Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare

Cirque Du Freak opens Darren Shan's long-running horror series with an ordinary schoolboy's fascination turning into something much darker. Darren and his best friend Steve sneak out to see the illegal, half-legendary Cirque Du Freak, a travelling freak show of performers with genuinely strange abilities.

Among the performers is Mr. Crepsley, who keeps a deadly, poisonous spider named Madam Octa. Darren steals the spider, and when his friend Steve is bitten and left dying, Darren is forced to make a bargain with Crepsley to save him — becoming Crepsley's half-vampire assistant in exchange. Darren must then fake his own death, leave his family behind, and begin a new, secret existence on the road with the freak show.

The novel sets up the series' mix of body horror, dark comedy, and coming-of-age loss, following Darren as he grapples with what he's become and what he's given up to save a friend.