The Saga of Larten Crepsley by Darren Shan

[Lord Napsack]

There's already a thread regarding the first book, but that had very few replies (Read: One. Me.)

 

I just want to see if anyone has read this series so far and to see how people view it. Personally, I love The Saga of Darren Shan (or Cirque du Freak in the US). Those books are dear to me and there's nothing that can stop my love for them, even to awful film Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant. When I found out that the author, Darren Shan, was writing a prequel saga I was extremely happy, but also cautious.

 

See, a lot of people seemed to love Shan's stand alone book The Thin Executioner whilst I, and my Darren Shan-loving friend, hated it. I was scared Shan had peaked and was now on his way through a speedy decline.

 

But I've found I am loving The Saga of Larten Crepsley immensely. The first book, Birth of a Killer was quick, but got to the point: it was showing Mr. Crepsley's rise to becoming a vampire. The second book, Ocean of Blood, was built up around a bit more fun and seemed a bit more positive. There was still a fair bit of bad stuff happening, but it was a bit more light-hearted. Until the ending. Then Palace of the Damned, the third book, picked up from there, starting off depressing, with suicide a major theme at first, but then seemed to level out again... then got upsetting.

 

See, there's a common theme here. This series is really, really depressing. The amount of awful, terrible things that happen to Larten over the centuries would be enough to break any normal man. But Larten Crepsley is a growing vampire. This is only building his character and making him stronger and more vampire-like.

 

This, I believe, is perfect. He's fleshing out to be the Mr. Crepsley from the original saga. And this is amazing. Shan is a fantastic author who is making me fall in love with one of the most beloved characters from The Saga of Darren Shan all over again. This all makes me feel great just reading it.

 

But there's also hints of sadness. Not in the book, but from me. The thing is

Larten Crepsley dies in the Saga of Darren Shan. It is a noble death. It's one of the pivotal points of the entire saga. And boy does it make me feel upset. Just thinking about his eventual death makes me feel upset when reading about his life.

It's powerful stuff, but it's due to my attachment to the characters from previous books.

 

I'm on the last book, Brothers to the Death and it follows the trend of all the other books. Larten is more fleshed out and feels more like his Saga of Darren Shan self. I'm excited to be reading this book, but at the same time I feel sad that this is the last one. I could read about his life for several more books.

 

 

 

So, has anyone read these books? These are just my rambling thoughts so far, but I'm very interested to hear other people's opinions. Anyone read The Saga of Darren Shan but not these? If you have read these, how do you feel about the books as books in their own right and as part of the saga?

[Chrissy]

I haven't read them, but I do have the first one waiting (among so many other books) to be read.

[Lord Napsack]

I read it again recently within a day or two. If you have the time and want a quick(ish) read then go for it. That's the beauty of Darren Shan books: so much plot in such a quick-to-read book

[Lord Napsack]

I just finished the final book. It moves at a pretty good pace, but I found the inclusion of Nazis a bit odd and somewhat out of place, for some reason. I suppose the series never really focussed too much on human world events, so when this happened it was just strange. I think it worked, but I kept expecting stupid stuff to happen.

 

The book as a whole was a lot more focussed, and it was still as good and depressing as the rest of the series. There was a pretty good twist near the end, but I think I saw it coming and it was all a little rushed, but the ultimate ending was good, as it linked it with the original saga.

[Snapex]

I just finished the final book. It moves at a pretty good pace, but I found the inclusion of Nazis a bit odd and somewhat out of place, for some reason. I suppose the series never really focussed too much on human world events, so when this happened it was just strange. I think it worked, but I kept expecting stupid stuff to happen.

 

The book as a whole was a lot more focussed, and it was still as good and depressing as the rest of the series. There was a pretty good twist near the end, but I think I saw it coming and it was all a little rushed, but the ultimate ending was good, as it linked it with the original saga.

 

I haven't seen your spoilers, don't worry. Just thought I'd say that your little review has made me scared about reading the rest of the series haha. Depressing and upsetting? I can not handle any more heart ache when it comes to Larten, I just cant haha.