This has bothered me for 40 years *spoilers*

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kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
30,011
127,446
Spokane, WA
How did Barlow get into the Petries' house? He would have had to have been invited in at some point or he couldn't have broken in in the book. Did Uncle Stevie and his editors goof, or did the part where we learn who invited Barlow in at some time get edited out?
I don't remember how the scene played out. Did Straker invite him in?
 

Pogonip

Member
Nov 18, 2014
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Well, Straker wasn't there at the time, Mark had already KO'd him and then Barlow ate him. Maybe he was there looking at the house before the Letriez bought it and invited Barlow in then? What say you, Uncle Stevie?
 
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kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
30,011
127,446
Spokane, WA
hmmmm. Don't remember. He could not have just showed up without an invitation?
Vampire's, as a rule, have to be invited in. On a side note, if you want to know what happens to one that isn't invited inside, read 'Let The Right One In' aka 'Let Me In' or watch 'Let Me In' (movie). It's pretty cool!
 

Robert Gray

Well-Known Member
My guess, although due to my move my copy is already in Bangor so I can't check, is that Barlow's campaign of feeding on the town was already well under way by the time he entered that house. We had already seen the Petries dead son in an earlier scene asking to be let in. His brother did not do so but that doesn't mean he hadn't been dining on the parents. The method used by the Lot's vampires was to enter and feed off the living for several nights (to stretch the meal) and said people slowly got weaker until they died.

What this most likely means is that the dead Petrie had already been invited into the house by one (or both) of the parents. By extension, perhaps Barlow can enter any place his minions can enter. He is the King Vampire after all. Of course, I don't recall there being a huge deal being made out of the "invite" part of the legend, at least nothing sticks out boldly in memory. Vampires in the various books by Sai King area often broken into types, and Barlow is most certainly one of the most powerful, i.e. one of the "Grandfathers" as Roland calls them. The strengths and weaknesses of the various types vary widely. The simplest answer, I think, is that the Grandfathers don't need an invitiation.
 

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
87,651
358,754
62
Cambridge, Ohio
My guess, although due to my move my copy is already in Bangor so I can't check, is that Barlow's campaign of feeding on the town was already well under way by the time he entered that house. We had already seen the Petries dead son in an earlier scene asking to be let in. His brother did not do so but that doesn't mean he hadn't been dining on the parents. The method used by the Lot's vampires was to enter and feed off the living for several nights (to stretch the meal) and said people slowly got weaker until they died.

What this most likely means is that the dead Petrie had already been invited into the house by one (or both) of the parents. By extension, perhaps Barlow can enter any place his minions can enter. He is the King Vampire after all. Of course, I don't recall there being a huge deal being made out of the "invite" part of the legend, at least nothing sticks out boldly in memory. Vampires in the various books by Sai King area often broken into types, and Barlow is most certainly one of the most powerful, i.e. one of the "Grandfathers" as Roland calls them. The strengths and weaknesses of the various types vary widely. The simplest answer, I think, is that the Grandfathers don't need an invitiation.
...just as the trappings of faith had no power once the faith had failed....
 

DiO'Bolic

Not completely obtuse
Nov 14, 2013
22,864
129,998
Poconos, PA
Details, details...

th

:)
 

Todash

Free spirit. Curly girl. Cookie eater. Proud SJW.
Aug 19, 2006
8,293
5,621
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Kansas City
It's been a while since I read it, but at the time I believe I assumed that the parents had let him in as they would anyone who knocked at the door. It's not as if vampires have to say "oh hi, I'm a vampire, mind if I come in and kill you?" And then, once in, he was free to do as he pleased.

EDIT: Wait. Now I don't know. I got nothin'.
 
Last edited:

not_nadine

Comfortably Roont
Nov 19, 2011
29,655
139,785
Behind you
My guess, although due to my move my copy is already in Bangor so I can't check, is that Barlow's campaign of feeding on the town was already well under way by the time he entered that house. We had already seen the Petries dead son in an earlier scene asking to be let in. His brother did not do so but that doesn't mean he hadn't been dining on the parents. The method used by the Lot's vampires was to enter and feed off the living for several nights (to stretch the meal) and said people slowly got weaker until they died.

What this most likely means is that the dead Petrie had already been invited into the house by one (or both) of the parents. By extension, perhaps Barlow can enter any place his minions can enter. He is the King Vampire after all. Of course, I don't recall there being a huge deal being made out of the "invite" part of the legend, at least nothing sticks out boldly in memory. Vampires in the various books by Sai King area often broken into types, and Barlow is most certainly one of the most powerful, i.e. one of the "Grandfathers" as Roland calls them. The strengths and weaknesses of the various types vary widely. The simplest answer, I think, is that the Grandfathers don't need an invitiation.

Thank you.
 

Pogonip

Member
Nov 18, 2014
16
74
64
My guess, although due to my move my copy is already in Bangor so I can't check, is that Barlow's campaign of feeding on the town was already well under way by the time he entered that house. We had already seen the Petries dead son in an earlier scene asking to be let in. His brother did not do so but that doesn't mean he hadn't been dining on the parents. The method used by the Lot's vampires was to enter and feed off the living for several nights (to stretch the meal) and said people slowly got weaker until they died.

What this most likely means is that the dead Petrie had already been invited into the house by one (or both) of the parents. By extension, perhaps Barlow can enter any place his minions can enter. He is the King Vampire after all. Of course, I don't recall there being a huge deal being made out of the "invite" part of the legend, at least nothing sticks out boldly in memory. Vampires in the various books by Sai King area often broken into types, and Barlow is most certainly one of the most powerful, i.e. one of the "Grandfathers" as Roland calls them. The strengths and weaknesses of the various types vary widely. The simplest answer, I think, is that the Grandfathers don't need an invitiation.
I don't know about that--Dracula has to be invited--but the idea that if one of Barlow's minions gets invited in, the invitation extends to him, makes sense. Thanks!
 

kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
30,011
127,446
Spokane, WA
My guess, although due to my move my copy is already in Bangor so I can't check, is that Barlow's campaign of feeding on the town was already well under way by the time he entered that house. We had already seen the Petries dead son in an earlier scene asking to be let in. His brother did not do so but that doesn't mean he hadn't been dining on the parents. The method used by the Lot's vampires was to enter and feed off the living for several nights (to stretch the meal) and said people slowly got weaker until they died.

What this most likely means is that the dead Petrie had already been invited into the house by one (or both) of the parents. By extension, perhaps Barlow can enter any place his minions can enter. He is the King Vampire after all. Of course, I don't recall there being a huge deal being made out of the "invite" part of the legend, at least nothing sticks out boldly in memory. Vampires in the various books by Sai King area often broken into types, and Barlow is most certainly one of the most powerful, i.e. one of the "Grandfathers" as Roland calls them. The strengths and weaknesses of the various types vary widely. The simplest answer, I think, is that the Grandfathers don't need an invitiation.
You're mixing up the Petrie's with the Glick's. One of the Glick boys was outside of Mark's window, but Mark grabbed the cross to ward him off. So, the question is still out there: How did Barlow gain access to their house?