Dark Carnival (Serenity Falls, Book 3) [Paperback]

James A. Moore (Author)

Book Description

Series: Serenity Falls, Book 3 | Publication Date: July 26, 2005

The circus is in town--the bad news is, it's raising more than a ruckus. It's raising the dead.

Editorial Reviews

Review

James A. Moore is something to watch. -- Bentley Little

Quite possibly the best horror novel since Salem's Lot. -- Jim Brock, Baryon magazine

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Jove (July 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515139858
• ISBN-13: 978-0515139853
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #338,536 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Crowley's Tale, January 1, 2006

By 

L. Allison "Bibliophile" (The left coast) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dark Carnival (Serenity Falls, Book 3) (Paperback)

This is the final book in the Serenity Falls trilogy. Originally written as one book, it was re-released as three. Each book is a story in it's self, the third is the climax of everyone's story with Jonathan Crowley as the main protagonist.

Crowley is a hunter, more than, or, not human, but only when a supernatural threat is present. When amongst regular humans, Crowley is simply a cranky, curmudgeon of a man. A hunter who is very unsure of what is coming, only clear that something is near.

The Dark Carnival is coming. A rotting fleshly train runs down train tracks that are broken and unusable. Tents grow, sprouting from the ground, on a farm where murder was done years ago. The stench of rotting flesh is rampant as the Big Top rises.

More than one person comes forward to be heroic, some die, some do help. The story is fast, horrific and bloody. Not everyone can or will be saved. Believable, and well written. James A. Moore knows how to write, and I will continue to read his books.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Final Battle In A Strong Series, August 22, 2005

By 

Bob A. Reiss "Audiobook Reviews: The Guilded ... (Bensalem, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dark Carnival (Serenity Falls, Book 3) (Paperback)

Originally posted as a single novel, Serenity Falls was recently released in a three volume mass paperback set. For fans of horror, especially those who enjoyed Stephen King back when he was writing books like It, Cujo and Salem's Lot, this is definitely something you'd want to scoop up. Unlike some trilogies, especially ones that were originally conceived as a single novel, all three books of the series have a different feel to them.

The basic premise deals with the small rural New York town of Serenity Falls. While Serenity Falls may seem like your prototypical small town, it has a history of violence and death that far exceeds most small towns.

Book 3: Dark Carnival

The third book picks up the story of the town of Serenity Falls, and builds on the characters we have met, yet, this book is mostly Jonathon Crowley's tale. Crowley, the other than human demon hunter, takes center stage in the last segment. While many of the townspeople have suffered loss, many others have just been living life as normal. But that's about to change, because the Carnival is coming.

Crowley still is unsure of what he it dealing with as the story starts, but he knows that the entity that has been plaguing him for a while is nothing more than a dangerous distraction from the real problems. He begins to realize that the secret to the mystery lies with the children. After dealing with the tormented Stan Long, he finds the entity had found a new host in the bodies of some of the towns children. Crowley finds this disturbing, yet also sees the possibilities that lay in this. As he lays his traps, he must also deal with his conflicting feelings for the mysterious women that Mike Blake has fallen for, one that he himself has had a past with.

While Crowley is brilliant and cunning in his deductions., the final battles he must have with the entity tormenting him and the town and the curse that is putting the bodies and souls of the town in jeopardy, turns brutally physical. Crowley, in the end, is looking for a fight and he finds one. As the carnival enters town, run by the souls of the outsiders slaughtered by the townspeople, Crowley has to put out one fire after another, before that final showdown.

Of all the books, this is probably the weakest, yet it is probably necessary do to the development of the story. The characters are in play, the battle has been set, and now, it just comes down to execution. I am someone who enjoys the buildup more that the actual action, so at points I found myself skimming through the brutal and garish action. While some aspects are predictable, Moore shows no fear of killing off main characters, and having things not go exactly how you would expect, Crowley is a worthy antihero, but he can become exasperating for the reader. His judgmental side attacks characters that we grow to like, and seems dismissive toward humans. Plus, he's a bit too resourceful. Like Batman, he always has exactly what he needs to battle with the evil forces.

Yet, complaints aside, the series comes together well in this last book. While this is the final battle, the end leaves just enough ambiguity to leave the reader wanting more. I know if there is another book featuring Crowley, I'll be reading it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Serenity Falls 3, May 8, 2007

By 

R. Howell "boriskhan" (Medford, OR) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dark Carnival (Serenity Falls, Book 3) (Paperback)

When a town is named Serenity Falls, you know nothing about it is going to be serene. This is book 3 in the Serenity Falls set and quite frankly, I was pretty disappointed by it. I bought this trilogy just because the title 'Dark Carnival' seemed to promise something grusome and suspenseful. It's not that the story is bad, it's a good story but it lacked real focus. There's alot more of Jonathon Crowley in this one and there's lots of fighting/action throughout. For me, there are far far too many characters in this that you become confused and begin to not really care about any of them. It's along the lines of having introduced all these characters in books 1&2 just to kill them off in this one. Book two spent an abundance of time developing Mike and Amelia and they're barely in this book. Ages of the children seem to sporadically change and the big bad new constable, Victor Barnes (introduced in The Pack as a great character) is walked over multiple times. The whole carnival was lackluster even though the backstory of why it's there was creepily interesting. Maybe I was expecting a little more of Koontz' "Funhouse" for the carnival (and I don't like Koontz except this book). The final showdown is longer than it may have needed to be and I was grateful when I finished the book.

Overall, while this book was better than The Pack, I think Writ in Blood was the best of the three. Dark Carnival just didn't work for me with the overabundance of characters and interuptions in the flow to deal with them all.