Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #57856 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Synopsis
Stunning, cutting-edge thriller with a chilling supernatural twist from Japan's stylish new literary star, the acclaimed author of Ring. Pathologist Ando is at a low point in his life. His small son's death from drowning has resulted in the break-up of his marriage and he is suffering from traumatic recurrent nightmares. Work is his only escape, and his depressing world of loneliness and regret is shaken up when an old rival from medical school, Ryuji Takayama, turns up on his slab ready to be dissected. Through Ryuji's bizarre demise Ando learns of a series of mysterious deaths that seem to have been caused by a sinister virus. From beyond the grave Ryuji appears to be leading Ando towards a suspicious videotape -- could this hold the answer to the riddle of the strange deaths? Or is it merely the first clue? When Ando meets Mai, an attractive former student of Ryuji's, his desire to solve the puzzle transcends curiosity and becomes a matter of life or death. Spiral is the stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Ring, and can also be read as a standalone.

Customer Reviews

Subtle with occasional moments
spiral, although a direct continuation of Ring, requires no knowledge of the previous book. Those who have seen Ring, or it's subsequent prequel/sequels should understand that their conversion to the screen required the content to undergo severe changes. spiral is a slow-burner. It meanders along with almost no supernatural elements, and no scenes of horror. It is a suspense story, weaving high-brow medical drama and amateur detective work with a supernatural edge. Although the story ramps up the tension near the end, it never delivers any horror, although the revelations are indeed well plotted. What spiral does deliver, is an interesting set of answers posed by The Ring. It's an interesting sequel, worth reading, but ensure you begin understanding it is a supernatural drama rather than a horror story.

Into the Spiral
Koji Suzuku's "The Ring" chilled countless readers, with its story of a cursed videotape which kills whoever sees it. But he wasn't quite able to capture lightning in a bottle with "Spiral," which takes away a large part of the visceral horror before giving readers a new kind.

It begins where "Ring" left off, shortly after Ryuji dies. The coroner is his pal Ando, who is deeply disturbed when he finds a bit of paper stuck in Ryuji's torso -- with the coded word "Ring." He's understandably intrigued, and begins exploring the details of the virus-like spread of the curse, and the ghostly Sadako.

He also meets Mai, Ryuji's girlfriend. But soon Mai vanishes -- and then turns up dead. Even stranger, Ando finds that Mai saw the videotape and recently gave birth, but she was not pregnant the previous week. And soon he finds out that the Ring virus has entered its most lethal mutation: the rebirth of the undead Sadako.

One of the trickiest things in horror literature is explain what makes it horrifying. Like an autopsy, Suzuki opens up the Ring virus and tells us what caused it and how it works on the body. It's fascinating. But it also saps away almost all the horror, to have the curse explained in such clinical terms.

About halfway through "Spiral," Suzuki seems to realize that he's losing the "horror" plot. So he then includes strange scurrying creatures, mind control, and the rebirth of Sadako. And as with "Ring," Suzuki gives you the feeling that the apocalypse is about to hit -- it seems that it's just a matter of time until Sadako wins.

Suzuki has both a good grasp of scientific horror and visceral creepiness. First he unravels the bizarre disease that causes the "curse," then reveals the horrific effects of certain people watching the videotape. It's a credit to Suzuki's writing that it can be this good, considering how stilted the translation can be.

Ando is a likable, if deeply flawed character. He's mourning the loss of his son and his marriage, and that gives him a pathos that many of Suzuki's other characters lack. Suzuki also uses him to revisit the question: Would you sacrifice the world's safety, if it saved the people you love? Since Suzuki is a father and child-care expert, he knows how many people would react.

"Spiral" continues the story of the Ring virus and Sadako, but the first half is horror-and-suspense-free. But the last half brings back the dark, clammy punch of Suzuki's best.