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Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (Cirque Du Freak: Saga of Darren Shan) | 
 enlarge | Author: Darren Shan
Publisher: Thorndike Press
Category: Book
Buy New: £21.95
New (4) from £21.95
Rating:  17 reviews
Format: Large Print
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Pages: 240
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.8
ISBN: 0786237341
EAN: 9780786237340
ASIN: 0786237341
Publication Date: February 2002
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Readers familiar with The Saga of Darren Shan will enjoy this second instalment on audio cassette. The Vampire's Assistant is read gleefully and yet touchingly by Alan Cumming. Darren is now living with Mr Crepsley, and struggling to be a "real" vampire, but his squeamishness about drinking human blood is becoming an obstacle to fully embracing the lifestyle. As he is still only half a vampire, and therefore partly a normal teenage boy, his wants and desires are hard to be satisfied by the ageing Mr Crepsley. Meeting Evra the snake boy when he and Mr Crepsley join the Cirque du Freak ensures he has a friend (however peculiar) his own age, as does meeting the more ordinary Sam, who is mesmerised by the Cirque du Freak. Alan Cumming reads the story with sensitivity for Darren's loneliness and new life and yet with some enjoyment of the gruesomeness of drinking blood and bizarreness of some of the characters in the Cirque du Freak. The tale may not make very peaceful bedtime reading, but will definitely keep children with a thirst for shivers and sweats engrossed. The breaks in the readings are sometimes laboured, so that the next chapter feels anticlimactic, but also are timed so that before you realise it, you'll have listened to most of the tale, always wanting to have your suspicions of what happens next confirmed. Darren's adventures, and encounters with a variety of characters (whether part of the Cirque du Freak or not) are particularly enthralling with Cumming's different voices, so that it almost feels as if Mr Crepsley or Mr Tiny are really in the room with you. The ending explores from a very original angle the importance of friendship and such everyday themes as these ensure that it seems likely that any number of seemingly ordinary teenage boys could be part-time vampires. --Olivia Dickinson
Amazon.co.uk Review
The Vampire's Assistant is the second instalment in the saga of Darren Shan, which began with Cirque du Freak. Then, Darren made the difficult decision to become a half-vampire to save his best mate Steve Leopard's life. Now, he must leave his friends and family behind as he travels cross-country with the vampire Mr Crepsley and the Cirque du Freak. Early on, Darren dispels the vampire myth in his typically facetious fashion:Crosses and holy water didn't hurt us. All garlic did was give us bad breath ... A stake through the heart would kill us, of course, but so would a bullet or a knife or electricity ... We were tougher to kill than normal people, but we weren't indestructible. However, despite Darren's seeming flippancy, The Vampire's Assistant is not for the squeamish or faint-hearted. How long can Darren go before he must drink human blood? How safe are Darren's new-found friends? Why don't the mysterious, blue-hooded dwarves speak or cry out in pain? And does their master Mr Des Tiny really feed on little children? No one is safe in this gruesome, macabre tale--more a who's-going-to-do-what than a who-dunnit: And then the red monster was on him. Stanley opened his mouth to scream, but before he could, the monster's hands--claws?--clamped over his mouth. There was a brief struggle, then Stanley was sliding to the floor, unconscious, unseeing, unknowing. Familiar characters include Mr Tall, the wolf-man and Evra, the snake boy, who are more fleshed out in this follow-up. New characters include Darren's new mate Sam and R G (Reggie Veggie), an ecowarrior. If book one whet your appetite, then The Vampire's Assistant will certainly leave you hungry for more. Watch out for the next fang-tastic sequel. --Nicola Perry
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| Customer Reviews: Read 12 more reviews...
 The first masterpiece in the saga October 30, 2008
Woodlandweasel (Rickmansworth UK)
An excellent book where Darren nearly kills himself, encounters a crazed eco-warrior, and ends up with a taste for pickled onions. Although the pace is more relaxed than the later books this turns out to be a good thing in places, and this is definitely one of the highlights in Darren Shan's compelling reportoire.
 a good dramatic sequel about becoming a vampire August 25, 2008
Stampy (England)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
In the sequel to Cirque Du Freak, Darren Shan is struggling to adjust to life as a vampire's assistant. Not only is he alone, but he faces death if he doesn't drink human blood. But hope comes along when Darren goes to work at the freak show.
Shan set down the marker with an impressive opening book to the saga. The writing wasn't brilliant but the ideology of the freak show and the people involved with it has made the saga intriguing and exciting and the use of this ideology is enough to bring the central protagonist and the plot to life in this good sequel.
Told in the first person, we get a glimpse into the thoughts of a typical teenager, only that he's a vampire, which adds a delicious twist to the conventional mind set, a more horrific yet exciting prospect for a saga.
Though the central character can be really annoying at times, the first person is necessary to get a true perspective of his story and to follow his thoughts and feelings at the transformation part of the saga.
The author has again used an annoying descriptive style, where the character's thoughts interrupt the vital part of the action sequence, and this prevents the action and the plot from flowing. Nevertheless the concept is laid down and the intensity of the situation is always there to make it a fast paced story.
Having the chill factor in the first book regarding the freak show was added here with Shan getting more close and personal with the show's stars, which added to the chilling feeling of the plot. The humour is still there, but so is the scare factor which includes a dramatic twist involving the wolf man.
Shan has included numerous new characters, none more interesting than R.V, a local protestor who brings up interesting points about society and the food chain, as an interesting side point.
The likeable factor of the freak show and the ideology of being a vampire and the unknown is enough to keep this novel going with twists and turns in a dramatic fantasy adventure.
8/10
Thrilling sequal October 5, 2006
livierox4lyf
I enjoyed this book because its different to many vampire books, this is because it reflects real life in a way. Darren adventures into the world of vampireism from humanity.
A thrilling sequal following cirque du freak
Thrillig Sequal October 5, 2006
Livrox4lyf
After his life turning upside down, Darren Shan lifes changes forever. Follow Darren as he encounters numerous hurdles that life throws at him has he journeys from humanity to half vampirism. Meet new faces, new situations and shocking consquences.
I throughly enjoyed this book as its story enravled. With the chill constantly creeping down your spine. An exciting sequal to the breathtaking Cirque du freak.
 great follow up September 7, 2006
lil slick
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The first book finished on such a cliff hanger there was no way that I couldn't get the next book. This book is a brilliant follow up to the first it introduces you to some interesting and brilliant characters as well as help you to learn more about Larten and Darren.
In the first book I thought Larten was just a sad, cruel and self centred vampire but after reading this book I relies that there is a lot more to him than that. He on some level cares about Darren and what happens to him you can see this in the way he keeps trying to make Darren drink blood in order to save his life.
As well as introducing some great characters and developing the relationship between Darren and Larten. It also has a great story line and follows on from the first book perfectly. I find with some books that the authors forget to explain things and lunch from one event to another but Darren Shan takes time to explain things and lets the story flow.
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