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19 April 2015
Title
| Salem's Lot |
Author
| Stephen King |
Publisher
| Hodder & Stoughton |
Publication Date
|
1975
|
Pages
| 768 |
Genre
| Vampire, Horror |
Description on Amazon
Salem's Lot is a small New England town with the usual quota of gossips, drinkers, weirdos and respectable folk. Of course there are tales of strange happenings - but not more than in any other town its size.
Ben Mears, a moderately successful writer, returns to the Lot to write a novel based on his early years, and to exorcise the terrors that have haunted him since childhood. The event he witnessed in the house now rented by a new resident. A newcomer with a strange allure. A man who causes Ben some unease as things start to happen: a child disappears, a dog is brutally killed - nothing unusual, except the list starts to grow.
Soon surprise will turn to bewilderment, bewilderment to confusion and finally to terror . . .
My review
I remember reading his many years ago (when I first discovered King). I am slowly re-reading most of them and what it treat this is.
This is one of King's very early books and now considered a classic vampire story. In fact, I would say it is good old-fashioned vampire yarn in King style which we have now grown used to and love so much: small new England town, a host of different characters -usually a writer amongst them. King himself said (according to Wikipedia) that this is his favourite book. While it is maybe not my favourite King, I certainly enjoyed it very much, being one of his earlier works. . Re-reading it now in 2015, it was also nice to read about a world where there is no internet, no Netflix - just a town and people. Research is still done by getting books from the library and books are written on typewriters. And as a bit of a King connoisseur, I can also see his writing style emerging. The writer in me noticed the setting with prologue, epilogue and the emerging of the main story - not a single page wasted.
Clearly influenced by Bram Stoker's Dracula, it may be a good book to get you started on classic vampire - before they were all cute and fell in love with the pretty girls. So, if you are from the younger generation, give this one a try. If you are new to King, this is a very good introduction. Horror? yes, but no spilled guts kind of horror. Supernatural - yes, but as always, set in a normal town with townsfolk going about their business. This is what King does best.
