Two questions regarding the story...

[kesshikidouwa]

Hey, I'm new here... I'm sure this has been discussed before but I was just wondering if anybody could share their thoughts / theories on the following two things which have always confused me:

How can Eli be starving if he sleeps in a bath full of blood?

If Eli has so much money why doesn't he just pay for all his blood from several different donors instead of killing?

[a_contemplative_life]

I'll venture a reply...

I am not sure the bathtub full of blood thing was a very good fit with the dialogue that went on earlier about Eli's need for blood. The only thing I can think of is that clear plastic jugs or bags are described as being on the floor, suggesting that the blood might have been stolen from a blood bank somewhere--which might suggest that the blood wasn't really fresh enough for Eli to consume, but served some other beneficial purpose (e.g., healing her burnt skin).

JAL said somewhere that he read 'Carmilla' by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu before writing LTROI. In Carmilla, the vampire, when finally found, is discovered lying in a crypt or stone enclosure bathed in blood. So maybe he was inspired by this passage.

As for the other question--I think Eli is fearful that if he buys blood from too many donors, his secret will be discovered. On the other hand, if people like Hakan can be persuaded to go out and collect blood for him, it would reduce the risk that his vampirism will be revealed.

[varamiglite]

Hey, I'm new here... I'm sure this has been discussed before but I was just wondering if anybody could share their thoughts / theories on the following two things which have always confused me:

How can Eli be starving if he sleeps in a bath full of blood?

If Eli has so much money why doesn't he just pay for all his blood from several different donors instead of killing?

For the first question I really don't have an answer. I wondered the same thing.

For the second I think it's because he can't buy very much blood from people, only enough to sustain for a little while. His existence requires him to kill, there are no easy answers. His source of money is kind of a paradox since he steals it from his victims. Without her victims she wouldn't have any money.

All in all they're just parts of the story. The story would be rather boring if she just bought blood. She has to be brutal, she has to be a murderer. The event where she bought blood from Tommy was basically the same as buying a snack out of a vending machine as opposed to eating a real meal. I think it also has to exist to complement Oskar's dark side, albeit hers is darker. Oskar fantasizes about killing and how glorious it would be, Eli actually does kill and shows just how awful it really is. The two characters play off of each other, basically like "dark and darker." Between the two's darkness light is found. Does that make any sense?

Oh and welcome to the infected! Enjoy your stay!

[Nightrider]

LTROI appears to be a mix of different vampire legends. One of the things that might have inspired the author could have been 1971 Hammer production of "Countess Dracula". In the movie Countess Elisabeth played by late Ingrid Pitt, bathes in fresh blood of female victims in order to stay young.
It was a pretty ordinary film, but highly influential nevertheless.
Vitaly

[sauvin]

LTROI appears to be a mix of different vampire legends. One of the things that might have inspired the author could have been 1971 Hammer production of "Countess Dracula". In the movie Countess Elisabeth played by late Ingrid Pitt, bathes in fresh blood of female victims in order to stay young.
It was a pretty ordinary film, but highly influential nevertheless.
Vitaly

Or even by the reality of the Blood Countess.

[Swaefheard]

... might suggest that the blood wasn't really fresh enough for Eli to consume, but served some other beneficial purpose (e.g., healing her burnt skin).

Sleeping in blood is a rather unsatisfactory element, probably best overlooked!
I'm not sure that the blood in the bath was for healing purposes. I seem to recall from the book that Oskar saw open wounds on Eli's back, caused by zombie Håkan, when she leapt from the bath to deal with Lacke. Following Lacke's demise, Eli showered and Oskar saw the wounds had healed. I read that as meaning that Eli needs to drink fresh blood (from Lacke on this occasion) to be able to heal.
Further evidence that fresh blood is required to enable healing comes elsewhere in the novel.
We had seen earlier that Eli's hair and skin were good again after she fed on Jocke.
Oskar thought that Eli looked unhealthy with white strands in her hair at the candy store but when she flew to Oskar after nomming on the woman with cancer she looked healthy again.

[metoo]

... might suggest that the blood wasn't really fresh enough for Eli to consume, but served some other beneficial purpose (e.g., healing her burnt skin).

Sleeping in blood is a rather unsatisfactory element, probably best overlooked!

I agree, and I gather that JAL himself is rather hesitant about that element, too, from what he says in the director's comments on the DVD. The blood bath, in my opinion, just isn't integrated into the story. For instance, there is the issue of Eli washing himself. He walks out of the bathroom, smelling of soap. How did he wash?

Anyway, If we want to keep the blood-filed tub, we know that Håkan killed three times; he could at most have collected ten litres of human blood, much too little to cover even skinny Eli in a bathtub. Eli didn't bring it himself before meeting Håkan, his belongings consisted of three boxes, as is apparent from when he contemplates leaving, finding a new helper, and not wanting to. Furthermore, the mover would have noticed the jugs, so the blood most likely was acquired after moving to Blackeberg, plausibly by Håkan. We could decide it was animal blood, since it wasn't for feeding, just for resting in. I guess animal blood can be purchased, dishes like black pudding require blood as an ingredient, and some people might want to make their own. Still, it would be awkward for Håkan to obtain and carry home about 200 litres of blood.

[a_contemplative_life]

This is slightly OT, but why do some vamps carry around their native soil in their coffins?

[Nightrider]

LTROI appears to be a mix of different vampire legends. One of the things that might have inspired the author could have been 1971 Hammer production of "Countess Dracula". In the movie Countess Elisabeth played by late Ingrid Pitt, bathes in fresh blood of female victims in order to stay young.
It was a pretty ordinary film, but highly influential nevertheless.
Vitaly

Or even by the reality of the Blood Countess.

That's what "Countess Dracula" was based on.

[drakkar]

I agree, and I gather that JAL himself is rather hesitant about that element, too, from what he says in the director's comments on the DVD. The blood bath, in my opinion, just isn't integrated into the story. For instance, there is the issue of Eli washing himself. He walks out of the bathroom, smelling of soap. How did he wash?

I guess John just wanted to include a homage to "Carmilla"; he also did that with Dante's Divine Comedy (in DC the three parts, hell, purgatory and heaven, end with the word "stars", and so do three of for chapters in LTROI).
Anyway, John didn't anticipate that his "mere" horror story was going to be analysed up and down as if it was the bible. I guess it is a matter of time until the first PhD on his work is published.

This is slightly OT, but why do some vamps carry around their native soil in their coffins?

And why do trolls smell Christian blood?