I am re-reading Salem's Lot now after many, many years. Last time I read it was as a middle-schooler a few months after the 1979 miniseries came out. I am really enjoying the mood of it and I think I am picking up a lot more this time than I did as a kid.
One thing that makes me wonder is why Straker and Barlow even bothered to include Barlow's name in their dealings with the public. Barlow never interacted with anyone in town except when he was attacking them. He just slept in his coffin all day and came out to drink blood and infect the townspeople at night.
Why didn't Barlow just put all their finances and business dealings under Straker's name and pretend Straker ran the whole show? Seems to me Barlow's constant absence "on business trips" raised more curiosity and speculation than just one older man opening an antique shop alone would have. There was no need to mention Barlow at all. Straker could have just moved in and started up the business and let Barlow out to feed without anyone knowing his name or that they were partners. Openly advertising his name when he would never be seen by anyone in day-to-day circumstances seemed like a risk that B & S would not realistically have taken.
The only logical explanation I can think of is that Barlow was vain and wanted his name out there.
One thing that makes me wonder is why Straker and Barlow even bothered to include Barlow's name in their dealings with the public. Barlow never interacted with anyone in town except when he was attacking them. He just slept in his coffin all day and came out to drink blood and infect the townspeople at night.
Why didn't Barlow just put all their finances and business dealings under Straker's name and pretend Straker ran the whole show? Seems to me Barlow's constant absence "on business trips" raised more curiosity and speculation than just one older man opening an antique shop alone would have. There was no need to mention Barlow at all. Straker could have just moved in and started up the business and let Barlow out to feed without anyone knowing his name or that they were partners. Openly advertising his name when he would never be seen by anyone in day-to-day circumstances seemed like a risk that B & S would not realistically have taken.
The only logical explanation I can think of is that Barlow was vain and wanted his name out there.