A review by erasmios
Ring by Kōji Suzuki

4.0

Not as creepy as the film Ringu, but still an entertaining read. No ghosts crawling out of TV sets in this one. Instead of being a supernatural curse, Suzuki tries to give a more scientific/medical explanation for the killing VHS tape. The presented ideas are pretty wild and reality-twisting, but maybe because of that, I found the novel unique and interesting. Readers expecting a terrifying horror story with ghosts may find themselves disappointed; Ring should be approached as a mystery/crime novel with a paranormal twist. I also liked the weird friendship of the main duo. Why would Asakawa, the protagonist, be friends with Takayama, a man who claims to have raped several women? And why would Takayama, a successful university professor, be friends with Asakawa, a journalist who's clearly his total opposite? As terrible as they sound, the absurdity of their friendship made them almost likeable (and there are other things I won't spoil here).