"Don't let them in. Once they're inside they have more potential to hurt you. Comfort yourself. You can live with the anguish as long as it only involves yourself. As long as there is no hope." Initial Thoughts "Always read the book first" or so the saying goes. Well I'm breaking one of the golden rules of literature by reading this one...John Ajvide Lindqvist's Let The Right One In. A novel that has had not one, but two adaptations that I've managed to watch. The original, and in my opinion superior, Swedish version and a surprisingly good American remake (Let Me In). Something I really liked was that despite having a romance element it still managed to maintain a level of gritty realism and moments of chilling horror. Every time I hear mention of love and vampires I get those horrible flashbacks of Twilight that I just can't erase from my mind despite the hundreds spent on therapy! But glad to say that Let The Right One In was nothing like that. So after seeing both movies I've got to admit I've been putting this one off. For me it usually ruins the reading experience when you know exactly what's going to happen in a story. Fingers crossed there's still a few surprises left in store for me. The Story 
The story follows Oskar through the the frozen streets of Blackberg in Sweden. The twelve year old boy cuts a lonely figure. Mercilessly bullied at school and without any real friends he dreams of one day getting revenge on those that target him in the school playgrounds. It looks like he's headed down a very dark path.
"They could give a number of reasons for why they had to torment him; he was too fat, too ugly, too disgusting. But the real problem was simply he existed, and every reminder of his existence was a crime."
Things are about to change for young Oskar however, when he meets a strange young girl called Eli outside his rundown apartment. The pair share a bond, in that they are both lonely, and a friendship starts to bloom. But something is just not quite right about her. Outside in her bare feet in the freezing snow, she barely feels the cold, and is as agile as a cat. But when you're a lonely boy and a good-looking girl is interested then you can certainly look past these things.
Over the course of the novel Eli's story is slowly revealed and you probably know which way it's headed but just in case you don't I'm keeping my big mouth shut on this occasion. If you've seen the movie, there's way more in store for you here as they cut an absolute coffin load of stuff out and changed a lot of things.
The Writing
I'm happy to say that Lindqvist departs from the modern vampire script of sickening romance aimed at the teenage audience and instead gives us something gritty and pretty frightening. The backdrop of working-class Stockholm is grim and cold. Perfect for this narrative as the environment contrasts starkly with the budding friendship between Oskar and Eli, which provides moments of real beauty.
But fear not, there is a fair amount of blood and gore contained in these pages with a constantly mounting sense of dread simmering beneath the surface.
"One thought kept going through his head like a stubborn guitar riff. Dead is dead. Dead is dead. Dead is dead."
There's always a chance that books that weren't originally written in the English language will loose something in translation. But there's none of that here. The writing flows and is extremely readable that helps to create an fantastic atmosphere. I really got a sense of the isolation and harshness that inhabits the location in winter. You really do feel it and I'd recommend this as a perfect read for the frozen months.
I've got to say that although the supernatural aspect of the novel is provided by a Vampire, the most horrific aspects were for me of a human nature. Not going to spoil things by going into it, but the author really pushes the boundaries with some very dark issues. It goes much further than the movie that's for sure, so be warned.
The Characters
Let the Right One In, at its heart, is less about vampires and more about two lonely souls from very different worlds who find solace and friendship in one another. Oskar is isolated by the constant bullying and Eli struggles to find her place in the world. Their relationship is truly fascinating and of course the book delves further than the movie. Through each other they find something special and there's moments that really touched my dark soul. Just don't tell anyone.
The author works some real magic here by making a vampire a sympathetic character while still maintaining the truly dark aspects. Like I said, were not delving into the realm of twilight here so fear not. It's reminiscent of what Mary Shelley achieved in Frankenstein and I defy anyone who says they don't feel at least a shred of empathy for the vamp.
The rest of the supporting cast comprises Hakan, a seedy man in a raincoat who looks after Eli, a group of older alcoholics who meet at a local bar and a local teenager. The majority of these are absent from the movie so there's a whole host of plotlines that were completely new to me. All of them are realistic with visible flaws as they've not been put through the Hollywood glamour lense. It's hard to say any of them were likeable but all were intriguing.
The narrative does cut between them, and this may be a bit much for some readers, but I've got to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Anyway, Lindqvist succeeds in pulling them all together at the end to produce a cohesive conclusion, which I'm sure you'll enjoy.
Final Thoughts
Let the Right One In is a vampire story like no other. So if you think you've had as much as you can stand of these creatures of the night, then think again. This is not Hollywood and you're not going to find a moody teenage heartthrob inhabiting these pages. This is dark and gritty stuff but still contains a lot of heart to drive a stake through. Different from any other vampire story I've read and for me succeeds in all the aspects where Twilight failed. It balances scenes of chilling horror with a tale of heartwarming friendship in convincing fashion. So all the stars for this baby!
And for those who have seen either of the two movies, I'd still urge you to give this a go. You're getting so much more and the feel is very different. In fact, this is one instant where I'd be tempted to watch the movie first. That way you won't be disappointed and the book will fill in the blanks left in the film as it provides a whole lot of backstory.
And just so you know, I would recommend the original Swedish movie before the remake. It definitely has more going for it. But if you're not a fan of subtitles then the American remake ain't bad either.
Before I go, I just discovered there's a connected short story to Let the Right One In that provides a bit of an epilogue. It's called Let the Old Dreams Die and it's supposed to be really good. So now to track that down! And if anyone has any recommendations for other stuff by this author leave me a comment.
Thanks for reading and...cheers!
