The complete collection of the epic saga of Larten Crepsley - vampire, hero and victim of fate... Prequel series to The Saga of Darren Shan.

BIRTH OF A KILLER: When Larten escapes the terrible workhouse in which he toils, he doesn't know that he is running from an early death... into another kind of transformation. After meeting the mysterious vampire Seba Nile while sheltering for the night in a crypt, Larten finds himself drawn into the shadowy world of the vampire Clan.

Larten finds himself enjoying the adventure he has always dreamed of but begins to discover something else, too. Much like death, becoming a vampire is something you can't come back from...

OCEAN OF BLOOD: Free from their mentor Seba Nile, Larten Crepsley and Wester Flack join the Cubs - wild young vampires with little respect for human life, and a taste for mindless enjoyment.

But soon fate throws Larten into another spin as he finds himself far from the Vampire Mountain and its rules. Sick and alone, he must decide what kind of vampire he will be. Whether he will stand firm, be true to his master and his principles - or whether he will lose himself in blood...

PALACE OF THE DAMNED: Lost in the Arctic waste, Larten faces the darkest time he has ever known.

But hope has a way of shining through, and just as Larten reaches the end, a new beginning presents itself. The trouble is, the violence of Larten's youth is never far from the surface... and those he loves are the ones he hurts the most. As Larten experiences heaven and hell, and tries to save the soul of a child, the question is: can he save his own?

BROTHERS TO THE DEATH: Just as Larten is finding a new place for himself in vampire society, and helping vampires escape the Nazi menace, horrifying tragedy falls on his own family thanks to the nefarious Vampaneze.

With his old friend Wester calling for war against the ancient enemies of vampires, Larten finds himself a figurehead of the campaign. But there are more evil things than just the Vampaneze stirring. And soon, Larten might find himself grieving again - as he faces the worst and final betrayal...

This is volume 2 in The Saga Of Larten Crepsley .

This book has been graded for interest at 9+ years.

There are 1024 pages in this book. This book was published 2014 by HarperCollins Publishers .

Darren Shan is the New York Times bestselling author of Cirque Du Freak and The Demonata, whose novels have sold over 15 million copies worldwide. Darren lives in Ireland, where he writes and collects art, comics, and film.