Review - Let the Right One In
Let the Right One In, John Avidje Lindqvist.
Let the Right One In is a contemporary Swedish vampire novel; the author is amazing, and the translator is just as talented. I’ve seen references to this as an adult Twilight as far as the development between the two main characters go, although this is not suitable for children. As for teens - well, the parents will have to decide. I want to make it clear that it’s violence, not sex that makes this scream ‘wary around teens, no children, please’. This is, in my opinion, a must read for horror fans; only one out of the three friends and co-workers I’ve suggested this book to have not loved it. (And two out of three ain‘t bad.)
I had to force myself to read the prologue and a couple pages past, and then suddenly I couldn’t put it down and was fifty pages in.
This is a vampire love story; the human is twelve, and the vampire says they have been, “twelve for a very long time.” Oskar is bullied, unhappy, a boy who finds happiness in chocolate and clipping out newspaper articles about killers for his scrapbook.
Things change when a girl moves in next door to him, although not right away.
Spoilers in the longer review.
Let the Right One in works so well because of the two main characters and their development, and the way their relationship develops itself. Both Oskar and Eli are damaged, emotionally so much that they refuse to trust even another outcast initially. Oskar has been horribly bullied, so much so that the trauma manifest physically; he has nosebleeds, and is incontinent. Eli has her own reasons for her distrust - although to give away such reasons would take away from the impact the revelation has so I will not speak of the matter her and ask anyone leaving a comment not to do so either.
While the rest of the cast has their part to play, and while I was intrigued by their stories and how they played out, they all tied to Oskar and Eli. Even the themes that played out in these side stories - loneliness, trauma, family issues, - all were main elements of both Oskar and Eli’s lives. One boy in Oskar’s school has issues with his stepfather, tying into Oskar’s issues with his mostly absent dad; both boys question their fathers, the authority, and the theme of the boys being troubled, and causing trouble by acting out, because their fathers are absent are all played out with both boys.
But really, all the themes are intertwined, each character playing out a part that includes a couple elements, at the very least, that connect them to all the others. The novel doesn't shy away from pedophilia, nor from violence done to children, including, but not limited to, child prostitution. The adult themes and the side stories don't overtake the main story - that of Eli and Oskar.
The romance is slow going, but not painfully slow. Being only twelve, nothing sexual beyond a kiss happens between the two - but the kiss itself, because of Eli's abilities, is not simply a kiss so much as a window into her background. The whole relationship is built on distrust slowly melting into a shaky friendship, and then going further, into ‘like’ then ‘love’. However, the touch-and-go at the beginning, that fragile uncertainty, is the most compelling aspect of their relationship, mostly because it explains just why they come to care about each other so much in so short a time while at the same time making such rapid attachment believable. After all, if it had been love at first sight, no questions asked, it wouldn’t have had the achingly compelling need for company and understanding that both Eli and Oskar show all too clearly.
Also, as a final note, the descriptions of bullying and the trauma prolonged bullying can cause is horrific, not in a typical horror-style. It’s simply so authentic that it made me cringe; from what I’ve read online, the consensus is that this is autobiographical although I have yet to find any quotes from the author to back that up.
The language itself is beautiful, and as mentioned before - it came through the translation extremely well. The book is 500 pages, has occasional gore, and disturbing scenes in the end - particularly one that I don't want to give away because it is a major spoiler. Highly recommended; I was tired of the vampire genre, but this book is amazing. Watch the movie, too - but make sure you get the theatrical subtitles. It's just as good.
Let the Right One In is a contemporary Swedish vampire novel; the author is amazing, and the translator is just as talented. I’ve seen references to this as an adult Twilight as far as the development between the two main characters go, although this is not suitable for children. As for teens - well, the parents will have to decide. I want to make it clear that it’s violence, not sex that makes this scream ‘wary around teens, no children, please’. This is, in my opinion, a must read for horror fans; only one out of the three friends and co-workers I’ve suggested this book to have not loved it. (And two out of three ain‘t bad.)
I had to force myself to read the prologue and a couple pages past, and then suddenly I couldn’t put it down and was fifty pages in.
This is a vampire love story; the human is twelve, and the vampire says they have been, “twelve for a very long time.” Oskar is bullied, unhappy, a boy who finds happiness in chocolate and clipping out newspaper articles about killers for his scrapbook.
Things change when a girl moves in next door to him, although not right away.
Spoilers in the longer review.
Let the Right One in works so well because of the two main characters and their development, and the way their relationship develops itself. Both Oskar and Eli are damaged, emotionally so much that they refuse to trust even another outcast initially. Oskar has been horribly bullied, so much so that the trauma manifest physically; he has nosebleeds, and is incontinent. Eli has her own reasons for her distrust - although to give away such reasons would take away from the impact the revelation has so I will not speak of the matter her and ask anyone leaving a comment not to do so either.
While the rest of the cast has their part to play, and while I was intrigued by their stories and how they played out, they all tied to Oskar and Eli. Even the themes that played out in these side stories - loneliness, trauma, family issues, - all were main elements of both Oskar and Eli’s lives. One boy in Oskar’s school has issues with his stepfather, tying into Oskar’s issues with his mostly absent dad; both boys question their fathers, the authority, and the theme of the boys being troubled, and causing trouble by acting out, because their fathers are absent are all played out with both boys.
But really, all the themes are intertwined, each character playing out a part that includes a couple elements, at the very least, that connect them to all the others. The novel doesn't shy away from pedophilia, nor from violence done to children, including, but not limited to, child prostitution. The adult themes and the side stories don't overtake the main story - that of Eli and Oskar.
The romance is slow going, but not painfully slow. Being only twelve, nothing sexual beyond a kiss happens between the two - but the kiss itself, because of Eli's abilities, is not simply a kiss so much as a window into her background. The whole relationship is built on distrust slowly melting into a shaky friendship, and then going further, into ‘like’ then ‘love’. However, the touch-and-go at the beginning, that fragile uncertainty, is the most compelling aspect of their relationship, mostly because it explains just why they come to care about each other so much in so short a time while at the same time making such rapid attachment believable. After all, if it had been love at first sight, no questions asked, it wouldn’t have had the achingly compelling need for company and understanding that both Eli and Oskar show all too clearly.
Also, as a final note, the descriptions of bullying and the trauma prolonged bullying can cause is horrific, not in a typical horror-style. It’s simply so authentic that it made me cringe; from what I’ve read online, the consensus is that this is autobiographical although I have yet to find any quotes from the author to back that up.
The language itself is beautiful, and as mentioned before - it came through the translation extremely well. The book is 500 pages, has occasional gore, and disturbing scenes in the end - particularly one that I don't want to give away because it is a major spoiler. Highly recommended; I was tired of the vampire genre, but this book is amazing. Watch the movie, too - but make sure you get the theatrical subtitles. It's just as good.