So I’m kinda reading two books at the same time, which I don’t usually do. I like being able to completely immerse myself in one story and not become confused with trying to keep two different stories straight. I don’t really understand how people can do it. The only reason I am doing it (and will continue to do it for the rest of the semester) is because I am currently enrolled in a class called Vampires in Film and Literature. Now you might find yourself saying “What? What can you get out of a class about vampires?” Quite a lot actually, being an English major. Since the rest of my college career will be compromised of reading and analyzing literature, this class fits in really well. What we do is read vampire literature and watch vampire movies, then analyze them in the context they were created in and see how this has changed over time. Sounds a lot different than you first thought, doesn’t it? It may seem like an easy class where you don’t really do much work, but this is definitely false. This is one of my classes at the moment that requires the most work, since there is a lot of reading and writing that goes along with it. Anyway……this is kind of a long tangent to get into what I am reading. Well, what I just finished reading anyway. For this Vampire class, I just finished reading Salem’s Lot by Stephen King.
Now, I’m not usually a horror fan. I can read horror books, but I don’t really read them that often. Horror movies are just a no. I cannot watch them at all. They creep me out. Books, however, I’m okay with. And this one is the same. I thought at first it might be kind of hard to read, because part of the summary on the back says “Considered one of the most terrifying vampire novels ever written…” Based on that, this isn’t really something that I would pick up to read for fun. I didn’t really know what to expect when I started. However, I was pleasantly surprised as I started getting into the story. I was enjoying it.
So this isn’t a stab at Stephen King. He’s a fantastic writer. But his books never really attracted me because they were supposed to be so terrifying. But this one wasn’t as terrifying as I thought it was going to be. It was more gory than scary, there were some very vivid descriptions of people and vampires getting killed and I don’t particularly enjoy that in a novel. I did find myself sucked into the story though. I wanted to find out what was going to happen to all the main characters in the novel. Were they going to die? Was the vampire going to succeed? It was one of those books that you just want to keep reading in order to know what happens next. Every time you get interrupted and have to put it down, you get disappointed and can’t wait until you can pick it up again. I would say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even though it was read for a class. I would definitely recommend it to any one who is a horror fan. But if you’re not in the mood for something kind of gory and suspense filled, this book isn’t filled. That’s what keeps the story going. Salem’s Lot is a good read that will keep you thinking about it even after you’ve finished reading the book.