Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Ring (Ring, #1)

Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Ring (Ring, #1) by Kōji Suzuki

24 reviews

mackenzienoelle's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

First and foremost HEAVY HEAVY SA TRIGGER WARNING. It was NOT handled well and was reoccurring throughout. Super uncomfortable in the worst way.
I almost DNF’d this one but I wanted to know what happened. Was it worth it? I don’t know, I don’t think so.
When this novel isn’t brutalizing and dehumanizing literally every woman in the story (the open contempt for women is so palpable throughout) it reads like GPS instructions. It felt like 80% of this book was just two deeply unlikable characters having annoying conversations in the car or on a boat. So so much detailed, dry description of transportation.
I didn’t enjoy the writing style, I felt the author took too many mid-scene tangents and constantly deflated the suspense.
The best, spookiest part was the last like 3 pages which is soooooo annoying

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alliedudley's review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

while the premise was interesting this book lost me pretty fast. wildly transphobic and misogynistic and not very scary for a book that a famously terrifying movie is based on. translations are hard but this felt stilted and didn’t read well. would skip this one

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mixigod's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

CW / Sexual Assault

A promising supernatural thriller mystery that starts with a bang - we meet Asakawa who is a neglectful husband and father to his wife and children due to being a complete workaholic as a reporter. He decides to investigate the mysterious death of his niece and uncovers the infamous tape. The horror imagery and vibe at this section of the novel is incredible, it's gripping and vivid. It is clear Suzuki has a very solid grasp on the horror of sensation, the wrongness of something and how much that can rattle someone.

But it is from here on out that the book begins to falter. The horror elements are abandoned completely in favour of unraveling the mystery of the tape within the deadline. The connections were interesting and easy to follow but the story began to be overshadowed by a very recurring and uncomfortable theme of sexual assault and misogyny that did not feel like an attempt to observe the horror in those as being linked to the central horror of the novel.

In fact, one of the leading characters is revealed to be a serial rapist early into the novel and the reaction of our protagonist to this character is largely... blasé? As well as the authors use of sexual assault as a common theme, it seems nearly every female character mentioned in the novel, which there aren't many by the way, are either assaulted or viewed in a majorly misogynistic light.
This lead to an uncomfortable read with no resolution to this element of the novel other than it being a tragic fact apparently. The story also alludes that the desire to commit assault is not that of volition but because of an evil influence?

Safe to say, one should divert to the film adaptations of this if you're looking for a resolute horror as the ending of this novel falls short - likely setting up for the sequel, but does not ultimately deliver on the trials experienced.

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nimask's review against another edition

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tealightfultomes's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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shelbyshoe's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

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stargirlsky's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

while I’m giving this book a 3.75, that’s not to say it wasn’t an enjoyable read. I really liked the pace, I liked that it was simple enough to understand, and yet just mysterious enough for me to be thrilled by. I also thought a lot of the “discovering” and plot twists were well done. however, as many other people have stated, it is like rampant with really weird views and details on women?? I mean it was written in 1991 but like for example, there’s a certain part in the book that was about Sadako that genuinely made me sigh. I love the story itself it’s very interesting and for the time it was certainly a new plot concept, I just wish stuff like that had been left out

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cadimy's review against another edition

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dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No

3.0

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cantfindmybookmark's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Content Warnings

juliawren's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

There are definite tones of misogyny and seriously fucked up characters (please for the love of God check the content warnings), but that's what made this such an addicting read. I could hardly put it down.

Forget morally gray - this is on the same level as Lolita. Whether or not some of the themes and ideas being presented are the author's or just a downright alarming depiction of misogyny present in Japanese culture when this was written, you'll need to approach this story with some serious media literacy to understand that it is 100% a social and philosophical commentary, and you should not agree with all of the characters or their actions because that is the point. There will definitely be times where you won't agree with the author, too (at least I seriously hope not), but I lean towards the belief that his personal ideology (while still sexist and displaying substantial

victim-blaming

qualities that shouldn't be ignored) does not entirely align with these characters, especially given the ending (which, contrary to what many readers claim, does make perfect sense and has nothing to do with

Sadako wanting to have a literal child

- do y'all understand what a metaphor is??).

If you think the ending falls apart with the paranormal stuff, I'd recommend reading up on the Japanese concept of

curses,

as it differs considerably from American mythology/culture about ghosts. Weirdly, I'd also recommend Jujutsu Kaisen if you like anime or manga, since it gets into this concept and you can really understand how these kinds of

curses

are made.

That aside, the story was nearly as good as the American version (I didn't love the original as much but might give it another try after reading this). The mystery presented fit together perfectly by the end. Even having watched both movie versions and knowing the general plot / final twist, I felt the tension all the way through. This was a wonderfully chilling and terrifyingly disturbing read, and anyone who enjoyed the films and likes a good scare and can stomach horror, both real and paranormal, will enjoy it.

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