Darren begins the Trials of Initiation to prove himself worthy of being a half-vampire, even as the clan's blood foes, the vampaneze, gather near Vampire Mountain.

Now in paperback--the gut-wrenching first book in The Vampire Mountain trilogy.

Betrayed by Kurda and reeling from the brutal slaying of Gavner, the vampire's assistant, Darren Shan, finds himself branded a traitor and hunted by the vampire clan.

The trials: seventeen ways to die unless the luck of the vampire is with you. Darren Shan must pass five fearsome Trials to prove himself to the vampire clan ? or face the stakes of the Hall of Death. But Vampire Mountain holds hidden threats. Sinister, potent forces are gathering in the darkness. In this nightmarish world of bloodshed and betrayal, death may be a blessing...

Darren goes to a freak show with his friend. It's the gothic Cirque du Freak where weird, half human/half animals appear and interact with the audience. Darren falls in love with a spider and tries to steal it so that he can teach it to perform.

In the seventh entry of this New York Times bestselling series, Darren Shan, part of an elite force, searches the world of the Vampaneze Lord. But the road ahead is long and dangerous.

Darren begins the Trials of Initiation to prove himself worthy of being a half-vampire, even as the clan's blood foes, the vampaneze, gather near Vampire Mountain.