this book and some new interesting characters were introduced. This series is also very addicting and each book is really short, so if you're looking for a bingeable series, check out this one.

I was shocked by how gory and graphic this book was. It's considered a middle grade book yet some of the scenes made my stomach churn with nausea. Those scenes were not a fun experience for me.

There is one massive thing about this series that doesn't make sense to me: why does everyone want to join the cirque? It is not described in a very appealing way and some of the freaks in the show are very dangerous yet people keep begging to join the cirque. It doesn't make sense...

Book 2 is really where things pick up and get interesting. I'm so glad I've decided to do a re-read of this series many years after I first read them. I love Darren Shan's writing.

On par with the first book and the world is developing nicely. I remember the pacing I'm this series seemed particularly good back when I read it in Middle School(Well, I think it got a bit wonky in the end, certainly didn't like the last couple books from what I remember). I'm enjoying my trip down nostalgia lane for sure!

i forgot how casually gory this author is, i love it. middle school Alyssa was having a field day during her Demonata series obsession

روحِ غالبی که بر قسمتِ اوّلِ مجموعۀ قصّه‌هایِ سرزمینِ اشباح حاکم بودو سابقاً آن را بیان کردم بر قسمتِ دوّم از این مجموعه نیز حاکم است. با این حال قسمتِ دوّمِ مجموعه کمی بیشتر به داستان‌پردازی اعتنا کرده و هم‌چون دورخیزی به نظر می‌رسد تا دارن شان بتواند داستانِ خود را به تدریج از قسمت‌هایِ بعدی آغاز کند.
بررسیِ مفصّلِ این قسمت بماند برایِ فرصتی بهتر.

My opinion of this book is one giant eye roll. Meh, lame, and bleh. This is definitely a children's book and probably one that would only interest 10 year old boys. I like the movie, which it why I wanted to read the book. However the movie script writers did a much better job than the actual book author. At least the audiobook was only 5 hours and I listened to it at 1.25x speed. Also, the narrator of the audiobook does a pretty close to terrible job.

“The hunger inside us must be fed to be controlled.”

Wow. This one blew my reading mind all over the place, being far superior to the first. Both stories were good and this was a continuation where the first left off; however, this one was more consistent with plot, pacing, and even richer in story detail. Generally the tales of "when all the big, bad begins" has the most suspense and ambition, but in this case the character slowly settling into his new world ended up kicking the previous books butt and taking names.

The ensemble of bizarre circus characters was truly intriguing - from his new friends and the unusual problems they face, to the leaders in charge who he must be wary of in both power and crossing lines, to some of the difficult and at times morally questionable work, Darren is also cursed with trying to accept what he now is and what he must do to survive.

Sounding more emo than it really is, the boy doesn't struggle too much on page but instead experiences with a rampage of other emotions relating to interesting plot details. Mr. Crepsley is slowly growing on me. I could have done without him the first book, took him or left him, but here he's more enjoyable in his role.

It's a little over 200 pages, and with the quick action and something new always happening, it's a quick read. Even if there is a vampire theme and the cover is a bit eerie for youngsters, it's more of a drama piece than anything thrillerish. There are horrifying incidents that occur, but these are all seriousness, no cheese.

There's a decent amount of gore compared to the first and as a young adult for this age level, but it's not on the adult plane. Whether a parent wishes for their children to read this or not....well, it would depend of the child's sensitivity level. This one takes it more into the realm of teenager, I think.

Shan certainly has an amazing ability with words, to where when reading it you can clearly picture whatever's going on, making it clear and real, mentally impressing and everlasting in memory.

The ending of this book was shocking, especially for a young adult.

It broke my heart.

The first one was addicting and easy to fall into after an awkward meeting; this one continues it to be such an awesome experience that it's forever on my "keeper shelf." Almost surreal sometimes, exciting others, tragic and powerful, this one packs a huge punch that you WANT to be hit by. I can't recommend this highly enough for horror fans, young adult enthusiasts, adults, and people who enjoy different sorts of fantastic worlds peppering with circus tricks, loners struggling to survive in a world which rejects them, and coming to term with life-altering changes. Basically this is recommended for all readers everywhere.