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milesszwarc's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
eliosartt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
bumsbirne's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
kit1989's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
aaria's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
lichan's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
kavreb's review against another edition
4.0
For a while it seems episodic, like Ito is using the weird setting to tell whatever crazy stories he has come up with. The spiral can basically make people do anything. But as the end starts approaching and the story becomes more concentrated, many of those supposedly episodic things come back in surprising, and disturbing, ways.
Speaking of disturbance, Ito has an awe-inspiring ability to come up with images that discomfort you long after you've seen them. It might even not seem that bad at first (if you're already as messed up by horror films and comics as I am), but then later you'll find the pictures slithering back into your mind and suddenly making food for your kid is not that simple anymore.
He often creates horror by twisting human bodies into impossible configurations and things, or creating situations that have a resemblance to reality but play out in ways the mind recoils from, striking at a deep-seated nerve in our brain that spreads unease. Often there’s some animalistic or object-like quality introduced, but it’s nothing like what a furry would like. The aim is to disconcert, and little else matters.
I felt the ending was a bit of a let-down after all the build-up. Part of me was hoping for some ancient answers or, I guess, something more resonant; instead it felt a bit rushed and somewhat repeating of a moment from earlier. But, let’s be honest, a horror explained would lose something. And I’m not sure Ito had anywhere left to go. Perhaps he himself has no real answers, and that’s fine. Because if the aim of the story is to disturb, it is achieved beautifully, without reverting to the lowest common denominator touching points. From that perspective, the ending is fine; after all, it had to end somehow.
I also appreciate Ito’s approach to characters, where although there might be some stereotypes, Ito isn’t really interested in just repeating those, but trying to twist that which we know to be the norm into something increasingly aberrant. He’s also capable of taking it to an extreme scale and still keeping the horror tangible.
The lead character of the book, Kirie sure is lucky though, to keep managing to survive all these dangerous events she keeps stumbling into; though to be fair you probably cannot call anybody lucky who was born unto the curse of the spiral.
Speaking of disturbance, Ito has an awe-inspiring ability to come up with images that discomfort you long after you've seen them. It might even not seem that bad at first (if you're already as messed up by horror films and comics as I am), but then later you'll find the pictures slithering back into your mind and suddenly making food for your kid is not that simple anymore.
He often creates horror by twisting human bodies into impossible configurations and things, or creating situations that have a resemblance to reality but play out in ways the mind recoils from, striking at a deep-seated nerve in our brain that spreads unease. Often there’s some animalistic or object-like quality introduced, but it’s nothing like what a furry would like. The aim is to disconcert, and little else matters.
I felt the ending was a bit of a let-down after all the build-up. Part of me was hoping for some ancient answers or, I guess, something more resonant; instead it felt a bit rushed and somewhat repeating of a moment from earlier. But, let’s be honest, a horror explained would lose something. And I’m not sure Ito had anywhere left to go. Perhaps he himself has no real answers, and that’s fine. Because if the aim of the story is to disturb, it is achieved beautifully, without reverting to the lowest common denominator touching points. From that perspective, the ending is fine; after all, it had to end somehow.
I also appreciate Ito’s approach to characters, where although there might be some stereotypes, Ito isn’t really interested in just repeating those, but trying to twist that which we know to be the norm into something increasingly aberrant. He’s also capable of taking it to an extreme scale and still keeping the horror tangible.
The lead character of the book, Kirie sure is lucky though, to keep managing to survive all these dangerous events she keeps stumbling into; though to be fair you probably cannot call anybody lucky who was born unto the curse of the spiral.
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
4.0
This is my second Ito book of the year and it will not be the last I read. His art is visceral and repulsive, and the story is impossible to stop reading.