The Vampire Prince

The Vampire Prince is the sixth book of the Cirque du Freak sequence by Darren Shan, published in 2002. The series is written for younger teenage readers.

Darren is a half-vampire who has been travelling with Larten Crepsley, and by this point in the sequence he has been marked as a traitor, abandoned by a friend and is being pursued by the vampire clan itself. The novel's action is concentrated on Vampire Mountain, where his initiation is decided, so the book's structure is a trial with a deadline rather than a chase across several countries.

The world of the series is built on rules. Vampires live under a code, the clan is governed by princes and generals, and the young protagonist is judged by institutions far older than he is, which is why the plots tend to turn on accusations and ceremonies rather than only on physical danger. What the book threatens is not only Darren's death but the end of a system of rule that has lasted for thousands of years, which is the scale the series gives to the mistakes of a young protagonist.