Let The Right One In

Let The Right One In (it's non-translated title being Låt den rätte komma), a thriller story written by John Ajvide Lindqvist is a story that develops from the bullying of a young boy called Oskar to the stories of about five different characters all living in the same town who are affected by the hauntingly dark events that occur within the novel, with some minor characters giving their views along the way. The story is mainly about Oskar and his friend Eli, who he believes to be a vampire. However, it is nothing like the common vampire stories of late and feels more like an Anne Rice story more than anything.

The main plot of the novel revolves around twelve-year old Oskar and his new friend, Eli. Oskar doesn't fit in very well at school and is bullied and teased by a group of boys in his grade who enjoy in tormenting him. Oskar has grown used to the routine of going to school, being bullied and then going back home each day to relieve the tension and anger the boys have caused him to feel and often unleashes this on a tree near his house with a somewhat blunt blade. He implicates different measures for himself so he isn't teased anymore than usual and so his mother doesn't know what happens each day as well.

One night, while furiously hacking up a tree, he spots another child in the nearby sandbox. He quickly hides the knife he was using to hack up the tree and begins to start a conversation with her. Immediately, she tells him they can't be friends and he laughs it off. He then notices her clothing and, as it is a cold night, asks if she feels cold. She replies no, and when he questions why she replies with, "I've forgotten how to", leaving him with more questions than answers.

Eli is very different from the stereotypical vampire and doesn't quite understand what she is. The reader can pick up on this very early when she denies being one when Oskar asks her about it. Her story continues transcending until some very dark secrets about her and her past are revealed, leaving the reader shocked and feeling highly sympathetic for Eli.

The two soon develop a friendship and she begins to tell him to stick up for himself and fight back against the bullies. He's unsure at first, but eventually does attempt to. This, however, leaves him to walk on thin ice, both figuratively and theoretically speaking, and the bullying he gets from the group of boys turns into traumatizing abuse.

The other stories within the novel revolve around the strange murders happening within the area and how it affects the victim's friends, as well as Eli's past and some information about her "father", however this does not throw the reader off at anytime within the story and it doesn't become a jumbled mess. Instead, at the end of the novel all the stories come together to form one very intriguing ending.

This story was a very interesting read and certainly not a story for the faint-hearted. The main themes within it are murder mystery, science fiction, as well as some slight gore. If you liked books such as Interview with the Vampire, you are bound to love this story.

The move rendition of Let The Right One In took out top Honor's at the Tribeca film festival 2008, as well as highly remarkable reviews, one review describing the author as "Sweden's Stephen King".

My rating is a 4/5.