A Living Nightmare (Cirque Du Freak, #1)

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A Living Nightmare (The Saga of Darren Shan #1)

4.02 of 5 stars 4.02 · rating details · 21,701 ratings · 1,880 reviews

Darren Shan and his best friend, Steve, get tickets to the Cirque Du Freak, a wonderfully gothic freak show featuring weird, frightening half human/half animals who interact terrifyingly with the audience. In the midst of the excitement, true terror raises its head when Steve recognizes that one of the performers-- Mr. Crepsley-- is a vampire!
Stever remains after the show...more

Paperback, 272 pages

Published June 1st 2002 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (first published 2000)

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Aug 22, 2011 Sita Sargeant rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites, own, paranormal, reviewed

This has got to be one of the best books I have ever read! I used to hate reading I found it a chore. I only read school books. This book changed that normally I'm not normally into horror books but Darren Shan is different he is such a cool and likeable person. I reccomend this book to anyone who likes reading, this book is a great start to a series I loved. I re-read the series all the time. If you read it, then I am 86% sure you will love it.

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Apr 16, 2010 Qt rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: halloween, horror-supernatural

Easy to read and surprisingly engrossing--I stayed up late to finish it. I see why it's such a popular series!

14 likes · like · see review

Nov 22, 2011 Myvampfiction rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

review by Megsly

*Warning: possible spoilers ahead.*

A few weeks ago, this charming little movie called The Vampire's Assistant came on my television and I, being obsessed with vampires as everyone knows, just had to watch and I was extremely impressed by the originality of the movie so when I unearthed the series, The Saga of Darren Shan, I dove right in.
A Living Nightmare is book one of the The Saga of Darren Shan, otherwise known as Cirque du Freak. It introduces us to Darren Shan, a young boy...more review by Megsly

*Warning: possible spoilers ahead.*

A few weeks ago, this charming little movie called The Vampire's Assistant came on my television and I, being obsessed with vampires as everyone knows, just had to watch and I was extremely impressed by the originality of the movie so when I unearthed the series, The Saga of Darren Shan, I dove right in.
A Living Nightmare is book one of the The Saga of Darren Shan, otherwise known as Cirque du Freak. It introduces us to Darren Shan, a young boy who's an avid soccer player, has an insane obsession with spiders, and a somewhat bad-boy best friend named Steve. The books are clearly geared towards younger audiences, especially with the main character being so young. I'm under the impression that he's 12 or 13 in the series, due to the fact that he is constantly referred to as a child, by others and by himself.

First off, I'd like to point out that the first book in this series is not very well written. There are tense errors and an extreme number of punctuation errors, but the plot itself is fascinating and quite frankly, I had no problem overlooking the errors while reading. We're introduced to Darren, who seems to have a knack for doing things he probably shouldn't do, usually under the influence of his best friend Steve. First thing they do? Attend a freak show. An extreme freak show. While there, they witness a horrifying wolf-man who bites off a audience member's hand (literally, a wolf man; he's half human, half man. He is by no means a werewolf), a lady who can grow a beard to the floor in seconds, only to retract it once again, a contortionist, a man who two bellies who devours broken glass and Mr. Crepsley, the spider tamer who has a rare and extremely dangerous tarantula named Madam Octa.

Steve, who has an obsession with all things vampire, immediately recognizes Mr. Crepsley as a vampire who's portrait he's seen in an old book. When they go to leave the Cirque du Freak, Steve lags behind, sending Darren on ahead so that he can confront Mr. Crepsley about what he knows. Darren, being the ever inquisitive boy, lingers in the shadows to listen to the exchange, where he hears Steve lay out his life story and beg the vampire to change him into one of them. The vampire refuses, for rather interesting reasons, and Steve makes a vow to destroy him one day. At this point, Darren flees, but in his mind he can only imagine the extreme pleasure he would have at owning Madam Octa. A few nights later, and after very little conversation between him and Steve (Darren is put off by the fact that his best friend would actually desire to become a blood sucking vampire), Darren returns to the circus to steal Madam Octa away from the vampire. Surprisingly enough, he succeeds and returns home with a brightly colored, massive and highly deadly tarantula.

A week or two passes and Darren is slowly mastering the techniques of the flute and doing tricks with Madam Octa, when Steve discovers the spider in his room. One thing leads to another and Steve gets bitten by the deadly spider, leaving him laying near death in a hospital bed. In an effort to save his friend, after the doctors have proclaimed they have no way of curing Steve from the strange ailment that has overcome him, Darren heads off to find Mr. Crepsley and save his friend.

Surprisingly, Mr. Crepsley is waiting for Darren, fully aware of what has transpired and willing to strike a deal. In exchange for saving Steve's life, whom Mr. Crepsley claims is evil, Darren would have to become a half vampire and pledge his life to assisting Mr. Crepsley. Reluctantly, and with much disdain, Darren accepts the situation and becomes a half vampire through an interesting version of vampire to human blood transfusion. His death his faked, and he leaves his family and friends behind to start off a new life as the reluctant assistant to a vampire whom he hates.
But shortly thereafter, Darren discovers that one person didn't fall for the faked death (which was extremely elaborate, it's rather fascinating to read) and is faced with one highly pissed off Steve who accuses Darren of intentionally stealing his dream and making the spider bite him, therefore becoming a vampire in Steve's stead. Threats are made, and Darren's world is further shaken to the point where he has extreme doubts in his own decisions and wonders if it would have been better to just allow Steve to die, therefore leading in to the much better written, and truly awesome second book, The Vampire's Assistant.

Despite the fact that this book had some serious flaws in writing, I truly enjoyed it. I've already devoured the second book, and will save that review for later but I find that this is a series that is worth reading. It's geared towards younger audiences, the characters are surprisingly well developed, and more importantly, are true to their ages. These kids are kids, they act like kids, they talk like kids, they deal with issues as children do so I think the author did a fabulous job keeping true to the ages. Also, the plot intricate but not over powering, and it's an extremely easy read. I read the first two books in one rainy day. I definitely find this to be a book worth picking up, and I hope some of you give the series a chance!(less)

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Jul 07, 2010 Realteenreviews rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Vampires

The Gist

Darren Shan and his best friend Steve get tickets to see the Cirque Du Freak (a freak show). After the show Steve recognizes one of the performers as a vampire and when Steve confronts the vampire at the end of the show Darren learns some interesting information about his friend. Later when Darren and Steve get into some trouble and Steve’s life is on the line Mr. Crepsley offers to help but only if Darren will become his assistant. Darren has to then choose between saving his best frien...more The Gist

Darren Shan and his best friend Steve get tickets to see the Cirque Du Freak (a freak show). After the show Steve recognizes one of the performers as a vampire and when Steve confronts the vampire at the end of the show Darren learns some interesting information about his friend. Later when Darren and Steve get into some trouble and Steve’s life is on the line Mr. Crepsley offers to help but only if Darren will become his assistant. Darren has to then choose between saving his best friends life and leaving his family and friends forever to become a creature of the night.

What We Think

Reviewed by The North Star

I actually found out about the cirque du freak series when I went to the movies and saw a trailer for the movie. The movie looked interesting so I went and got the book (I always read the book before seeing the movie). I couldn’t put this book down and luckily i had bought the first three books because I read the first two books in a day. These books were really really interesting and a whole lot better than the twilight books (which I do like so…). The writing in this book in phenomenal. Darren Shan really makes you think because I have never read a book where the name of the main character is the name of the author(besides in non-fiction books). I thought that was really cool. This book is not like the other vampire books because although some of the main characters are vampires it is not at all anything like Stephenie Meyer’s vampires. These vampires are way more awesome and just a hot. The other thing I really liked about this book/series was all the twists and turns it takes. When my friend and I were reading it at the same time she even fell for some of the tricks that he planted in there and she never falls for those things. Even when your expecting something to happen something else happens it’s crazy you always have to expect the unexpected. The other great thing about this book is that it’s not just a girl book anybody can read it. Darren Shan has such fantastic writing any gender can read it because it is not leaning towards one or the other.

Real Teen Rating~ A+: Why are you still reading this go buy the book NOW!

Reviewed by Dream Catcher

I love this book. It’s really good. But, I have to disagree with the North Star. Darren Shan’s writing isn’t phenomenal. It’s average. There’s nothing wrong with average writing of course, especially if it’s backed up with a good plot line and unique ideas. Personally, I don’t think it was the best book I’ve ever read, or the best writing I’ve ever seen. Don’t get me wrong, I love this book, and it’s series, but it’s just not my favorite. I’m not a fan of a lot of exclamation points when it comes to writing. Put too many in and the story begins to sound childish. Unfortunately, this book had a few too many exclamation points for my taste, but that’s just my opinion. On a happier note, I love the characters in this story. You get attached to them and feel what their going through with them. They made you interested in reading the second in the series, and then the third, and then the fourth. All in all, a very good series, definitely worth reading.

Real Teen Rating~ A: Go Buy Now.(less)

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Mar 06, 2009 Mr. Z rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: a-classroom-library, horror-scary-supernatural

After reading this, I couldn't help but laugh. As a reading teacher, I'm always reading books to determine whether or not my students might enjoy reading them, too. However, this school year, several of my students have been recommending books TO ME to read! This is another such recommendation. I have heard from many students how much they enjoy the Cirque Du Freak series, so I decided to give the first book a try. Now, I do I not typically enjoy reading gruesome/spine-tingling horror novels, bu...more

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Oct 30, 2009 Lady Danielle aka The Book Huntress rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Younger vampire story readers and older ones who enjoy kid's books

Shelves: horror, favorite-or-autobuy-author, owned-copy, part-of-a-series, vampire, children-s-book, thriller-suspense

Warning: I am keeping this review on the vague side because Shan's books are more fun if you don't know what's going on before you read them.

Well, this was a very interesting book. I didn't really like the idea of the freak show, but I did think that it was a novel way to introduce this story, and a different sort of motif for a children's series. I've seen this series at the bookstore for years now, and waffled about reading it. The freak show concept turned me off. I am just not into it, I mu...more Warning: I am keeping this review on the vague side because Shan's books are more fun if you don't know what's going on before you read them.

Well, this was a very interesting book. I didn't really like the idea of the freak show, but I did think that it was a novel way to introduce this story, and a different sort of motif for a children's series. I've seen this series at the bookstore for years now, and waffled about reading it. The freak show concept turned me off. I am just not into it, I must admit. I don't even like circuses (I went to a few as young child, but they are scary and sad to me). For some reason, This kind of reminded me of The Traveling Vampire Show by Richard Laymon, but these stories unfold quite differently, and the latter is not a children's book by any stretch.

A Living Nightmare is definitely written for a target audience of older children and younger teens. At some times, the writing seemed a bit juvenile. I feel bad for saying that. I think it's because I read Lord Loss first, which was about a teenager, but I feel was written in a way that seemed more mature and advanced enough that an adult reader didn't even notice that it was for children. I can't blame Mr. Shan for targeting a younger audience, if I chose to read a children's book. So I am not trying to sound judgmental or snooty. It was merely an observation on my part.

The beginning is very sound, and sets you up to hold your breath to see how 'Darren Shan' manages to get on the path that he is walking in life (or afterlife I should say). The descriptions of the freak show are somewhat interesting, but it's not something I find that exciting. Yet there are eerie moments that caught my imagination as I waited to see what would happen next.

'Darren Shan,' which is a psuedonym, (Since this is written as a boy telling his story, there is a foreword that states that all the character's names are made up to protect the real life people) is a protagonist that you can feel for. He is just a boy, not evil, and not super-good either, and he makes some bad decisions that come back to haunt him. He doesn't always own up to his faults, but in the end, he makes a choice that I admired for its maturity. In fact, the repercussions of this choice actually made me cry. It just struck me as pretty awful what has to happen in order for things to work out for Darren's family. I was really impressed that Darren Shan (the author) was fearless enough to incorporate this aspect into a children's book.

The look at vampire lore had a life of its own. It had some familiar conventions, but the manner in which a person becomes a vampire was something I haven't read anything like before. That part was pretty cool, and some of the mechanism of vampirism and how they apply to Darren's situation specifically.

I thought Darren had a very good relationship with his family, and I really liked how he was so close and loving with his younger sister, Annie. It was sweet how they got along so well and loved and watched out for each other. Darren has a complicated relationship with his best friend, Steve, who is a very troubled boy, and a catalyst for the events that occur in this book. This relationship will continue in the later books with some twists that I look forward to reading.

I decided to give this book four stars because it's a good book and it was fun and involving. There were scenes where I gasped out loud. I was waiting for dinner and I actually groaned on a part that was pretty shocking and outrageous. The guy standing across the way from where I was sitting looked at me and smiled. I smiled back sheepishly before I was quickly immersed back into this story. That said, I must admit that, had read I this before Lord Loss, I would really be cheering. But Lord Loss set me up for higher standards that this one didn't quite meet. However, I can see children and some adults who like eerie, yet fun little vampire suspense tales targeted towards older children, really getting a kick out this story. I definitely want to continue the series to see what happens to Darren, because this story is just getting started.(less)

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Mar 13, 2008 Manshui rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Freaks

Cirque Du Freak #1: A Living Nightmare
Darren Shan
183 Pages
HaperCollins Publishers
UK £4.99
ISBN: 0-00-675416-3
A Living Nightmare will bring a chilling sensation right after you read the book told by the gruesome-styled author Darren Shan who is also the protagonist of the story. This book one of the series does not only demonstrate the ordinary school boy with a normal life but extended beyond to vampirism and his break of friendship by misunderstandings. The protagonists and the antagonists of t...more Cirque Du Freak #1: A Living Nightmare
Darren Shan
183 Pages
HaperCollins Publishers
UK £4.99
ISBN: 0-00-675416-3
A Living Nightmare will bring a chilling sensation right after you read the book told by the gruesome-styled author Darren Shan who is also the protagonist of the story. This book one of the series does not only demonstrate the ordinary school boy with a normal life but extended beyond to vampirism and his break of friendship by misunderstandings. The protagonists and the antagonists of this book really stoned the moments that reveals the bonds and connections in a certain degree. As simple as an invitation ticket can lead to the extraordinary problems in which the characters must sustain and cope upon. It may deal with blood but its well worth it. As Darren stated, “If I ever get the chance to betray you, I will. If the opportunity arises to pay you back, I’ll take it. You’ll never be able to trust me.” The addictive and tingling page-turner will take fear to the next level for readers.
Darren Shan, known as the protagonist of the story, started off having a normal life with friends, family, and school. As the story goes on the Cirque Du Freak, known as Circus of Freaks, came to town. They were not ordinary people, matter of fact they may not even be humane. When Darren and his friends discovered the ticket to enter, with a price, they must figure out who will go. At night you are greeted by freaks who will entice you to enter but also scare your brains out. A vampire by the name of Mr. Crepsley will impact both Darren and Steve’s lives. Just know that in the vampire hood you are no longer ordinary…and BLOOD is what you must deal with.
The horror forged within this book will tell you a story long to remember and fear. I enjoy how this book displays the smooth approach into the story which is very addictive yet scary. I always luxuriate the author’s writing style with revolving themes and the format because it always tells the reader that “you got to read on or you will miss the adventure!” You may think that horror may not be your type of genre but there’s always this sweet yet deadly flavor that will enhance the thoughts you’ve stirred when reading. I truly recommend this momentum book for horror freaks and whoever that feels curious. And remember to enjoy the fascinating front cover illustration!
The author Darren Shan does not only write a book. He does not only create a story that reveals a story behind it. There’s always this connection between the title, story, and illustration. In his amazing and compelling story he brings the show ALIVE! Darren will face the unimaginable. Blood, vampire, freaks, and even a taste of death!

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Nov 14, 2008 Fin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Fin by: Jirokou

Shelves: prose-fiction

This book was so scary, but it was AWESOME! I can't wait to read the next one.

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Dec 30, 2010 ♫ נєηη - ѕσυℓ σƒ ѕσυη∂ ♫ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novel, series, supernatural, disappointing-books, covers-i-♥

Because of all of the great reviews of this book (I mean, JK Rowling! Seriously. If she wrote something as amazing as Harry Potter, she has to have a pretty good book taste), I picked up this book with a bit of reluctance, hoping that it wasn't just all hype. I still have to finish some other books before I read this, but I'm actually pretty excited to read it, too.

{After Book Review}

Did I enjoy it?

Yes.

Did I expect it to be better?

Yes.

This book had way too much hype. Meh. -.-

Let me start with t...more

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May 03, 2012 Jotabe rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Originally, I was looking for The Hunger Games when I found the book and I thought it was interesting. Since I was working on a poetry collection at the time revolving around fear, and since it had the commendations of J.K. Rowling printed on the front page, I decided to buy it.

I was dismayed at first to learn that it was more of a children's book. I had expected it to be a more mature read (being a horror story and all), but I grew to like it as it went on. This simplistic style of story-tellin...more Originally, I was looking for The Hunger Games when I found the book and I thought it was interesting. Since I was working on a poetry collection at the time revolving around fear, and since it had the commendations of J.K. Rowling printed on the front page, I decided to buy it.

I was dismayed at first to learn that it was more of a children's book. I had expected it to be a more mature read (being a horror story and all), but I grew to like it as it went on. This simplistic style of story-telling works positively for the book as it goes on, as it leaves the reader free to his thoughts and imagination. Personally, near the end, the frustrating simplicity had me in tears.

Darren Shan manages to tell a gripping and realistic story firsthand. His characters are complete with silly, unabashed blunders familiar to all of us who has ever lived in real life, and this is something I praise about the book. Instead of generally appealing characters with calculated flaws, Darren creates them fleshed out as unpredictable and sometimes even immature. The qualities are controlled enough to not repel the reader, but more to incorporate a sense of reality in the story. This is a story about children, and the reader is hearing a story about children. Not heroes chosen out of prophecy, nor adults with a rock-solid sense of justice. This is a story about children and their mistakes.

Moreover, this is a story about atoning for your mistakes and a story of friendship.

Darren makes an unbelievable decision halfway through the book, and by this time, the reader has already grown enough sympathy for him that the reader has no choice but to stay reading until the end. Cirque du Freak may be a freak show and it does deliver some shocking and horrific moments during its run, but it is what Darren is forced to forgo because of his actions after the show that makes the book truly frightening. From there, the reader is plunged into a moving account of Darren's story and character, his answer to the daunting question that seems to be the very core of the series:

How far will you go for your friends?

It is there that this ceases to be merely a children's story and becomes a story for all, showing that a strange, football-playing boy not even in his teens can take the responsibilities and convictions that most men don't have, and accept choices that most men won't take. A great read.

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Jun 23, 2011 Andrea rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: All ages

Recommended to Andrea by: chapterchicks

Cirque Du Freak is really popular. I even saw a jock at my school reading them, which is quite surprising.. So, I got this book last night, and I'm done. And I loved it! At first I read the introduction, and I was like, wow, this is real? Now, I do not think it is. Because well, vampires, and a huge colorful spider named Madam Octa? Yeah, I don't think so. But, I loved the characters.
So, I watching one of those book hauls/reviews on YouTube. The videos with the username chapter chicks. Yeah, we...more

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Oct 22, 2010 Rio rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I chose this book because it seamed like a intrsting book. It was an intresting book no I am going to read the next book. The reason why I'm going to read "The Vampire's Assistant". "A Living Mightmare" is a good book the reason why is because it is intresting to me. The bigist problem is his friend gets biton in the neck by a spiter and he is in the hospital and the only way that he can save his friend is if he became a asistant to a vampier. At the end of the problen he becomes a hafe-vampier...more

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May 05, 2010 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, part-of-a-series, ya-teen, horror

BEFORE:
Okay, first thing's first: I CANNOT WAIT TO READ THESE BOOKS! I usually don't post comments before I read books but I am just so psyched! Secondly, to all you people out there who have already read these books and loved them, I must confess that I have committed a horrible crime. This is a crime that only true book-lovers know: I saw the movie first. I know, I know, I am a terrible person. The crime I have committed goes against everything I believe in when it comes to books made into mov...more

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Sep 25, 2010 Adam rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Horror lovers, vampire lovers, thrill lovers.

Shelves: fantasy, mystery-and-horror, favorites

Ah. Cirque Du Freak. One of my all time favorites. I cant say enough about these books.
Do NOT judge a series by its first book. Sure its good, but you dont realize its AMAZING until a few books in. But all epics are like that, right? And yes. This is an epic. And it is epic. So if you have read the first, liked it but didnt want to read the other ones immediantly, then I say- DO IT!!!
What is it about? Vampires, vampaneze, wolves, freaks, witches, wizards, romance, death, twists, surprises, histo...more

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Apr 17, 2012 Jay rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Cirque du freak was an amazing series. Reading this series really made me start to love reading because I used to hate reading. I loved all the action and adventure throughout the whole the book. All the characters are awesome. I liked the main character darrren Shan because he's brave and I felt like I could relate to him because he would do anything for his family and friends. I also liked Steve Because he's always getting into trouble and I could relate to him as well. Finally I think vampire...more

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Feb 26, 2009 Debbie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

For young adult boys I would probably give this a 3.5 but for adults I would rate this at a 2. I did see on IMDb that they are making a movie out of the book.

Description: Darren Shan’s an ordinary schoolboy, until he and his best friend Steve get tickets to the Cirque Du Freak, a bizarre freak show featuring such arcane performers as Hans Hands, Gertha Teeth, the Wolf Man and Rhamus Twobellies. In the midst of the ghoulish excitement, true terror raises its head when Steve recognises that one of...more

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Feb 18, 2009 Tevin G added it · review of another edition

Cirque du freak

I recommend this book to people who likes scary books, and I just love the book. It starts out boring but it gets interesting. You see story is about a boy named Darren Shan who wins a ticket to the circus. Darren and his crazy friend Steve went to the circus and saw wonderful things, especially a beautiful arachnid named Madam Octa who’s master is named Mr.Crespley who is my favorite character because he’s so mysterious and always knows anything that you ask him, and the fact tha...more

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Jan 27, 2009 Zhong rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Cirque Du Freak: A Living Nightmare is the first book in Darren Shan’s saga. And the protagonist of the book is the author, Darren. This fictional story started when Darren receive a traveling circus ticket from Steve, one of his best friend. The Cirque Du Freak collection consists of memories of Darren Shan. I recommend it to those who seek the extraordinary.
The story starts in the circus show, where Darren’s life flipped up-side-down. Thinking this was one of the ordinary magic tricks, Darren...more

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Dec 22, 2008 Travis rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In the book Cirque Du Freak a Living Nightmare a boy name Darren Shan, the main character of the book is a teenage boy who has to face many obstacles in this book. Because of him, his best friend is in danger of dying because of poisonous spider bite. Just because of one mistake he did, he lost his best friend. He went to a circus and took the vampire’s spider. So he has to help his friend from dying by going through this dangerous path, which is to go to the vampire that owns the spider. But he...more In the book Cirque Du Freak a Living Nightmare a boy name Darren Shan, the main character of the book is a teenage boy who has to face many obstacles in this book. Because of him, his best friend is in danger of dying because of poisonous spider bite. Just because of one mistake he did, he lost his best friend. He went to a circus and took the vampire’s spider. So he has to help his friend from dying by going through this dangerous path, which is to go to the vampire that owns the spider. But he had to risk something that would change his life forever if he wanted the antidote. If you like a book about vampires and action then you will love this book. If you don’t then you will love it after you read it.
This book gave attention to the reader because it is full of surprises. For example, the two kids Darren and Steve were in the circus and they are watching the wolf man being passed around and from out of no where the wolf man woke up and ate the women’s arm and she screamed. It was so unexpected and no one could have predicted that the circus people can fix her arm back till after you read it. So that would want to make you want to read more and further in the book. when I was reading it I didn’t expected that to happen and also I didn’t even know I would like this book till I read it and now I’m done with the whole series. In the middle of the story it also makes you want to read more and not stop because in the middle of the story Darren’s best friend Steve got bit by a spider and he has to see the vampire who owns the spider for the antidote and the vampire said he will give it to him if he turns to a vampire and goes with him everywhere. So it makes you want to read more by predicting what will happen next with the decision the character makes.
The problem of the story is that Darren’s best friend, Steve is dying because of the spider Darren took from one of the circus freak and that freak is a vampire. It all started when Darren and his friends are in the school play ground and they find an advertisement on the floor and it is an advertisement that has the coming circus Cirque Du Freak. So they wanted to go but they didn’t have enough money so they all chipped in money and they decide to let Darren and Steve go. After the circus show, Steve went to talk to the spider tamer which is the vampire and Steve asked to be a vampire to him but the vampire said that Steve was too evil to be a vampire. While Steve was talking to the vampire Darren was eavesdropping. So later on when Steve left Darren sneak inside and saw the spider in the gage. So he decided to take the spider when no one was there. So he had the spider for a few days and practice to tame the spider. One day when Steve came over Darren’s house, Darren showed the spider to him and Darren tried to tame the spider but it bit Steve and he has to go to the hospital and the doctors said he will die. So Darren has to go to the vampire to get the antidote from him, but the vampire said he will exchange it if Darren will turn into a vampire and travel with him. So he had to choose between his best friends or he will change his life forever. So after the spider problem he has another problem.
Darren is a nice guy who loves spiders and when he was young he had a pet spider but it died because in this cartoon show he watched he saw someone vacuumed a person and the person came out so he tried it with his spider but it dies. He loved spiders so much he was entertained when he saw the act on the spider and the tamer performing in the circus. Also that is a reason he took the tamers spider and he tried to tame it.
I was caught by the surprising moments and the exciting moments in this book. Also the plots and the decisions wanted me to read more and more. The constant surprises, intense moments, the decisions, the curiosity and the friendship between the characters. The story is a fantasy of two kids going to a mysterious circus and many surprises and the courage and the friendships and the decisions makes the reader’s want more. Readers will be surprised that the book ended like this, but it doesn’t, this is a series and you can get those books so you don’t have to wait. Pick up a copy of Cirque Du Freak the Living Nightmare and be ready to predict what will happen next.

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Apr 18, 2013 Larisa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, vampires, horror, children-s

Well, this is an uncommon occurrence. I almost never finish books the day I start them, but this is a very quick and simple read. The target audience obviously wasn't 24 year old nerds that are at least somewhat well-read, but that's not to suggest that this book wasn't a good read. I enjoyed myself well enough.

I'm difficult to spook, though. I grew up on horror movies, because my mom's a total slasher/macabre junkie. We love Stephen King especially! I acknowledge that some people of any age co...more Well, this is an uncommon occurrence. I almost never finish books the day I start them, but this is a very quick and simple read. The target audience obviously wasn't 24 year old nerds that are at least somewhat well-read, but that's not to suggest that this book wasn't a good read. I enjoyed myself well enough.

I'm difficult to spook, though. I grew up on horror movies, because my mom's a total slasher/macabre junkie. We love Stephen King especially! I acknowledge that some people of any age could read this and find certain moments shocking, as I wish I could, but I kind of just breezed by like meh. I actually found the whole freak show scene to be a bit boring, except for the teeth lady. That was bizarre! Otherwise, I was expecting more from it, but then again I really had to remind myself that this was written for kids (though I'm pretty sure even my 8 year old self could have handled this, but that's just me. I'm made of stuff too tough when it comes to fictional gore and violence, I think.)

I do like this author's writing style. I mean, I wouldn't call this book substantial literature. More like brain candy, and I'd say that this is Reese's Pieces-flavored, which is a high compliment coming from a peanut butter vacuum such as myself. I swear I've only seen people who hate Twilight recommend this, like it's a fountain of gold compared to Stephenie Meyer's cerebral diarrhea. And, going back to the candy analogy, if this is Reese's Pieces then Twilight is unpleasant black licorice that's been sitting out in the air for three years growing stale and dusty. Cirque Du Freak is definitely an all-around better book: better author, better vampires, better characters, and scenes that were actually kind of touching. Toward the end I did care about the characters.

Except one bothered me, though I don't dislike the character so much as I felt like he was poorly handled. I want to know what Steven's deal is. The author's limits glared through his handling of Steven. First of all, I don't like the "evil blood" concept at all, and this book lost a star for that alone. I tend to think good and evil is dictated mainly by one's actions, and I've yet to see Steven be bad enough to qualify as "evil." I don't like the concept that anyone can be born evil, or is inherently evil. Wanting to be a vampire wasn't reason enough to convince me. He's a kid! Maybe he just really likes vampires because of all the comics he reads. Oh well. Maybe one of the other books will explain what his deal is, but I can't help but feel like he was unjustly thrown into the plot device role. :/

Also, Mr. Crepsley insisting that vampires aren't evil, but Steven being evil because he wants to be a vampire, is inconsistent. I mean, granted, it is Darren who is unsettled and jumped to that conclusion by Steven wanting to be a vampire, but where is the author going with this? Are vampires evil or not? I guess I'm supposed to find out in the next books, or decide for myself? Because so far Mr. Crepsley has acted far more wicked than Steven has (and so has Darren, quite frankly), but Steven is the one who is evil? Hmm. I hope the author knows where he's going with this.

Will I read the other books in the series? Yeah, I'd like to pick up the second one at least. I don't know if I'll read all of them, but we'll see.(less)

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Apr 02, 2013 Henry rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A Living Nightmare
By Darren Shan

The saga Cirque De Freak by Darren Shan has been one of the famous, most well known saga in our time. Although the book is in a series I personally think this book is a must-read. I Really enjoyed it and this book is one of the Best books I've read.

The main storyline is by far one of the most interesting and suspenseful storyline of them all. Starting with Darren and his good friend Steve, wanting to go to the Cirque Du Freak when Darren runs home from soccer....more

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Mar 06, 2013 Michael Morris added it · review of another edition

I heard about Cirque Du Freak from the movie the Vampires Assistant, and i read the fifth one unknowingly it was a novel. Anyways, A living nightmare is about a boy named Darren Shan who goes to the Cirque Du Freak with his friend Steve. Mr. Crepsley comes out with a spider named Madam Octa and demonstrated how poisonous she is on a live goat. The first bite didn't kill it because Mr. Crepsley told her not to with a special flute, but the goat was paralyzed. He explained that there was no cure s...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Vanya C rated it 5 of 5 stars

CIRQUE DU FREAK A LIVING NIGHTMARE
Is a book suspenseful book of friendship, about family, and mainly what your heart feels. Darren is a teenager that lives with his Mom, Dad, and little sister Annie. Darren is a popular kid that lives a happy life with friends, gets good grades. His best friend Steve is different, his mom is alcoholic, gets bad grades, is rebel. Darren and Steve brake a light bulb. Darren gets punish and cant go out of his house. Steve and him find out that there is a unusual sh...more CIRQUE DU FREAK A LIVING NIGHTMARE
Is a book suspenseful book of friendship, about family, and mainly what your heart feels. Darren is a teenager that lives with his Mom, Dad, and little sister Annie. Darren is a popular kid that lives a happy life with friends, gets good grades. His best friend Steve is different, his mom is alcoholic, gets bad grades, is rebel. Darren and Steve brake a light bulb. Darren gets punish and cant go out of his house. Steve and him find out that there is a unusual show performing in their town.( a freak show) Steve convinces Darren to go to the show, and they both escape from home. When they enter to the show there were freaks, like a werewolf, a man with two bellies, a bearded women, and a special act, that changes their life. A man was performing with a spider, Darren has an obsession with spiders, while Steve had obsession with vampires. Steve figure out that the man performing was a vampire, but Darren couldn't believe it. At the end of the show, parents, teachers, etc. Came to complain about using the special persons( the freaks) as for getting money. Darren and Steve, got separate ways, the man that performed was called Mr. Crepsley and his spider was called Madam Octa. Darren decided to enter the room where Madam Octa was and tried to steal it. But Mr. Crepsley enter and Darren hide in the closet. Steve went to see the man that supposedly was a vampire. He went into the room where the vampire was and asked him to convert him into a vampire. The VAMPIRE was really a VAMPIRE and he tasted Steve's blood, it was evil blood, the vampire said. And Steve furiously ran out of the room. The vampire went out. And Darren decided to get Madam Octa he went with Madam Octa in his back pack. Mr. Crepsley followed Darren but he escape. the next day Daren had Madam Octa in his back pack, but Steve was intelligent and saw what Darren was hiding after , Madam Octa escaped of her cage and bite Steve. Darren went to the show looking for Mr. Crepsley and asking him to save Steve. In change of saving his life Mr. Crepsley asked for Darren for his assistant. He accepted, he knew that Steve was dying because of him. Darren converted into a half vampire after that, his whole life changes. If you read this book and like it you can continue reading about the half vampire adventures and discover what happens in book two. CIRQUE DU FREAK THE VAMPIRE'S ASSISTANT. (less)

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Feb 12, 2013 Sam rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Name of Book: Cirque Du Freak: A Living Nightmare
Author: Darren Shan
Pages: 248
Genre: Supernatural horror, adventure
Reading Level: 6 to 8

Exposition: The book starts off by introducing our two main characters: Darren Shan and Steve Leonard. One of their other friends comes up to them one day with a flyer for Cirque Du Freak, a freak show that very people knew about. Eventually, Darren and Steve get tickets and sneak out to see the show; however, Steve finds that this show isn't a regular one, even...more Name of Book: Cirque Du Freak: A Living Nightmare
Author: Darren Shan
Pages: 248
Genre: Supernatural horror, adventure
Reading Level: 6 to 8

Exposition: The book starts off by introducing our two main characters: Darren Shan and Steve Leonard. One of their other friends comes up to them one day with a flyer for Cirque Du Freak, a freak show that very people knew about. Eventually, Darren and Steve get tickets and sneak out to see the show; however, Steve finds that this show isn't a regular one, even by freak standards. He recognizes one of the cast from a book he read about vampires. Before leaving, Steve asks this vampire, Mr. Crepsley, to make him into a vampire as well. Darren snoops on their meeting, and watches as Mr. Crepsley refuses to make Steve into a vampire because his blood is "evil."

Conflict: Darren has a hard being around Steve now, since he wanted to become a vampire. One night, Darren decides to go back to the Cirque Du Freak, as he has a fascination with spiders, and saw a beautiful one during the show. Stealing it from Mr. Crepsley, Darren takes it home and learns to tame it. A few weeks pass, and Steve comes over one day to see Darren. He recognizes the spider immediately, but before he can react, the spider bites him on the neck, sending him into a coma.

Climax: Darren heads back to Mr. Crepsely, asking for a cure to the poison that the spider injected into Steve; however, Mr. Crepsley refuses to give him what he wants unless he becomes a Half Vampire. Half Vampires serve as servants to regular vampires, as they are not as powerful. To save his friend, Darren allows for Mr. Crepsely to make him into his assistant, and then returns to save his friend. All is normal for a while, but soon Steve fins out what Darren has become, and is jealous. Soon, Mr. Crepsley demands that Darren must come with him, to fulfill his roll as an assistant.

Resolution: To ensure that Darren can leave his family safely, Mr. Crepsley wants to fake Darren's death. To do so, he poisons Darren with a potion that simulates death, and pushes him off a building, so it could look like suicide. After going through and autopsy, funeral and burial, Mr. Crepsley digs Darren up and lets him free. Before anything else, however, Steve appears, and swears that one day he will hunt down and kill Darren. Sad and alone, Darren heads off with Mr. Crepsley to join the Cirque Du Freak.

Theme: I think that one of the themes of this novel is friendship. Darren gives up his life to rescue his friend, only to have him want to kill him. I can relate this to The Perks of Being a Wallflower, as Charlie does something similar. Charlie gives up his opinions and thoughts to appease his friends, believing it is the only way he can be their true friend. However, like Darren, his giving up leads to more complicated problems, for himself more than anyone else.(less)

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Jan 09, 2013 Pamela rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-scifi-fantasy

I read Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare in just a few hours. Before I discuss my thoughts on the book, I should point out that I am the right demographic for this book. I am not a 12-year-old boy. Okay, with that said, I did not like this book. First, I thought the writing was a bit stiff and the sentences were a bit blunt. This might not be so noticeable for the intended target audience. Something else that bothered me about the writing was how big words were introduced in the text: a charac...more I read Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare in just a few hours. Before I discuss my thoughts on the book, I should point out that I am the right demographic for this book. I am not a 12-year-old boy. Okay, with that said, I did not like this book. First, I thought the writing was a bit stiff and the sentences were a bit blunt. This might not be so noticeable for the intended target audience. Something else that bothered me about the writing was how big words were introduced in the text: a character would say a big word and another character would ask for a definition. Now, in the Lemony Snicket series A Series of Unfortunate Events, this format is also used. Specifically, Lemony Snicket uses a word and defines it himself. This format seemed more fluid and worked better in that series than in CdF: A Living Nightmare. I feel this way because I don't feel kids would ask their friends to define words and I don't think the kids would define words in such a dictionary-type way. The second reason that I did not care for this book is I did not like how the children in this book constantly hid information from their parents. Even when the kids were in danger, they were open with their parents. This is not a behavior I would want to encourage in my children. I am typically fine with adults being ridiculous in children's books (a la A Series of Unfortunate Events and the Harry Potter books). However, in this series, the parents weren't ridiculous; the kids should have confided in them. In books that are not supposed to be set in "the real world," I am cool with the kids going out and having adventures. This book, however, is urban fantasy. In my mind, urban fantasy books shouldn't trail so far away from reality. The behaviors the kids engaged in were not behaviors I would want them to engage in in real life. I don't want my kids sneaking out and seeing a freak show, I don't want my kids stealing spiders, especially poisonous ones, and I don't want my kids lying to me about how their friends were injured. I think I may have been more okay with these actions, if they were not happening in an urban fantasy setting. I should also note that I may have been more okay with these actions, if the reasons for them was more than "just because."

The long and short of this review is that I did not enjoy the book. I may read the rest of the series, because they are quick reads; however, these are not books that I would encourage my kids to read. Now, if your kids read the books and are okay with it or you read the books that is totally cool. Reading is important and if the CdF series is the only one that they will read, so be it. For me, this will not be a series that I will be exciting to get for my future children's bookshelves.(less)

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Dec 21, 2012 Hans rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Overall I thought it was a pretty good book. I believe this because of the readability, the suspense and the main conflict.
The first reason I like this book would be because of the readability of the book. I like this because of the fact that it’s descriptive while not being boring. What would have annoyed me would have been Darren walking threw a garden and describing every flower he sees. This is because when I read a book a few details describing the setting is nice but I would like them sc...more Overall I thought it was a pretty good book. I believe this because of the readability, the suspense and the main conflict.
The first reason I like this book would be because of the readability of the book. I like this because of the fact that it’s descriptive while not being boring. What would have annoyed me would have been Darren walking threw a garden and describing every flower he sees. This is because when I read a book a few details describing the setting is nice but I would like them scattered not concentrated. After all I would rather find about what is happening to the characters than what is happening to a flower he is passing by. Unless of course the setting directly applies to what is happening or possibly is foreshadowing. Besides the way the author describes things in the book another thing I like would be that the author did not over complicate the text. What I mean by this is that the author used words that were to the point and had excellent clarity. This means that the author did not throw twenty different meanings at me which should have had the most obvious point.
The second reason I like this book so much is the fact that it contained so much suspense. An example would be when Darren stole the spider and Steve was bitten by it. He knew he could tell the doctor’s what it was but then he would get in to trouble for stealing it, having it, and his parents would find out about the freak show which would be the last thing he wanted. Adding on if he didn’t tell the doctors his friend would die he doubted though that the doctors would have any kind of idea what to do anyways because of the fact that the spider was so exotic and rare.
The third reason I enjoyed this book so much would be the fact that the main conflict was so controversial in the context. Spoiler alert, later in the book Darren was asked to become a vampire assistant in exchange for the remedy that would cure Steve. The problem is that Darren does not want to drink human blood only animal blood so he becomes sick and he has to make the choice drink from a human or die. I thought this was very compelling because of the questions would you put morals in front of your own life?
In conclusion I ended up deciding that this in fact was a prenominal book because of suspense, readability, and main conflict.
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Dec 21, 2012 Nic Echo rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to Nic by: Tesk

Shelves: cirque-du-freak, darren-shan, urban-fantasy, vampire, young-adult

About the Book:
Darren Shan had a normal life until a fateful night. He and his friend, Steve, end up visiting a freak show that has come to town, but the truly freaky things happen after the show. First, Steve confronts one of the performers, a man known as Mr. Crepsley. However, Crepsley is not a man at all, but a vampire, and Steve wants Crepsley to turn him into a vampire. Much to his dismay, Steve is refused due to having "bad blood." Later, Darren returns to the theatre and ends up stealing...more About the Book:
Darren Shan had a normal life until a fateful night. He and his friend, Steve, end up visiting a freak show that has come to town, but the truly freaky things happen after the show. First, Steve confronts one of the performers, a man known as Mr. Crepsley. However, Crepsley is not a man at all, but a vampire, and Steve wants Crepsley to turn him into a vampire. Much to his dismay, Steve is refused due to having "bad blood." Later, Darren returns to the theatre and ends up stealing something of Mr. Crepsley's: a highly venomous, performing spider. Eventually, he shows Steve the stolen spider, and they end up playing with her. Of course, something goes wrong and Steve gets bitten. Darren returns to Mr. Crepsley for help, but there will be a price. Crepsley will only give up the antidote if Darren becomes his half-human,half-vampire assistant and leave the world he knows behind.

Review:
I originally came across this series after watching the movie, The Vampire's Assistant. I had also heard that a good portion of my friends had really liked these books. So far though, I have no been so impressed. Granted, it is only the first book, and there have been many great series that didn't have the best opening. The writing for this book hadn't sucked me in and wish Shan had written in a little more details. Now, we are not supposed to know where the story is taken place since it is supposed to be a true tale. I had no problem with that. The problem I had was that I had such trouble envisioning what was happening, because none of the characters were ever really described (except the freaks and the spider). I didn't even know what age they were supposed to be, and the dialogue didn't help me to decipher it either. In fact, the dialogue wasn't all together great, but I wasn't expecting something fabulous either. However, half the time it seemed like they were really young kids (twelve at the oldest) while other times I thought maybe he was supposed to be fourteen

The writing aside, I did find the plot to be quite interesting. Being the first book, there was a lot of introductory elements so that did slow the book down tremendously. In fact, a good chunk of the action didn't start picking up until the end of the tale. However, it was a take I hadn't read before, and the freak show was really interesting to read about. It also looks like the next book ought to have a lot more meat to it. I'll definitely keep reading ahead to see where this goes. So far, though, I would say that it is just mediocre for anyone over fourteen. However, I think children (especially boys) between the ages of nine to twelve would find it quite enjoyable, and I would easily recommend it to them. I know I may see if my cousin would be interested.(less)

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Nov 08, 2012 Janill rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was really intriguing. It was really interesting as i got to learn about the life of Darren Shan. I like how he made the beginning of the book mysterious by saying,"My real name is not Darren Shan" and him saying that the story is completely true. This book really made me think if the author was telling the truth or not because of the way he used details and the way he described a scene.
If i was in Darren's shoes i would of done some things differently for example i wouldn't have sto...more

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Oct 29, 2012 7milad rated it 5 of 5 stars

The book A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan, is a riveting, fast-paced, and insanely captivating book that will keep you reading to the end! This book is the 1st in the series, and introduces the world of vampires to Darren, and his mischievous friend Steve. The two boys win tickets to a freak show, but little do they know that one of the performers is a vampire. Soon, Darren becomes this vampire's (Mr. Crepsley) assistant, while Steve was denied. He then vowed to hunt Darren and Mr. Crepsley dow...more

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Oct 21, 2012 D.M. Dutcher rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror

It feels borderline YA, for younger readers. A little too short and some odd decisions, but good for having a male protagonist and being different than usual.

Darren is a young boy (?) who gets wind of a freakshow coming to town. His friend Steve manages to get tickets, and they manage to get into it. Getting out of it may be tougher than you think, as that show has two things in it that Darren and Steve want. But having them may be dangerous...

It's an odd book. For one thing, Darren feels very y...more

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About Darren Shan

Librarian's note: Also writes under the name D.B. Shan.

Darren Shan (born July 2, 1972 in London, England) is the pen name of the Irish author Darren O'Shaughnessy, as well as the name of the protagonist of his book series The Saga of Darren Shan, also known as The Cirque Du Freak Series in the United States. He is the author of The Demonata series, as well as some stand-alone books, and a series o...more

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Books by Darren Shan

The Vampire's Assistant (Cirque Du Freak, #2)

The Vampire Prince (Cirque Du Freak, #6)

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Quotes from A Living Nightmare

“A world of "if"s, but it would make no difference. If I could go back in time... but I couldn't. The past was behind me. The best thing now would be to stop looking over my shoulder. It was time to forget the past and look to the present and future.” — 177 people liked it

“I don't like it, but my hands are tied. I just want you to know this: if I ever get the chance to betray you, I will. If the opportunity arises to pay you back, I'll take it. You'll never be able to trust me.” — 161 people liked it

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