well, i din't knew this book scared me until i realized i've been having nightmares the whole week i've been reading it. one word to describe this book: GORE.i was looking for a copy of let the right one in when i saw this book being auctioned online. lucky me, not a lot of people in our place (country?) know lindqvist that much and i'm the only bidder.the start of the story is interesting and yes, disturbing, shows so much promise. alas! but when teresa's plotline was introduced, it became sublime. i think teres' plot if expanded on her own is terrifying, teresa's? hmp. Back when the movie came out, I felt a serious need to pick up LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and read it. I had a kind of clunky translation, but I really enjoyed the story that John Ajvide Lindqvist told. He took the vampire story and shot new life into it, and while I wasn't terribly compelled by the story HANDLING THE UNDEAD, I did think that he was very original, and so didn't write him off completely. Fast forward to this summer, when I was recommended LITTLE STAR in my Reader's Advisory class through an exercise. I immediately placed it on my reading list, and picked it up for my horror project in school. And boy was that the right decision, because it is a very good example of visceral horror. Aka, graphic as hell and willing to rub your nose in it. No matter how uncomfortable the reader is. Aka, a genre that is not for everyone.A baby is found abandoned in the woods. Her adoptive parents, two former singing stars, name her Theres and keep her in the basement of their home and hone her musical talents. Because right from birth she can mimic notes, has perfect pitch, and seems built to sing in the most beautiful way. Though her emotional self is far from developed, and though she is definitely strange, her parents hope that she will follow in their footsteps as she grows and helps repair their broken marriage. But after a horrific act of violence, Theres' brother Jerry takes her to Stockholm, thinking that she could be the next big thing in music. He enters her in a TV singing competition. And while she's performing, another girl named Teresa, who never fit in, sees her, and is immediately captivated. This strange and deep connection that they end up sharing lights the fuse of violence and depravity that crescendos beyond what anyone else could have guessed.I'm purposely being vague because I feel like this story needs to be vague for the reader going in. It's really hard to describe this story outside of being HEAVENLY CREATURES meets torture porn. Normally I'm not big on the torture porn genre, especially in movies. But the good thing about this book was that the two girls were interesting enough and propelled the story enough that it didn't make me want to put it down for too long. That being said, I would NOT recommend this to everyone, nor would I willy nilly just recommend it to a casual horror fan. But to those who like Jack Ketchum, and other really graphic visceral horror? God yes I would tell them to pick up this book. I found some of the violence very hard to take, and I found some of the mystery frustrating. Lindqvist didn't really feel a need to explain everything, and while I get that ultimately Theres' true origin doesn't matter that much, I would have liked a little more explanation. I did love all of the musical references within the book, though, finding all of them eerily appropriate. THough I will probably never look at the song 'Thank You For The Music' the same way again. And seeing as I really like HEAVENLY CREATURES quite a bit, the homage, even if not deliberate in nature, made it very worthwhile. The relationship between Theres and Teresa was both amazing and horrifying, which to me was a testament to Lindqvist's writing skills. Bravo.I think that there is a reason I don't dive into visceral horror that much, but LITTLE STAR had enough psychologically creepy stuff to make it a worthwhile read. I can't stress it enough, it is not for everyone. If you can't handle gratuitous violence, do not pick up LITTLE STAR. If you can, I would definitely give this one a shot. The Scandinavians are coming for horror, and that excites me.
What do You think about Wolfskinder (2010)?
Let the Right One In was much better, but this is still eerie and engaging.
—tyqa
Shocking but realistic exploration of the nature of evil.
—nIOCK
A must read for anyone who likes a good horror story.
—Mike
