Let the Right One in

"Let the Right One In" is essentially a horror book combined with a Scandinavian thriller. And if you've ever read one of those, you know how bleak they can be, with this one no exception. This book is one of the bleakest and, strangely, most realistic vampire stories I've ever come across.

The rules of vampirism that Lindqvist decided on are on the strict side of the spectrum, and he handwaves nothing to make Eli fit better into society, like many other vampire media does in order to tell the story they want to tell. No fake blood substitutes, no constantly cloudy skies, not even the idea of vampires as a different, superior species which is so often used to explain why they're not morally conflicted over drinking blood. In fact, in this story, there are very few vampires because most of them end up killing themselves out of guilt. So, there are no grand vampire parallel societies, and the dietary needs of only one - Eli - turn an entire city up on its head as in a short span of time multiple bodies turn up drained of blood.
Even immortality and superpowers don't really seem to weigh up against the deeply lonely and fearful life this results in for Eli, who is forced to ally herself with a pedophile in order to keep up enough of a facade of normalcy to avoid detection.

It's this bleakness, however, that makes the relationship between Oskar and Eli so touching. They're both lonely, abused, ashamed of their bodies and linked with violence - Eli is violent to survive, Oskar is fascinated by it and fantasizes about killing his bullies. They are outcasts and victims, but not innocent. They both have monstrous elements to them. Yet, despite all the horror that surrounds it, and results from it, the love they have for each other, the acceptance they find with each other, is pure and good. Even if it eventually ends up drawing Oskar into the same lonely life of murder and fugitivism as Eli.

"Let the Right One In" is essentially a horror book combined with a Scandinavian thriller. And if you've ever read one of those, you know how bleak they can be, with this one no exception. This book is one of the bleakest and, strangely, most realistic vampire stories I've ever come across.

The rules of vampirism that Lindqvist decided on are on the strict side of the spectrum, and he handwaves nothing to make Eli fit better into society, like many other vampire media does in order to tell the story they want to tell. No fake blood substitutes, no constantly cloudy skies, not even the idea of vampires as a different, superior species which is so often used to explain why they're not morally conflicted over drinking blood. In fact, in this story, there are very few vampires because most of them end up killing themselves out of guilt. So, there are no grand vampire parallel societies, and the dietary needs of only one - Eli - turn an entire city up on its head as in a short span of time multiple bodies turn up drained of blood.
Even immortality and superpowers don't really seem to weigh up against the deeply lonely and fearful life this results in for Eli, who is forced to ally herself with a pedophile in order to keep up enough of a facade of normalcy to avoid detection.

It's this bleakness, however, that makes the relationship between Oskar and Eli so touching. They're both lonely, abused, ashamed of their bodies and linked with violence - Eli is violent to survive, Oskar is fascinated by it and fantasizes about killing his bullies. They are outcasts and victims, but not innocent. They both have monstrous elements to them. Yet, despite all the horror that surrounds it, and results from it, the love they have for each other, the acceptance they find with each other, is pure and good. Even if it eventually ends up drawing Oskar into the same lonely life of murder and fugitivism as Eli.

Like many of us, I had watched the highly acclaimed Swedish 2008 film and ignored Hollywood’s perplexing attempt to make a westernised version but, despite having the John Lindqvist book on my shelves for the past decade, and never quite got round to reading the original. Which is a pity, as the novel is a real treat and goes deeper and further than the film.

The first thing that strikes me about Lindqvist’s novel is its clear sense of space and location. This is a story that, in many ways, is first and foremost about a specific place and time in a particularly destitute part of Sweden. One reading of the novel could be that all the horror and supernatural elements of the story are a metaphor for the rotten core at the heart of this community, and read in such a way, the novel remains deeply uncomfortable. Regardless of the vampire’s presence in the story, we are presented with countless people all of whom are beyond hope. One no-hoper, walking home drunk, comes up with a plan to turn his life around. He’ll go travelling; do what he’s always wanted to do. But we know he’ll never do it. He’ll wake up and find either that world won’t bend to his wishes or he doesn’t have the will to do the bending. His death when Eli takes him merely takes away the false hope.

The characters in this novel are generally unlikeable, or at least deeply flawed. It’s something to be said of Lindqvist’s style in that Eli is by far the most likeable character in the book, and Eli is a ruthless, pragmatic killer. Yet none of the other characters are irredeemable. Oskar, Tommy and Lacke all gain our sympathy, our pity, but all three stop short of being pleasant. Just when we think we should be entirely on Oskar’s side, Lindqvist gives us just enough dirt and grime to make us draw away. I feel sorry for Oskar, but I don’t think we could be friends.

And then, even Jimmy even the paedophile, Hakan, have moments to redeem them. Jimmy clearly has a troubled home life - he’s a product of the broken community he grows up in and, just like everyone else there, is damaged beyond repair before the vampire ever enters the scene. And Hakan? He’s selfish and cowardly, exploits young boys and seemingly the motivation for following Eli is his lust for the child-like vampire. Yet, he is also loyal, grateful and has does indeed a moral code and compass of sorts.

Eli, the character around which the novel circles, is fascinating. An enigma and an interesting take on the vampire myth. However, particularly in a modern context, a while after the novel was written and long after it was set, the most notable characteristic is their gender. I use “their” here because the novel refers to them as both a he and a she. Lindqvist appears to grant the authority of the novel to idea that Eli is a he. He was born a boy and, seemingly, still identifies as one. Clearly, as a character who refers to himself as a he, that should be the end of it. Furthermore, there is clearly nothing wrong with someone presenting as female and identifying as male. However, it appears the narrative is taking a “biology is truth” stance. All the evidence points against this. Eli presents as female and has clearly altered their name to a more feminine sounding name. When offered a choice of clothes to wear, Eli chooses the frock. The fact that Eli was both male is interesting, but the insistence in the narrative in changing the pronoun once the “biological truth” is revealed is problematic. That said, it seems likely that Lindqvist is more concerned with addressing the discomfort and confusion surrounding homosexuality with his treatment of Eli and, by extension, Oskar’s feelings for him.

Lindqvist tells a tale that continually plays with and undermines your expectations. As a vampire novel, it sits neither in the vampire-as-monster/villain genre, nor in the good/human/remorseful-vampire genre; but manages to walk along both those paths. It’s an uncomfortable novel, with a horrible sense of the inevitable, and an ending that is both powerful and unsatisfactory, and that’s not necessarily a criticism.

Twelve-year-old boy, Oskar is having a hard time with life. While he has a loving mother, his alcoholic father is very absent in his life. At school, Oskar is the constantly being bullied. One day he meets Eli, and a friendship is formed between the two. However Eli is not a normal girl and it is quickly revealed that she is in fact a vampire. Let the Right One In by Swedish writer John Ajvide Lindqvist is a horror novel unlike any other that I have read before.

While Let the Right One In is a gothic horror that explores the unusual relationship between a 12-year-old boy and a vampire, for me this novel was something completely different. I found this to be a book that explores the darker side of humanity; looking at issue of alcoholism, divorce, bullying, abuse, self-mutilation, murder and paedophilia. Think of it more of an existential look at life and the horrors of the world around us.

I do not want to go into too much detail about what to expect when reading this novel. I just enjoyed the way it looked at the way we handle the horrors of the world from the view point of a struggling boy trying to cope with his situation. The relationship between Oskar and Eli is complicated, and unusual. This allows John Ajvide Lindqvist to explore so many interesting issues and push the reader to contemplate more of the world around them.

Most people would be familiar with the plot of this novel by the movie adaptation done in 2008, which was then horribly remade again by Hollywood in 2010 under the name Let Me In. I saw the Swedish version many years ago and felt it to be a brilliant movie but I have not re-watched it since reading the novel. I did however watch the American addition and it made me very angry. I feel like Hollywood is too afraid to deal with the dark side of humanity if it involves a twelve year old boy. Also America has a terrible habit of trying to remake movies that are already brilliant, I understand some people do not want to read subtitles but they do it to movies that are already in English as well. Soon there will also be a TV show based on this novel, which is set to air on A&E later this year.

I am so glad to have read Let the Right One In; I had a great time exploring the world. This is an extremely dark novel and this will not be everyone. I am curious to see what the TV show will be like but I will not be holding my breath. If you are willing to explore the dark side of humanity you will find Let the Right One In to be a compelling and thought provoking novel.

This review originally appeared on my blog; www.knowledgelost.org/literature/book-reviews/genre/horror/let-the-right-one-in-by-john-ajvide-lindqvist

I was really impressed by this book. It's a dark and disturbing tale that is beautifully written. The characters are complex, and the novel manages to capture the essence of human loneliness more effectively than any other book I've read in the last few years. Lindqvist grants none of his characters an easy path, and takes the time to depict each of their hopes and pains. He does not flinch at showing their evils, whether it's careless alcoholism, the savage cruelty of children, or the darkness of Eli, as well as Eli's servant.

Even Oskar, the innocent young protagonist, abused by his cruel classmates, is withdrawn from the world, and has turned dark from the years of bullying. Over that time he has nursed a hatred so pure and violent in intent that it could only come from a child. He practices stabbing trees with his knife and daydreams about killing his young tormentors. Good does come into his life though, in the form of a new friend. Eli a pale, waif of a girl moves into his complex and slowly begins to befriend him, but Eli only comes out at night, and has been 12 years old for a long time.

I'm hesitant to even mention the word vampire here, because of all the literary baggage it comes with, especially in a post Anne Rice, post Laurell K. Hamilton world, where Twilight and True Blood are what people immediately think of when the v-word comes into the conversation. So let me make something clear, this is not a vampire novel, or at least it is not just that. It's a deeply moving story of human loneliness and the darkness that grows from the desperation of any outcast, and therefore a very human story, although many may find the humanity depicted in this novel disturbing.

I actually discovered it by way of the film, which incidentally, is probably the best vampire movie ever made. The book has significantly more scope than the film, as even the minor characters encountered in the movie take on a complete life of their own in the novel. However, there are times when I felt like narrative with particular characters was written primarily in an effort for completeness rather than serving the story. For example, this is a decent amount of time spent learning about Tommy and his family, when he really has very little impact on the story. It's well-written, and great character stuff, but seems like an unnecessary detour from the core of the tale. In fact, that's the only reason I don't give this book 5 stars. The extra stuff is good, but unnecessary, so the story could be tighter, but regardless its an excellent read.