Cirque Du Freak is a series which follows young Darren Shan, a boy who makes a deal with a vampire to save the life of his best friend. There are now eight books in the series and the first two books have been optioned by Warner Bros. So check out the series that is creating some serious buzz! Cirque du Freak - How It All BeganWhen Darren's friend Steve is bitten by a vampire's deadly pet spider, the only way to save his life is for Darren to agree to become a half-vampire and assume the life of a vampire's assistant. It is in book one, simply titled Cirque Du Freak, that Darren agrees to become Mr. Crepsley's (the vampire who owned the spider) assistant. Vampire Mountain is the fourth book in this saga and finds Darren settling into his life as a half-vampire, eight years later. He's been through some pretty crazy adventures and now it's time for Darren to meet the Vampire Council - the leaders of all vampires in the world. Cirque Du Freak - Vampire MountainDarren, Mr. Crepsley and his spider Madame Octa head for Vampire Mountain, a trek that vampires only make every twelve years. It's a long, cold road to see the Vampire Council and vampire law forbids all vampires to wear shoes or heavy clothing, as pain should be part of the experience. A new evil is said to be rising, threatening to extinguish vampires from the earth. No, it's not Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it's something entirely different. Thousands of years ago, a group of vampires broke away from the rest of the race, becoming a race of their own, known as the vampaneze. The vampaneze, unlike the vampires, kill humans and love destruction. And they are now ready to destroy the vampire race. Cirque Du Freak - Vampire Mountain Bottom LineVampire Mountain is a must-read for all you fans of the dark and mysterious. The Cirque Du Freak series sheds a whole new light on vampires, their traditions and might even have you wishing you could be a vampire assistant like Darren Shan!Rating: 5 out of 5.