Let the Right One in Book

A few years ago I experienced a terrible panic following an epiphany that I simply had not read enough books for someone of my age. The realisation that I was at a stage in my life where I should have read so many 'must read' books left me in a state of shocked meltdown and I swiftly started devouring classics to make amends for my life of literary abstinence. A few years down the line and I am feeling a little better having read many great books and classic reads but I still have a long way to go before I fulfil my OCD book reading ambitions. In light of the considerable classic literary journey I still have left to travel, the odd sneaky indulgence in paperback pop fiction is all the more guilt inducing. Let the Right One In is my most recent guilty pleasure and I shamefully confess that I enjoyed it from start to finish. Take that conscience!

Fans of the original 2008 Swedish film based on the novel will recognise the story, but in addition the book treats the reader to a great deal more detail and background character information than the movie ever could. For those who have not seen the film Let the Right One In is vampire fiction BUT with a difference. In a method popular with Hollywood film directors in recent times, the tale follows the interweaving lives of a number of characters, although the book focuses on the interactions and effects of two main ones in particular: Oskar and Eli. Set in the snowy sinkhole suburbs of 1980s Stockholm, Sweden, Eli is a two hundred year old vampire trapped for all eternity in the child's body she was 'changed' in. Oskar is a shy and timid 12 year old mommy's boy, bullied at school, with a morbid interest in serial killers. Eli moves in next door to Oskar with a man posing as her father. In reality the man is her servant...a servant of darkness mwahahahahaha!!!!!! Despite her age Eli remains a child at heart and when she and Oskar meet one night the pair gladly leaves their desperate loneliness behind them to become friends. As the pair's friendship blossoms, a spate of 'ritual' killings rock the suburbs, the victims looking slightly anaemic to put it mildly...but the killer might not be who you think...The film has been described as a modern day fairy tale ...You may think this an odd description for a vampire movie but it sort of fits. The same label applies to the book. There is something about the cold, snowy dreamlike setting, the innocence of childhood and the blooming friendship against the odds that lends this story a fairy tale quality. It really is different.

I like Scandinavian films and literature. They put me in mind of warm fires, thick coats and snowy vistas. I know what you're thinking...we've had enough of our own snow and Scandinavian style weather these past few weeks to last a lifetime...and yes...you're absolutely right...but forget the book's wintry setting...these pages encapsulate romance and emanate the heart (and snow) melting warmth of the purest of innocent friendships, and despite the tale's chilling nature, will leave you glowing with satisfaction for having read something truly special. Enjoy.

John Ajvide Lindqvist's debut novel is the internationally-renowned Let The Right One In, the inspiration for the Swedish film of the same name and the American film, Let Me In. The story follows the friendship between Oskar and Eli - a 12 year-old boy and a 200 year-old vampire.

Let the Right One In : Paperback : Quercus Publishing : 9781847248480 : : 22 Jan 2009 : The phenomenal novel that changed the landscape of horror writing, and became a hit film and stage play