Darren Shan Saga Books 7-9

I've now completed the series but due to my laptop being poorly I haven't been able to post in weeks! Anywho - the next three Darren Shan books. My friend told me after I read the first couple that they just keep getting better and better - and I didn't believe him in the slightest. But boy - they go from readable, to enjoyable to OH MY GOD I CAN'T PUT THIS BOOK DOWN very quickly!
Again, sorry for the spoilers but it is getting increasingly difficult! I'm hoping most of you guys have read them though, or at least plan to ASAP!

Book 7 - Hunters of the Dusk - Now that the Vampaneze Lord has been found, Mr Tiny informs the Vampire Princes that there are 3 hunters with the power to defeat him. Darren and Mr Crepsley must travel together to find the third hunter and band together to defeat the Vampaneze Lord before it is too late...

Book 8 - Allies of the Night - After one failed attempt Darren and co. find themselves back in Mr Crepsleys hometown - and some familiar faces make a return.

Book 9 - Killers of the Dawn - On the run from the police our hunters have to find a way to face off with the Vampaneze Lord for the third and final time - but what must be sacrificed?

Again I found the first of these as more of a scene setter. It had good moments but the book overall felt like it moved quite slowly. We did however, get to meet Evanna (who most definitely is not a witch!). I think she is an absolutely fabulous character - and I love the reason behind Mr Crepsley's scar!

Allies of the Night and Killers of the Dawn were two parts of the same story and I do not envy people who read these as they came out - as soon as I finished one I had to pick the next straight away!
The return of some friendly (and some not-so-friendly) didn't surprise me overly. I knew we would see Debbie and Steve again, but I didn't imagine seeing R.V.! Loved the hands though. Debbie's return was too convinent for my taste and the sort-of rekindling of her's and Darren's romance was weird. I know technically they're the same age or near enough, but Debbie is in her late twenties while Darren still looks 15. But that may just be my cynical cold heart. And we did need someone to be a damsel in distress.

Steve - I totally expected everything that happened. I said it from the first moment I read about the Vampaneze Lord (not that my friend would give any spoilers!). But the end of Killers of the Dawn upset me. Especially the way you're given amazing hope and it is snatched from you in one little sentence. My face went from gobsmacked, to a big cheesy grin to utter devastation. I was not happy with Darren Shan for writing it. I was even more upset with my friend for making me read a series that seemed intent to tear my soul into little pieces (which it did).

So yeah. 3 more to go. Not gonna lie, I didn't want the series to end! But the end is so worth it!

The Darren Shan Saga Books 4-6

Time for the next 3 books! It's taking me far longer than I would've liked to get through these considering how short they are but oh well. Again there will be plot spoilers. I'm sorry but doing it this way it's really hard to avoid... 
 

Book Four - Vampire Mountain - Darren, Mr Krepsley have to make the dangerous trek up Vampire Mountain so that Darren can be introduced to the Vampire Princes...

Book Five - Trials of Death follows Darren as he is put through his paces to prove himself worthy of joining the vampire ranks.

Book Six - The Vampire Prince sees Darren after uncovering a plot to destroy the clan, and what he has to do to stop it, even if it means his death.

The books really started getting interesting from this point. I loved finding out more about how Vampire politics worked, and thought the Princes and generals were brilliant. The array of characters really built up the world and kept it interesting. It was also easier to read as Darren was older (though not in appearance).

Vampire Mountain though, was a bit of a slow book. Very little happened, it seems its just there to set the scene for the future books. We meet a lot of new characters, Gavner Purl and Arra Sails being my favourites. The little fight between Arra and Darren was a highlight for me. I also really liked Harkat Mulds, our Little Person who finds his voice. Though the ellipses when he speaks did get on my nerves.


I found the Trials of Death interesting and really well thought out, each of them you can potentially survive but they are dangerous enough to stop just anyone from trying their hand at them. And the ending. Most of it I'd guessed at (though my friend refused to give any hints which was really annoying!). I was not happy with the death. Not in the slightest. And has anyone else noticed their is some form of death in every book?

The Vampire Prince - well! I LOVE THE WOLVES. They're just so darn cute! Darren really started to grow up in this book and accept the consequences of his actions. Again the death in this book gutted me. I was not happy. But the ending more than made up for it - I was literally sat reading with my jaw hanging open (so attractive!) while my friend cackled in the background. I did not see that coming - and it was the first of many surprises this series had in store for me.

Would love to hear some of your opinions on these books!

The Darren Shan Saga Books 1-3

As these are such short books I'm going to review them 3 at a time. I've been meaning to read these for a while (one of my friends has been pestering me for years) and I've now been made to borrow them. Apologies for any plot spoilers. It's kinda hard not to give away some.

 
 Book One - Cirque Du Freak follows Darren as he visits a travelling freak show with his friend Steve, makes some shocking discoveries and makes decisions that will change his life forever.

Book Two - The Vampire's Assistant follows Darren as he learns more about his new life as Mr Crepsley's assistant, his struggle against drinking human blood, reuniting with the Cirque and making new friends with devastating consequences.

Book Three - Tunnels of Blood follows Darren, Evra and Mr Crepsley to a city where someone is draining humans of blood, and Darren thinks it may be someone close to him...

So far, I've really enjoyed these books. At first I found it hard to connect with Darren, as he starts off quite young in the series (me and my friend reckon he's around 10) and lets face it, I really couldn't care less about the footie games etc. that young boys are obsessed with. The more the series progresses the more I've enjoyed it. So far Tunnels of Blood has been my favourite, mainly due to the twist at the end (which is predictable but enjoyable all the same).

I find all the characters interesting - my favourite acts are Evra and Truska. Both are good friends for Darren and are just nice characters. I'm very intregued by  Mr Desmond Tiny and his Little People. I want to find out more about them but at the same time I really don't. I also can't wait for Steve's epic return after his threat at the end of the first book... 

So yeah. I can't wait for Darren to get a little bit older just because it'll be easier to relate to him and I really need to thank my friend for making me read these... 

Fire and Flood - Victoria Scott

“Tella’s brother is dying. He’s got cancer and Tella is helpless to save him. Or so she thought.

When an invitation arrives to compete in the Brimstone Bleed, a deadly competition that will lead her through treacherous jungle and scorching desert, she doesn’t think twice.

Because the prize is a cure to any illness.

But Tella will be facing more than just the elements…”

I picked this up from my local Asda for a couple of quid and wasn’t expecting much. I needed something to read in work while all the kids were watching films as it was the end of term. After reading the back I was expecting something very, very similar to the Hunger Games, and wasn’t too fussed on actually reading it.

Tella, our main girl, is a typical teenager, who cares about how she looks, what she wears and blames her parents for living in the middle of nowhere. At first she can be very infuriating and vain but I got over it quite quickly. Lots of people complain that she cares more about how she looks than her brother which I think is wholey untrue. Any teenage girl who cares about how she looks would be moaning about living in a jungle for 2 weeks without a shower, clean clothes, make up etc. no matter why she is there in the first place. Hell, I wasn’t exactly a vain teenager but I would’ve done the same. As for not constantly thinking about her brother, can you blame her? In my experience dwelling on something negative (e.g. dying relative) constantly would slow you down.

As the blurb says, Tella has the chance to qualify for the Brimstone Bleed, and the chance to save her brothers life. She has to race across country to qualify to compete, picking up an egg in the process. These aren't ordinary eggs- they hold pandoras, genetically engineered animals designed to help their competitor survive and win. I LOVE MADOX. He is the cutest most amazing creature and I want one! 

We follow Tella as she races through the first zones of the BB, making bonds both good and bad with other competitors. There is romance, heart break, laughter and fear. 

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I went into it not expecting much and came out dying to get my hands on the next one! The variety of characters were brilliant - I loved the twins! Harper is fantastic but Guy is your typical aloof guarded love interest. Which is great, but I'm getting really bored of that kind of character. Our bad guy Titus though- he is amazing. Absolutely evil but a fascinating character. I really recommend this fantastic new series to any fan of YA fiction.