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Spiral ('Ring' series, book 2)
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Review
"Suzuki is called the Stephen King of his country, but that's not really accurate; King isn't nearly as adept at creating complex characters, explaining scientific principles or writing the kind of dialogue that might actually be spoken by humans." - Las Vegas Mercury
"...Suzuki is plowing a path that nobody else has traveled, ..." - Agony Columns
"Suzuki's ambitious trilogy does succeed, and it's hard not to be impressed with his aplomb in turning a straight supernatural horror mystery around into a piece of pure science fiction." - TIMES
“...a unique, alchemical quality... he has demonstrated a miraculous power for transmuting the very common into the very frightening.” -- Rue Morgue“An enduring modern archetype”-- SF Reader
About the Author
Koji Suzuki was born in 1957 in Hamamatsu, southwest of Tokyo. He attended Keio University where he majored in French. After graduating he held numerous odd jobs, including a stint as a cram school teacher. Also a self-described jock, he holds a first-class yachting license and crossed the U.S., from Key West to Los Angeles, on his motorcycle.The father of two daughters, Suzuki is a respected authority on childrearing and has written numerous works on the subject. He acquired his expertise when he was a struggling writer and househusband. Suzuki also has translated a children's book into Japanese, The Little Sod Diaries by the crime novelist Simon Brett.In 1990, Suzuki's first full-length work, Paradise won the Japanese Fantasy Novel Award and launched his career as a fiction writer. Ring, written with a baby on his lap, catapulted him to fame, and the multi-million selling sequels Spiral and Loop cemented his reputation as a world-class talent. Often called the "Stephen King of Japan," Suzuki has played a crucial role in establishing mainstream credentials for horror novels in his country. He is based in Tokyo but loves to travel, often in the United States. Birthday is his sixth novel to appear in English.
18/02/2006
In Spiral, the sequel to Suzuki's Ring, we are to discover that the hoped for (if uncomfortable) resolution e promised at the end of Ring is not to come to pass. Instead we discover that there is a whole layer below Sadako's efforts at vengeance and that a darker and more haunting motive drives the story - one that threatens more than just those who watched the videotape.
Dr. Mitsuo Ando is haunted all deaths seemingly stories that suddenly become something else take us out of our comfort zone. The Japanese seem more adept at accepting this kind of narrative 'mutation,' since the real core of the story, the focus on individuals who must make dark choices is still constant.
I liked Spiral a good deal, once I got over the change of pace. In its way, it is as well written as Ring, although it seems to have fared worse when converted to film. That is a shame, because the book will get less attention than it should as a result.
04/11/2005
Spiral is the 2nd in the series of Ring books. This installment takes place shortly after the first book with a pathologist performing an autopsy on one of the last victims. The story isn't going for the creepy shocks and awes of the first book, but goes a little more into the reason behind it all. The fates of the last books characters are explained. You find out what the ring basically is and how it works in more detail as the story goes on. It has a Michael Crichton feel to it with all the scientific explainations going on over the course of the book. It's not boring or too stuffy by any means it kept my interest enough to finish the book in a few evenings. The story does pick up towards the end and becomes more of the horror story you would expect. With a few comebacks of characters in the first book, there is enough here to keep you wanting to know more about this whole Ring thing. Can't wait to read loop and see how it all ends.
03/06/2004
I almost never read fiction. I'm pretty much hooked on real-life biogrophies and events that really happened. I am however a huge fan of horror films and I heard so much about the original Japanese "Ring" movies (4 in all, all with English subtitles) that I just had to get them on DVD. While I enjoyed the original Japanese "Ringu" movie very much, I really enjoyed best of all the first sequel "Rasen", which I believe translates into "Spiral". It turns out that, unlike the American movie version or "Ring" the first 2 Japanese movies are very faithful to the novels. So as soon as it was translated into English I bought the first "Ring" novel and was hooked. Truly enjoyable. And for us Americans it also gives a bit of a glimpse of what contemporary Japanese life is like, although i'm sure the author never even thought of that while he was creating his works. It's just a nice side-product of the actual story.
"Spiral" I also pre-ordered. And much like the movie "Rasen" it offers a scientific basis for the mystery of how the virus actually works. You can almost believe it the way Mr Suzuki uncovers the scientific basis for the virus.
You also get to find out what happens to the main characters who remained alive at the conclusion of "Ring", so it's recommended to read that one first.
Not at all content to simply rehash the same old story with some new characters who don't know anything about the video and resulting virus, this takes the story to an entirely new level. I was glued to this book and was sad to see it end.
In the back of the hardcover edition it states that next year the 3rd and final book in the series by Mr Suzuki, "Loop" will be published. I have no idea what happens in this one since the 3rd and 4th Japanese movies "Ring 2" (which pretended that "Rasen" never existed) and "Ring 0" no longer followed the novels but simply followed the formula established by "Ringu". I don't think I can wait another year for "Loop" to come out here in the U.S.!
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