Series: Demonata | Publication Date: November 1, 2007
Lights. Camera. Slawter!
Grubbs Grady and his half-brother Bill-E are thrilled to join their uncle Dervish as onset consultants for the newest movie by cult horror producer David A Hayms. Shot in a deserted town renamed Slawter, the demon-themed movie is to be Hayms's masterpiece. But as strange incidents disrupt the set, Grubbs begins to wonder whether more than filming is afoot.
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Praise for 'LORD LOSS' 'The plot twists and turns like a sharp descent down a dark flume.' The Times Educational Supplement Praise for 'Lord of the Shadows' 'Stephen King for kids!Darren Shan has brought his own brand of vampire mythology into the heads and hearts of thousands of children with his vivid and compelling series The Saga of Darren Shan, about one boy's journey from ordinary lad to vampire prince. Once they're hooked, kids tend to rip into the flesh of these books, quickly draining them of their life blood. The covers, with images of ghouls, creeping hands and dripping fangs are terrifying alone.' Metro Life, Evening Standard Praise for 'Cirque Du Freak' 'fast-paced and compelling book which leaves the reader hungry for more.' JK Rowling 'I read 'Cirque Du Freak' last week. I loved it. I love the way you manage to juggle the funny with the unpleasant, the affection with the hurt. It's great story-telling.' Roddy Doyle Praise for 'The Vampire's Assistant' 'The Vampire's Assistant blazes a thrilling, gruesome trail through a fascinating plot.' The Good Book Guide
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About the Author
"I was born in London in 1972 and moved to Ireland when I was 6 years old, where I've lived ever since. I always wanted to be a writer - I've loved telling stories since I was a child. I started out writing books for adults, and managed to get a couple published. One day, on a whim, I decided to try a book for children. The result was Cirque Du Freak. Much to my surprise, it took off, and I became a de facto children's author! Since then I've used my ill-gotten gains to buy lots of comic-strip art and travel the world. When I'm not working or traveling, I like watching movies. I've even been known to read the odd book or two."
Darren is currently working on his sixth novel in the bone-chilling The Demonata series, coming in May 2008.
Product Details
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (November 1, 2007)
Darren Shan's real name is Darren O'Shaughnessy (pronounced O-Shock-Nessy, though it can also be pronounced O-Shawn-Essy_. Although he is Irish, he was born on July 2, 1972, in St. Thomas' Hospital, London -- directly across the river from the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, which may explain his fascination with evil bloodsuckers! He lived in South East London, near the Elephant & Castle. He started school at the early age of three (he was such a wild child, no pre-school facility would have him!), in English Martyrs. At the age of six, he moved to Limerick in Ireland, with his parents and younger brother, and has lived there ever since.
Shan went to primary school in Askeaton, where his mother was a teacher, then to secondary school in Copsewood College in Pallaskenry. Later, he went back to London to study Sociology and English at Roehampton University. He then worked for a cable television company in Limerick for a couple of years, before setting up as a full-time writer at the age of 23.
Although Shan always wanted to be a writer, it was only in his teenage years that he began writing in his spare time for fun (before that, he only wrote stories if they were for homework). He bought his first typewriter when he was 14, and never looked back, knocking out loads of short stories and comic scripts, and making false starts on several books, which he never completed. He enjoyed his first taste of literary success at age 15, as a runner-up in a television script-writing competition for RTE in Ireland, with a dark comedy script titled A Day in the Morgue (he was morbid even then!).
Shan was 17 when he finished his first novel. Although it was never published, he relished the writing experience, and found himself focusing more on novels in the coming years, leaving behind the short-story format. For the next several years, sandwiched between university and work, he wrote an average of one book a year, experimenting with different ideas, genres, lengths and styles. When he started writing full-time, his output shot up to 5 to 6 books per year! But that has dropped back to 2 to 3 recently, due to all the travelling around he's been doing to promote sales of his books.
All of these early books were adult-oriented. Although Shan quite liked the idea of writing a children's book one day, he considered himself an adult writer first and foremost. In fact, Shan's initial breakthrough was with an adult book, in 1999, titled Ayuamarca (since re-released in the UK as Procession Of The Dead, and coming to the USA in 2010).
In January 2000, his first children's book, Cirque du Freak, which he'd written as a fun side-project, was published. The first book in a series titled The Saga of Darren Shan (or Cirque du Freak, as it's known in America), it attracted rave reviews and an ever-growing army of fans hungry to learn more about vampires which were quite unlike any that anyone had ever seen before!
Shan loved writing for children so much, that for the next several years he focused exclusively on his books for younger readers. First, he wrote a total of 12 books about vampires. He quickly followed up his vampiric saga with The Demonata, a series about demons. Running to ten books in total, The Demonata cemented Shan's place in the UK as the Master Of Children's Horror, and saw him score his first UK #1 bestseller. He also wrote a one-off short book, called Koyasan, for Wold Book Day in the UK.
There was a very successful manga adaptation of Shan's vampire series, drawn by the Japanese artist, Takahiro Arai. It was originally serialized in Japan, but collected volumes are now on sale in the USA, UK and other countries.
In addition to writing for children, Shan has now returned to his first love and is once again writing for adults as well. He has had two adult books published in the UK, Procession Of The Dead and Hell's Horizon. They have been released in a number of other countries too, and are due to hit the USA in 2010. A third, City of the Snakes, goes on sale in the UK in March 2010. His first adult books were released under the name of D B Shan, but they are being reprinted under the name of Darren Shan in March 2010, and City of the Snakes will be released under the Darren Shan name.
By the start of 2010, Shan's books were on sale in every continent, in 39 countries, in 31 languages, and have been children's bestsellers in America, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway and other countries. The books have topped adult bestseller charts in Hungary, Japan and Taiwan. In total, Shan's books have sold close to 15 million copies worldwide!!!!
The movie rights to Cirque Du Freak were bought by Universal, and the first movie (which combines elements from the first three books in the series) was released on October 23rd, 2009, starring newcomer Chris Massoglia as Darren Shan, along with a wide array of established stars such as Josh Hutcherson, John C Reilly, Salma Hayek, Willem Defoe and Ken Watanabe. The movie was called Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant. It was released on DVD and Blu-Ray in February 2010.
A big film buff, with a collection of more than four thousand movies at home, Shan also reads lots of comics and books, and likes to study and collect original artwork, especially comic art and impressionist and post-impressionist art. He has recently started adding sculptures to his collection, making use of the large, empty field outside his back door. Other interests include long walks, watching football (he's a Tottenham Hotspur and Ireland fan), listening to pop and rock music, theatre, worldwide travel, sampling the delights of both gourmet cuisine and finger-licking junk food, and dreaming up new ways to terrify his readers!!!
Shan spends most of his time in Limerick, Ireland, with his girlfriend Bas. He has no pets, but a neighbourhood dog called Goldie joins him on his walks most days. He also feeds a variety of wild birds, and spots the occasional hare and pheasant strolling through his back yard. In addition to his main home in Ireland, Shan has an apartment in London, to which he escapes for a burst of high-speed living every so often, when he feels the need to get his juices flowing!! Shan rarely writes when in London or on the road, preferring to tie himself to his computer when at home in Limerick, where he can work away solidly without any distractions in the peace and quiet of the Irish countryside.
First of all, you have to read the first two books: Lord Loss and Demon Theif. The third book is so action packed and scary. This book is full of foreshadowing and you won't even see it coming you want to read it to the end. Its amazing. These are one of my favorite books, it sucks you into reading other scary books, and i love it. Darren Shan writes with a touch of Stephen King, which makes it a unique way of writing. I am almost finished with "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon" and it is scary and awesome. I got sucked into this book because of the Demonata series. READ THIS SERIES AND YOUR PERSPECTIVE OF READING WILL CHANGE IN A GOOD WAY! this reading is for all ages.
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Darren Shan is at the top of his form in his latest masterpiece of gruesome demons and terror. This third book in the DEMONATA series picks up where Demonata #2, The: Demon Thief: Book 2 in The Demonata series (Demonata) left us. Dervish is almost back to normal. Grubitsch Grady, better known as Grubbs, and his half-brother, Bill-E, are trying to live a normal life without demons. A group called The Lambs want to take Bill-E to their lab and observe and test him to see if he is really cured of lycanthropy. Uncle Dervish and Grubbs are certainly not going to allow that. Then Dervish is approached by acclaimed horror movie producer, David A. Haym, or "Davida," who wants Dervish to be a consultant on her new film. She has resurrected a ghost town and renamed it Slawter. Her masterpiece will have a demon theme, and Dervish, of course, is a demon expert.
The demons that romp through SLAWTER seem all too real to Grubbs and he begins to wonder whether more than filming is afoot when strange happenings disrupt the set and the filming. He can't seem to convince Uncle Dervish that real demons are on the loose, and are not just ingenious costumes. People begin to disappear. Is Lord Loss back in business?
Darren Shan broke new ground with his bestselling CIRQUE DU FREAK series, and now his DEMONATA series promises to be as great a hit with the kids. Shan is a master at characterization and plotting, and the fear factor raises your goose-bumps to a new height. I would not recommend this series for children ages ten and under, but for older kids that love scary stories with lots of gruesome gore, this book fits that category. The reluctant readers will love this exciting, horrific story.
Reviewed by: Grandma Bev
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When I got this book I thought it was going to be like the last two. I was wrong; this book is more entertaining and exciting then the last two.
Grubbs Grady is trying to get his life on track after saving his brother from turning into a werewolf. His uncle Dervish is almost back to normal after fighting lord loss. In this book Dervish is called to do a movie with a famous horror director. It turns out it is a trap set by lord loss. I can't believe that Dervish and Grubbs escaped from the grasps of lord loss for the second time in a row but in return many civilians were slaughtered.
This book is a great book for young adults, but I am not sure about children because there is a lot of graphic violence. I can't wait until Darren Shaw comes out with the fourth book Bec.
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