What do you think?
Rate this book
Cirque Du Mort: Volume One
'Cirque Du Mort' is a collection of gruesome short stories centering around the cast of a haunted circus. Their lives, loves, deaths and everything in between. From the tragic to the ridiculous, the romantic to the macabre, each character in this cursed carnival has a story to share with you.Meet Felicity and the famous Janus sisters. They shared a womb, a life, a liver, a grave...Or Mimi the Mime. Once a chatty clown with stories to tell - she just couldn't hold her tongue. So someone held it for her...Roll up! Roll up! Enter if you dare... The greatest show NOT of this Earth...'Cirque Du Mort' is a self published book; written, edited and illustrated by Anastasia Catris. It was published in May 2015 and launched at London MCM Comic Expo. Volume One contains 10 unique and highly illustrated short stories surrounding different circus characters and how they met their grisly ends. Told in a variation of styles from fairy tales and nursery rhymes to fiction and realism, this is a collage of style and art that is bound to delight.
38 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2015
8 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
Anastasia Catris
27 books42 followersAnastasia Catris lives and works in Wales in the United Kingdom with her partner and their two goblin cats. She has been working as a freelance artist and writer since 2010 with published works including 'Colour Me Mindful', 'I Heart Drag Queens' and 'Draw Your Way To A Younger Brain'.
She has contributed works to horror anthologies including 'Cthulhu Cymraeg2: Lovecraftian Tales From Wales' and 'Neon Horror: An Anthology of Terrors by Creators From the LGBTQIA+ Community'. She is also a member of the Horror Writers Association. Her academic background is in Neo-Victorian literature, the history of witchcraft and comic books.
'Cirque Du Mort' is her own self published anthology series containing her art and writing. The series debuted in 2015 with Volume One and Volume Two was released in 2020.
She enjoys horror movies, Dungeons & Dragons and dancing (badly) under the full moon.
You can join her active Patreon community at www.patreon.com/AnastasiaCatris
She has contributed works to horror anthologies including 'Cthulhu Cymraeg2: Lovecraftian Tales From Wales' and 'Neon Horror: An Anthology of Terrors by Creators From the LGBTQIA+ Community'. She is also a member of the Horror Writers Association. Her academic background is in Neo-Victorian literature, the history of witchcraft and comic books.
'Cirque Du Mort' is her own self published anthology series containing her art and writing. The series debuted in 2015 with Volume One and Volume Two was released in 2020.
She enjoys horror movies, Dungeons & Dragons and dancing (badly) under the full moon.
You can join her active Patreon community at www.patreon.com/AnastasiaCatris
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
June 28, 2015
I'll be honest. I liked the stories in this book. They were short, but some of them were quite good. Each had it's own piece of magic, tragedy and horror. But, my favorite thing was how beautiful this book was. The author put a lot of effort in the layout to make it have that carnival feel with wonderful artwork and pictures that reflected each story. One reviewer mentioned that it would make a nice coffee table book and I agree.
This book was a freebie yesterday, but it isn't anymore. It's quite a little hidden gem.
This book was a freebie yesterday, but it isn't anymore. It's quite a little hidden gem.
June 28, 2015
Books like Cirque Du Mort are hard not to award anything less than five stars. It is as much a work of art as it is a series of flash fiction stories. I don’t know much about art, but I thought every page was brilliantly illustrated, and superbly detailed. There are layers of texture and imagery. It’s coherent and very well thought out.
The volume is held together by the gruesome theme of a circus of death. It plays out that way too, with a series of acts, just as you would witness if you were sitting in a big top; and all the classics you’d expect right down to the bearded lady. Author and Illustrator Anastasia Catris has put together the kind of magical book that begs to be printed on thick paper and bound as a hardback.
The volume is held together by the gruesome theme of a circus of death. It plays out that way too, with a series of acts, just as you would witness if you were sitting in a big top; and all the classics you’d expect right down to the bearded lady. Author and Illustrator Anastasia Catris has put together the kind of magical book that begs to be printed on thick paper and bound as a hardback.
June 26, 2015
Beautiful Illustrations within Twisty Horror Tales
This book of short horror tales about the performers at a strange circus has beautiful illustrations. The tales remind me of the old Night Gallery series, where there was always a twist at the end of the story. I can't wait for volume 2.
This book of short horror tales about the performers at a strange circus has beautiful illustrations. The tales remind me of the old Night Gallery series, where there was always a twist at the end of the story. I can't wait for volume 2.
June 19, 2015
This book was very well put together. I would LOVE to see this as a full color coffee table book.
The carnival theme really works, binding the short stories together nicely and the artwork is perfect for the style, not overly ... cartoony or manga, but like I said, would make a good coffee table book (assuming you have understanding friends and family stopping over) ... because the stories are very twisted, short and to the point, 2-3 pages each, and they work, you don't feel shortchanged at all. If anything it just moves you on to the next one.
I very much enjoyed this book (and as I work for a copier company ... I think I just might print this out for my coffee table.)
Thanks for sharing this with me Anastasia, I look forward to your next project.
The carnival theme really works, binding the short stories together nicely and the artwork is perfect for the style, not overly ... cartoony or manga, but like I said, would make a good coffee table book (assuming you have understanding friends and family stopping over) ... because the stories are very twisted, short and to the point, 2-3 pages each, and they work, you don't feel shortchanged at all. If anything it just moves you on to the next one.
I very much enjoyed this book (and as I work for a copier company ... I think I just might print this out for my coffee table.)
Thanks for sharing this with me Anastasia, I look forward to your next project.
June 25, 2015
I received the book from the author for an honest review.
I loved it, it a delicious compilation of short horror stories in many ways.
The illustrations are awesome really, They enchanted me a lot, i'm anxious to read the second volume.
The prose is very good and the stories are pretty appeling and interesting.
I think everyone who likes horror will enjoy this book a lot.
More reviews www.bookwormiespot.com
I loved it, it a delicious compilation of short horror stories in many ways.
The illustrations are awesome really, They enchanted me a lot, i'm anxious to read the second volume.
The prose is very good and the stories are pretty appeling and interesting.
I think everyone who likes horror will enjoy this book a lot.
More reviews www.bookwormiespot.com
June 24, 2015
The Cirque du Mort, is a book of short stories, cleverly crafted together. The stories are short and crisp, some are like literary doodles. Some stories are written in the form of witty poetry. There is a “adult fairy tale “ quality about them, they would not look out of place in a Tim Burton type film, if they were prolonged. The illustrations that accompany the stories add the mood the writer is trying to conjure up. The Cirque du Mort is an easy read. The book reminded me of a visit I made last Christmas to special (exclusive) museum in Paris called Les Pavillons de Bercy - Musée des Arts Forains, a private museum of funfair objects, which on the day of my visit, also had circus performers (no deaths occurred however).
July 20, 2015
4.5 stars
loved it, the design of the book is very cool and the stories are catching.
loved it, the design of the book is very cool and the stories are catching.
February 27, 2016
"Beware the Circus of Death my dear!"
A beautifully illustrated and written book by a wonderful artist and author!
I might be biased, but still :D
A beautifully illustrated and written book by a wonderful artist and author!
I might be biased, but still :D
December 4, 2020
Rating: 3.1 / 5
A bit delayed, but before getting into Volume Two I would like to justify my lower-than-average rating for Volume One. Alrighty, here we go!
For one thing, firstly I would like to mention that the main reason for taking off one star right off the bat is just the editing. The text in Volume One is really small, and that was a discouraging factor for me in reading it. I see that in Volume Two this has already been fixed though, so that's encouraging to see. Also, while on the topic of editing, it feels a bit obvious that this author did not have an editor go over her work (or, if she did, they weren't a very good editor), since there are several glaring grammatical errors. Whether it be the repetition of a word or two that should have been erased by Microsoft Word, or a weird sentence structure that results either in run-on sentences or short and clipped sentences, all of these factors take one out of the story--and that's never a good thing. So, yes, editing is lackluster and so one star off.
Another star off due to...well, quite frankly, what I felt was a lack of originality in the stories being presented. The illustrations and formatting of the stories in terms of visuals were quite beautiful; but in terms of the content of the stories themselves, they all just felt like something that I've read or seen before somewhere else. They were all, to some extent or other, familiar, and felt like the author was just modifying someone else's stories in her own "unique" retelling. However, a retelling is never fully original, though some authors can interpret the stories to the extent that they become their own thing and are not quite so recognizable. Anastasia Catris, though not blatantly reproducing someone else's stories, nevertheless leaves way too many familiar elements in there for them to really be her own stories. For example,
A Story of Silence felt way too similar to Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, in which the main female character also loses an essential method (i.e. body part) through which she can tell what happened to her and what crimes were committed, so she has to get clever in how she exposes the crime, and even that's not enough to get her a happy ending.
The main character in The Three Needles is OBVIOUSLY based off of Edward Scissorhands, therefore making his entire character unoriginal and his story rather predictable.
The rest of the stories also have elements that felt familiar in one sense or another, like how the succubus story was far too predictable in what was meant to be a "twist" ending, and more or less you expect that all of the endings will be tragic in some way once you get the gist that the first two end off badly. The only real "twist" I would have gotten as a reader is if one of the stories ended happily but alas, that did not happen.
I give three starts for the lovely illustrations and nevertheless compiling this work together in a Kickstarter project; however, for future endeavors, I would advise the author to reflect on herself as a storyteller and take in more imagination rather than likenesses to copies of stories that have come before.
Fingers crossed that Volume Two will be better than Volume One. For now, I remain underwhelmed.
A bit delayed, but before getting into Volume Two I would like to justify my lower-than-average rating for Volume One. Alrighty, here we go!
For one thing, firstly I would like to mention that the main reason for taking off one star right off the bat is just the editing. The text in Volume One is really small, and that was a discouraging factor for me in reading it. I see that in Volume Two this has already been fixed though, so that's encouraging to see. Also, while on the topic of editing, it feels a bit obvious that this author did not have an editor go over her work (or, if she did, they weren't a very good editor), since there are several glaring grammatical errors. Whether it be the repetition of a word or two that should have been erased by Microsoft Word, or a weird sentence structure that results either in run-on sentences or short and clipped sentences, all of these factors take one out of the story--and that's never a good thing. So, yes, editing is lackluster and so one star off.
Another star off due to...well, quite frankly, what I felt was a lack of originality in the stories being presented. The illustrations and formatting of the stories in terms of visuals were quite beautiful; but in terms of the content of the stories themselves, they all just felt like something that I've read or seen before somewhere else. They were all, to some extent or other, familiar, and felt like the author was just modifying someone else's stories in her own "unique" retelling. However, a retelling is never fully original, though some authors can interpret the stories to the extent that they become their own thing and are not quite so recognizable. Anastasia Catris, though not blatantly reproducing someone else's stories, nevertheless leaves way too many familiar elements in there for them to really be her own stories. For example,
A Story of Silence felt way too similar to Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, in which the main female character also loses an essential method (i.e. body part) through which she can tell what happened to her and what crimes were committed, so she has to get clever in how she exposes the crime, and even that's not enough to get her a happy ending.
The main character in The Three Needles is OBVIOUSLY based off of Edward Scissorhands, therefore making his entire character unoriginal and his story rather predictable.
The rest of the stories also have elements that felt familiar in one sense or another, like how the succubus story was far too predictable in what was meant to be a "twist" ending, and more or less you expect that all of the endings will be tragic in some way once you get the gist that the first two end off badly. The only real "twist" I would have gotten as a reader is if one of the stories ended happily but alas, that did not happen.
I give three starts for the lovely illustrations and nevertheless compiling this work together in a Kickstarter project; however, for future endeavors, I would advise the author to reflect on herself as a storyteller and take in more imagination rather than likenesses to copies of stories that have come before.
Fingers crossed that Volume Two will be better than Volume One. For now, I remain underwhelmed.
November 6, 2020
Beware the Circus of Death my dear!
No harm shall you befall you if your soul is clear...
I first came across this book on Amazon on a freebie deal. When the second volume was set up on kickstarter I couldn't resist. The tier I backed included a second edition printing of volume one and it has been a joy to read this in a proper format.
This is a charming book of short stories with beautiful illustrations for each of the circus characters. We meet Mimi the Mime, Seam the Costume Maker, and Antoinette the Magician, to name but a few.
The stories vary in style with some being Tim Burton-esk fairy tales, some being poems, and others being macabre tales of revenge.
All in all a cracking first volume, with the second being due soon. I look forward to finding out more about the mysterious acts at the Cirque du Mort!
No harm shall you befall you if your soul is clear...
I first came across this book on Amazon on a freebie deal. When the second volume was set up on kickstarter I couldn't resist. The tier I backed included a second edition printing of volume one and it has been a joy to read this in a proper format.
This is a charming book of short stories with beautiful illustrations for each of the circus characters. We meet Mimi the Mime, Seam the Costume Maker, and Antoinette the Magician, to name but a few.
The stories vary in style with some being Tim Burton-esk fairy tales, some being poems, and others being macabre tales of revenge.
All in all a cracking first volume, with the second being due soon. I look forward to finding out more about the mysterious acts at the Cirque du Mort!
July 18, 2020
Beware the Circus of Death my dear!
No harm shall you befall you if your soul is clear...
This is a charming little book of short stories with beautiful illustrations for each of the circus characters. We meet Mimi the Mime, Seam the Costume Maker, and Antoinette the Magician, to name but a few.
The stories vary in style with some being Tim Burton-esk fairy tales, some being poems, and others being macabre tales of revenge.
All in all a cracking first volume, with the second being due soon. I look forward to finding out more about the mysterious acts at the Cirque du Mort!
No harm shall you befall you if your soul is clear...
This is a charming little book of short stories with beautiful illustrations for each of the circus characters. We meet Mimi the Mime, Seam the Costume Maker, and Antoinette the Magician, to name but a few.
The stories vary in style with some being Tim Burton-esk fairy tales, some being poems, and others being macabre tales of revenge.
All in all a cracking first volume, with the second being due soon. I look forward to finding out more about the mysterious acts at the Cirque du Mort!
June 2, 2017
Every single page of this book is beautifully illustrated. A lot of time and passion went into its creation.
The stories are fantastically morbid. Some, I thought, could've used a little more. BUT, did you see that art though?!
The stories are fantastically morbid. Some, I thought, could've used a little more. BUT, did you see that art though?!
October 13, 2017
I kickstartered it, because I am a fan of dark tales.
It was sad & very very scary, but I liked it .
*crawls back under the blanket* =^_^=""
It was sad & very very scary, but I liked it .
*crawls back under the blanket* =^_^=""
February 2, 2021
The pictures are amazing and the stories are captivating, absolutely a must read for people who love creepypastas and short stories.
November 3, 2015
*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*
Anastasia is an amazing find! Oh, my goodness. She is so incredibly talented, it leaves me speechless!!
This volume is packed with incredibly stunning illustrations and back stories. I love anything freakshow related and Anastasia captured it all so perfectly. There's tragedy after tragedy in every page that kept me wanting to read more! Anastasia shows so much diversity from story to story and it's intoxicating! I loved them all so much I seriously can't choose a favorite. The newspaper clippings bring it to life even more than the illustrations already were. This didn't feel like a comic at all. I felt like it was an actual pamphlet I received upon entering the grounds of Cirque Du Mort. (Oh, how I wish to visit this place... and 'live' in it.) I am definitely a proud owner of this gem! It speaks to my love and appreciation for all things morbid to the letter. I love how you can keep picking this up and find something new to lust over every single time. I can't wait for volume 2!!
Anastasia is definitely an author to follow and her Etsy store is just phenomenal!
Anastasia is an amazing find! Oh, my goodness. She is so incredibly talented, it leaves me speechless!!
This volume is packed with incredibly stunning illustrations and back stories. I love anything freakshow related and Anastasia captured it all so perfectly. There's tragedy after tragedy in every page that kept me wanting to read more! Anastasia shows so much diversity from story to story and it's intoxicating! I loved them all so much I seriously can't choose a favorite. The newspaper clippings bring it to life even more than the illustrations already were. This didn't feel like a comic at all. I felt like it was an actual pamphlet I received upon entering the grounds of Cirque Du Mort. (Oh, how I wish to visit this place... and 'live' in it.) I am definitely a proud owner of this gem! It speaks to my love and appreciation for all things morbid to the letter. I love how you can keep picking this up and find something new to lust over every single time. I can't wait for volume 2!!
Anastasia is definitely an author to follow and her Etsy store is just phenomenal!
July 19, 2015
This book was obviously a labour of love, it had beautiful illustrations, it was thoughtfully laid out and the stories were perty darn cool.
The book itself chronicled the stories of various circus people, their life and death. It was very much an introduction to the characters book. Some of them were short stories, some of them were longer, you don't find out much about the circus itself, but I guess that's for future editions.
I would have liked some of the stories to be a little more in depth, but I'm just greedy like that. The only problem I really had with it was a technical issue, it didn't want to download onto my Kindle software so I had to read it on the cloud. However with this kind of book you really want a hard copy of anyway.
All in all this is a great first edition, can't wait to see where this goes!
The book itself chronicled the stories of various circus people, their life and death. It was very much an introduction to the characters book. Some of them were short stories, some of them were longer, you don't find out much about the circus itself, but I guess that's for future editions.
I would have liked some of the stories to be a little more in depth, but I'm just greedy like that. The only problem I really had with it was a technical issue, it didn't want to download onto my Kindle software so I had to read it on the cloud. However with this kind of book you really want a hard copy of anyway.
All in all this is a great first edition, can't wait to see where this goes!
September 29, 2015
I enjoyed this book. I came across it at Glasgow MCM this weekend and ended up buying it because both the book itself and the author at the table made me want to read it. Cirque du Mort is a quick read and although the stories are gory and tragic, they are still intriguing and make me want to continue with the series when I can.
The only problem I have is that sometimes the writing style was a little confusing as two speakers were on the same paragraph. However, if you can put aside any qualms about it and read the book for what it is, I find you'll really enjoy it. I'll definitely be picking up the next volume when I can!
The only problem I have is that sometimes the writing style was a little confusing as two speakers were on the same paragraph. However, if you can put aside any qualms about it and read the book for what it is, I find you'll really enjoy it. I'll definitely be picking up the next volume when I can!
January 3, 2016
Nicely illustrated
Enjoyable reading from stat to finish. Well told short stories and fabulous illustrations. The only downside is I had trouble reading with the way it was formatted. I could only read it on my laptop so the font was big enough to read against the dark background.
Enjoyable reading from stat to finish. Well told short stories and fabulous illustrations. The only downside is I had trouble reading with the way it was formatted. I could only read it on my laptop so the font was big enough to read against the dark background.
July 26, 2015
Loved it!!!!
The stories are wonderful, creepy and haunting. I recommend to anyone who loves the bizarre and creepy! Can't wait for volume two!!!!
The stories are wonderful, creepy and haunting. I recommend to anyone who loves the bizarre and creepy! Can't wait for volume two!!!!
May 4, 2016
I got it for free on my Kindle and was pleasantly surprised.
Fun but dark little circus tales with gorgeous artwork to accompany it. Definitely worth the quick read.
Fun but dark little circus tales with gorgeous artwork to accompany it. Definitely worth the quick read.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews