Salem's Lot

Verhalen

• 'Salem's Lot (1975): Stephen King
• One for the Road (1977): Stephen King
• Jerusalem's Lot (1978): Stephen King

Inhoud

At last Stephen King's classic bestseller is available as the author originally envisaged it, complete with fifty pages of alternate and deleted scenes. With a new introduction by the author, two short stories related to the events and residents of Jerusalem's Lot, the lavishly creepy photographs of Jerry Uelsmann, and a stunning new page design, this edition of Stephen King's second novel, first published in 1975, brings the terrifying story to life in words and pictures as never before.

`Turn off the television - in fact, why don't you turn off all the lights except for the one over your favourite chair? - and we'll talk about vampires here in the dim. I think I can make you believe in them.' Stephen King, from the introduction

'Salem's Lot is a small New England town. Like so many others it contains 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. And soon surprise will turn to bewilderment, bewilderment to confusion and finally to terror...

A must-have for all Stephen King's existing fans and a must-read for newcomers, 'SALEM'S LOT: Illustrated Edition, with the inclusion of material from King's archive, is destined to become a classic in its own right. No library will be complete without the ideal collector's item for any King aficionado, the definitive illustrated edition of the great 'SALEM'S LOT.

Bespreking

A decent classic vampire yarn

When Ben Mears, a successful writer, returns to his hometown of Salem's Lot, he has on only one mission: to finally deal with the monster of his youth. As a teenager he entered the abandoned Marsten House on a dare and was confronted with the spirit of Hubert Marsten, a '30s gangster who committed suicide in that same house. By writing a novel about this doomed place, Ben hopes to finally get rid of the images that haunt his dreams. He plans to stay in the Marsten House, but is surprised to find that it has been sold. Unbeknownst to Ben the new owner has a strong link with the monster of his nightmares.

Not only is 'Salem's Lot an extensive tribute to Dracula, one of greatest classic horror novels ever written, it is on its own also a decently structured yarn that has all the aspects of a classic. But this part of the homage is at the same time also its weakest point. At no point does the story offer any significant surprise or twist. It is all set-up according to a format that was innovative in Bram Stoker's era, but has lost much of its potency in our modern times. As such, the reader is able to simply predict the denouement based upon the number of pages that follows. At the same time I am afraid that people that are unfamiliar with the original Dracula might miss quite some of the poignant tongue-in-cheek humour that King has added in abundance to the story. Nevertheless 'Salem's Lot has all the characteristics of an enjoyable vampire story.