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'Salem's Lot Stephen King (a sensible vampire story) #inbetweeny

I was aware 'Salem's Lot (short for Jerusalem's Lot did you know?) was about vampires but that's about it

Whereas most vampire/horror stories can be very far fetched I found this one to be quite sensible, if there can be such a thing as a sensible vampire story. The characters were aware very early on as to the possibility that the strange occurrences were down to the supernatural - everyone has heard of Dracula, or at a push Twilight, so why wouldn't people put two and two together? It was understandable that most people's initial reaction was disbelief and tried to let science and machines explain the suspicious circumstances. Yes there were certain stereotypical moments 'lets split up, what a good idea!' but not enough to make me shout out loud in exasperation plus it was all set against your typical American small town that King just does so well.

The characters were good and plentiful. The reader given subtle reminders as to who was who at the start of each new section. I loved the way King swept around the town effortlessly capturing moment after solid gold moment. The baby's story was heartbreaking, the reveal of the affair was brutal. There was also one beautiful chapter, only two pages in length, simply about the changing of the seasons - it's one of the best pieces of writing I have read in a long time and actually made me stop and think 'wow'.

I really liked Mark and found it such a difference to have a strong child character in an adult book. I also liked Mike although thought his ending was somewhat of a let down. I was disappointed by the lack of females by the end of the book - the 'human team' consisted of 4 men and a boy (there's a film in there somewhere) with the woman (who were not child beaters or adulterers) being disposed of too early without much fight.

I wasn't sure about the ending. I didn't mind the Tookers bar section but what was the Booth connection? The man Ben was fascinated by wasn't a Booth was he? I also didn't like the deleted scenes section - it felt very like a movie and didn't really add anything for me. Was this included with every version of just my particular copy?

And what are we supposed to think happened to the vampires at the Lot both before the man and the boy return and after? The vampires took over the town so quickly, did they then just not bother to feed from anyone other than a random hitchhiker and a few stray sheep?

What happened to Callahan? And what happened to the man and boy (trying, and failing, not to give too much away). It's a curosity rather than a critism.

I will say I wasn't scared (maybe that's just me as I don't think I've ever read a book that has scared me), but as an example of King's storytelling it was fantastic. I could honestly read his musings about life all day without there ever needing to be such thing as a plot driving the story forward.

It's staying on my shelf




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