Dust off your VCR, grab that unmarked tape, and press Play. You’re about to get… what’s that?… The tape is extinct? How does a tape go extinct? So is it a DVD now?… No, it’s a… what?!
Spiral (Ring #2)
Author: Koji Suzuki
Translator: Glenn Walley
Pages: 281
Format: Paperback
Published: January 1, 1995
Publisher: Vertical
View on Goodreads
Date Completed: July 16, 2024
My rating: 
Thoughts
I read Ring just over a year ago and gave it 5 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed it even with unlikable characters with atrocious behaviors. Naturally, I had already seen the 2002 US film The Ring, but the book was different enough to keep it somewhat suspenseful. What I remember most about the book was that I didn’t find it all too scary. There was a scene toward the beginning that was creepier than all get out. But otherwise it was more of a thriller/suspense mystery.
In the sequel novel, we pick up pretty much immediately after the events of the first book. However, this one also works as a standalone novel, which is really a pretty amazing feat. A little more than halfway through the book, the author succinctly recaps the entire story of Ring. Even before that, there’s enough context to pick up what happened in the prior book to keep the reader informed.
Here we follow Dr. Ando, a medical examiner who performs an autopsy on his old friend Ryuji Takayama (spoiler alert: he died in the first book). Where the first book didn’t dive too much into what the Ring is, this is like a whodunit. Or even more apropos, it’s like a good medical mystery.
As Ando investigates the mysterious videotape and the apparently related deaths, he makes wild discoveries that are grounded in both science and the paranormal. I’m not going to spoil it here, but as wild as these discoveries are, they are sure to keep the reader on the edge of their seat.
Mai Takano is someone who comes in early in the book and her story arc is filled with much mystery and intrigue. I won’t say any more than that.
The characters in this book are much better than in the first – meaning they’re better people. These are characters that I was actually rooting for. Ando is obviously the main character and I really enjoyed following his investigation. If I was going to say one thing about him that I wasn’t as thrilled about, it was on the fixation of the loss of his son. Now, before you come at me bro, let me just say that it was sad that he’d lost his son. And subsequently his relationship with his wife. But to do what he did at the end was kind of ridiculous.
I do understand that he was [REDACTED], so ultimately in a way it wasn’t even his choice. And the reappearance of [REDACTED], not to mention [REDACTED] were great twists and shocks. And now I’m curious to see which characters appear in the next book, Loop.
As far as horror novels go, I’ve had a lot of misses in that I don’t get too scared or even creeped out by horror fiction. I’ve stopped reading Stephen King for now and, while The Exorcist was one of my favorite reads this year, it was more creepy than scary. I can say without reservation that Spiral was one of the first books to truly get me a little freaked. The scene with Ando in the bathroom… [shudders]
This was an easy 5 out of 5 stars for me. It works so well as a standalone book, but it’s also the The Empire Strikes Back; the The Godfather, Part II; the Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; the Superman II; and the Terminator 2: Judgment Day of the books so far. I just may have to bump Loop way sooner on my reading agenda…
