Trials of Death

May 1, 2003
The Cirque Du Freak saga continues in a fifth installment, Trials of Death by Darren Shan. Once again the protagonist takes readers into the heart of the vampire world, where he must face the Trials of Initiation to prove himself worthy of being a half-vampire-or die trying. The gory tale ends with a "to be continued" teaser and an excerpt from book six.

July 1, 2003
Gr 4-7-This is the fifth novel in the continuing saga of the youthful half-vampire assistant to Larten Crepsley, a full vampire. Crepsley has brought Darren to Vampire Mountain to undergo the Trials of Death, an elective ritual periodically undergone by vampires in order to bond with the clan and prove their worth. As a half-vampire, Darren is in more danger of failing the trials than the others who usually participate, but he is determined to go ahead. The penalty for failing without dying is execution. In the background a new conflict looms, involving the vampaneze, purple-skinned killers who resemble vampires but who are nothing like the beings whom Darren has come to respect and admire. When it appears that he will not survive the trials, his vampire friends urge him to escape. Escorting him out through the mountain's underground tunnels, they run smack into an incoming vampaneze invasion. In the final pages, the plot and action finally pick up to fever pace as Darren is caught between invaders, defenders, and possibly a traitor in the ranks of the faithful. Characters are mostly one-dimensional, and the plot plods along until the final conflict heats up the action. Although the story stands on its own, there isn't much reason to read this one aside from following the series.-Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2003
Inside Vampire Mountain, Darren Shan must face five trials to be initiated into the vampire clan. The clumsily told episodes never achieve suspense, and the consistency of the story's internal conventions and the characters' motivations receive even less attention than usual. A final over-the-top cliffhanger with a death sentence for Darren, a betrayal, and a "vampaneze" invasion sets up the next volume.

(Copyright 2003 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)