Cirque Du Freak: Killers of the Dawn, Vol. 9

Cirque Du Freak: The Manga #9

by Darren Shan, Takahiro Arai

Outnumbered, outsmarted, and desperate, the hunters are on the run, pursued by the vampaneze, the police, and an angry mob. With their enemies clamoring for blood, the vampires prepare for a deadly battle. Is this the end for Darren and his allies?

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Vampires, Graphic Novels, Horror, Young Adult, Supernatural

192 pages, Paperback

Published May 31, 2011

About the author

Librarian's note: Also writes books for adults under the name Darren Dash. And in the past he has released books for adults under the names D.B. Shan and Darren O'Shaughnessy.

Darren Shan (born July 2, 1972 in London, England) is the pen name of the Irish author Darren O'Shaughnessy, as well as the name of the protagonist of his book series The Saga of Darren Shan, also known as The Cirque Du Freak Series in the United States. He is the author of the series The Demonata, The Saga of Larten Crepsley, and Zom-B. He has also released the stand-alone novel, The Thin Executioner, and the stand-alone short novels, Koyasan, and Hagurosan. Plus, for adults, he released The City Trilogy (originally under the name of D.B. Shan), and Lady of the Shades..

Reviews

[Lorien · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the crazy last volume I wondered how this volume could top it and OH IT DID AND IT HURTS!!!

*ahem*

First of all, this volume started after a WICKED cliffhanger that I'm not looking forward to in the books as I own 8 but not 9.

Darren and the other two hunters were tricked and only got away by the skin of their teeth, but an ally was left behind, and then they're captured by the police of all things. Things go from bad to worse, to hellish, to NO YOU CAN'T DO THAT NOOOOO!!!!

Plus that ENDING!!! The twist!!! I died. Oh it killed me. I knew this was coming as I warned after I read volume 1 (seriously that's all I read and was warned). And of course the wicked twist that is the clincher for this novel...is revealed halfway through the stupid movie. -_-+ WHY!?!

This book built me up, had me begging for more, make we freeze in horror, then smile with relief, and then

RIPPED MY HEART OUT WITH A SPORK. IT HURT. A LOT. I can't bear to let this volume go. I just wanna hug it and pretend the events didn't happen. For someone spoiled, this hurt worse than Allegiant. Yes. ALLEGIANT ISN'T AS HEARTBREAKING!!!!

Darren Shan, you're a genius! YA'LL NEED TO READ THIS SERIES. READ IT! DO IT!

[Sarah Maddaford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say that the best part of this book was the chapter where Darren imagines a rescue scene in which Larten doesn't die. I already knew when the Vampeneze Lord was announced that it was Steve (especially when he came back), but I wasn't so sure about who was going to die on the quest. Why did they think that the guy in the cloak had to be the same guy each time they saw him? Cloaks are excellent for concealing identities; that is their general purpose. I also couldn't believe that they allowed Steve and Gannen to take Darren aside alone together. They should have made sure that Gannen wasn't close enough to knock Darren out when he went for Steve at the very least. The Vampeneze do a much better job of protecting their Lord than the vampires do protecting one of their princes...

Even though it is in shadow, the impalement scene is pretty graphic and there is other violence to contend with in this book. I think the term for a child born out of wedlock is thrown around, but I could be wrong. I don't remember any kissing, I wouldn't have been in the mood for any if I were Darren either.

[Annie Beurman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, I'm just going to get this off my chest real quick;

HOW COULD YOU, DARREN?! HOW COULD YOU KILL MR. CREPSLEY?!?! HE'S THE BEST CHARACTER AND THE ONLY FAMILY DARREN HAD!!!! WHY WHY WHYYYYYYYY?!?!

(takes a deep breath) Ok, despite THAT, I still enjoyed this book just as much as the others even though it's my least favorite of the series (see above rant for reason). I'm completely invested in Darren's life at this point so when he feels pain or joy I feel it too. Darren Shan, as always, does a great job conveying his alter ego's(?) voice and each character is distinct and memorable.

Any issues I have with this book aside from THAT ONE are minor; sometimes the talking scenes could go on for a bit too long aside from the last conversation Mr. Crepsley had with Darren and the others and I really didn't care that Debbie had been kidnapped since I've never liked her (after all, if they hadn't gone after her MR. CREPSLEY WOULDN'T HAVE DIED!) but aside from that, this was another great addition to the Cirque Du Freak series.

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

reading this particular book was like having the Artist in my head. the new characters, the new scenes and more importantly, how the mister Crepsley meets his end, were exactly how i visioned it in my head while i was reading the book. the one part of this book that stuck to me was the way Steve was smiling towards Darren when he was going to say that he was the vampeneze lord.that smile stuck to me a little because that smile breathed hatred. since i was able to visualize my thoughts about what could have happened if Mr. Crepsley could have done to change the events saving his life or at least killing Steve. the one thing i have came up with was that not letting go would have killed the Vampeneze lord (even though Mr. Crepsley did not know at the time, he knew what Steve was capable of). and Darren and Vancha could not be killed by anyone else, be able to rescue Debbie and Alice and be rid of a great threat. although i felt that this ending would be best, i am still trying to find an ending to which Mr. Crepsley could live. so far i cannot find one

[Neldehaibi7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darren wanted to win the war of scars with his vampaneze hunters against the vampaneze clan, and also Darren's ex-best friend Steve. But, the vampaneze have many tricks up their sleeves which causes a trap for the vampires and the little person, Harkat. So, the vampires encounter the vampaneze and kill many of them. Then, the vampires and the vampaneze have a massive fight to try and determine who's victors. Although the vampires kill the vampaneze lord, they didn't win the war because Steve whispered a life-changing secret into Darren's ear. To find out, read Cirque du Freak: Allies of the Night. This book is about loyalty, courage, and love.

[Btheilmanngohr3 · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Darren and Co. end up getting chased (and caught) by police, escape, and defeat the vampaneze lord! Or do they? It turns out that the real vampaneze lord is ,as some of you already know, Steve Leonard Larten also dies in this book. It's just sad, killing one of the main characters. I can't wait to read the next book and find out where Darren, Harkat and Vancha travel to next...

[Dane Divine · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG this made me cry my eyes out when I read it to my daughter when it first came out about 20 years ago. I thought I'd be fine now, knowing what would happen and being a very mature woman, but hahah! no! I cried my eyes out again.

Love the manga style. Awesome version.

[The Book Dragon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steve is a Vampaneze. And he’s the mastermind behind the ambush. Even after Darren and the others escape with Steve as a hostage, he has a contingency plan! Not just that, he’s unapologetic in everything he’s doing. He’s completely obsessed with his revenge on Crepsley and Darren and doesn’t care if he ruins the Vampaneze chances of winning the war of the scars.

That’s what I love to see in a villain. A clear goal and the resolve and intelligence to reach it despite how awful his actions or the risk of his own death.

That death scene though was heartbreaking even though Crepsley is kinda low on my list of favorite characters.

And that big reveal at the end was pretty obvious if you were paying attention. But the combination of the pacing, the story, and the artwork pulled it off spectacularly. Well done.

This series has 12 volumes and is based on the Darren Shan novel series Cirque du Freak.

[J Jahir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro es sufrimiento puro. muere un personaje que no voy a mencionar, pero que me hizo llorar porque a pesar de todo lo llegas a apreciar mucho. Y descubrimos la identidad del vampanés con los brazos en forma de gancho, y sabemos quién, finalmente, es el lord vampanés, a lo que ya me lo veía venir. todo estaba preparándose para esto, y pues era evidente después de ver esa advertencia que le hicieron a darren en el libro 1, no?

[Hannah Belyea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darren and his allies are on the run as everyone seems to be hunting them down, from vampires to police officers, meaning that only through sacrifice will any of them make it out alive! "Killers of the Dawn" will leaves readers gasping for breath as Shan continues to spin a gruesome and exhilarating story. With the likes of Arai at the artistic helm, the "Cirque Du Freak" series will surely keep fans amazed!

[Avalon Roselin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please excuse me while I purchase all the Kleenex at my local supermarket, thank you.

[Meri · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fight scenes were wonderfully illustrated with many poignant moments. Takahiro Arai did the original source material justice here!

[Ashleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

[Miss Ryoko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I.... I.....

Well, two of the things I predicted in my review for the last volume came true this volume. And even though I knew for a fact that Mr. Crepsley was going to die (not because it was ruined for me, mind you, simply because of the prediction that only one of them would make it alive and clearly that person is going to be Darren) I certainly wasn't prepared for it. To make matters worse, that jerk of an author had to go and add the "fantasy" scene where he gets rescued. I went from tears to gigantic smile only to have my heart shattered again when Darren Shan the author went "L O L J K guyz. Ha! Trolled ya." THAT BASTARD!!!!

The thing with Steve... totes called it last volume.

Despite my general heartbreak and the fact that the big shocker of the ending wasn't so shocking to me, I decided to give this volume a 4 star rating because I think Arai-san did a really great job depicting this volume, in particular the Larten was saved JUST KIDDING!! scene (even though I haven't read the original novel and really have nothing to base this off of). I just felt like it was super well done.

Oh man... I don't even want to go on anymore, but of course I will. 3 more volumes to go!

[edel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, the end of this volume almost made me want to throw it across the room. I even made an audible yelp at the end. Such a plot twist. I never even once anticipated that Steve was the Vampaneze Lord. Or that he was faking it the whole time. I truly thought he had changed for the better but obviously not. I'm as gullible as Darren.

Darren Shan knows how to make a good story. Takahiro Arai does an even better job and bringing it to life as a graphic novel. I never tire of the style. Plus, he just does the action scenes so well. When I was younger I never cared for the shonen genre (aka boys manga about fighting, sports, and other "typical boy things") but somehow, I'm still really interested in this series.

[Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darren's girlfriend, Debbie is held hostage. During the battle they think they killed the vampaneze lord, but Steve is the vampaneze lord. Darren will never forgive Steve because he killed Mr. Crepsley harshly. I would recommend this book to all boys and girls that like vampires and heart racing action.

[Akherousia · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was supposed to be the climax of the fight against the vampeenze, the vampires greatest natural enemy, but it left a sore taste in my mouth as I had already figured out who was what, and what was going to happen(pretty obvious).

[Hayley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so sad when Crepsley died-he was my favourite character even over Darren- but the book was still amazing. This is the only book where I have ever cried while reading.
Amazing original author, and manga author, I think everyone should read these books.

[Ash Ebrahim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well the book started weakly and boring. But the end was just amazing and too emotional, it beated the second book in the touching ending.

[BCPL Youth Services Librarian]

Click to see book in BCPL's online catalog

[Hannah Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, just based off of the books :)

[Gabrielpaco]

How do I read it though I'm kinda new to this... ._.

[Eniluap Saniram]

nice book

[Alek · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the saga, but this book/volume of the manga is just too much. I can't read it again.

[Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

so sad it makes you so exited you gays should read the hole books

[nidah05 (SleepDreamWrite) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wasn't sure what I was expecting from this. But it was interesting. Manga form of the series really.

[Michael Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool

[Joel Tsegai]

it's a great manga

[Bobby Hougen · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[C.j.slack · Rating 5 out of 5]

good