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Post by dem on Nov 10, 2012 13:31:57 GMT
Adam Nevill - The Ritual (Pan, 2011) Blurb And on the second day things did not get better ... But it was the dead thing they found hanging from a tree that changed the trip beyond recognition.
When four old university friends set off into the Scandinavian wilderness of the Arctic Circle, they aim to briefly escape the problems of their lives and reconnect. But they find they have little left in common with each other and tensions soon rise.
With limited fitness and experience between them, a short-cut meant to ease their hike turns into a nightmare scenario that could cost them their lives. Lost, hungry and surrounded by forest untouched for millennia, things couldn't possibly get any worse.
But then they stumble across an old habitation. Ancient artefacts decorate the walls and there are bones scattered upon the dry floors. The residue of old rites and pagan sacrifice for something that still exists in the forest. Something responsible for the bestial presence that follows their every step. And as the four friends stagger in the direction of salvation, they learn that death doesn't come easy among these ancient trees ...Just started on Adam Nevill's third book, The Ritual. Brilliant start - absolutely no "build up", just straight in there - Four British guys are on an "adventure-trek" through some remote forests in northern Sweden when they first stumble on what appears to be some sort of animal sacrifice strung up in a tree, and then on a creepy old abandoned house. What they find inside the house is very disturbing, and they know they have to get out as quickly as they can... if the forest will let them. It is incredibly fast-paced, and that seems to be heightened by the structure of the book, which has very short chapters (typically just 3 or 4 pages - I am at this moment on Chapter 16, but I've only read 60 pages). In his intro Nevill name-checks Blackwood and Machen, as well as James "Deliverance" Dickey, but he also lists a book about the Scandinavian "satanic metal underground scene" that he used in his research... so something for all tastes, I guess. I will try to post some more later... LATER: I have read about another 150 pages or so, and we are well into Deliverance mode - though I would say Predator might be a better reference point - something is hunting the guys, and it ain't human. I am probably about half way through the book now, and I am very impressed - this is way better than either Banquet For The Damned or Apartment 16. We are learning a little more about these 4 guys and their pasts, but just enough to make them seem like real people - there is absolutely no "fat" on the story and, although I think I have a fair idea what is happening to them, I just can't read fast enough to find out if I am right. Seriously good stuff. LATER STILL: Past the three-quarters mark now. The "black metal" link has been introduced in the form of some very weird Nordic neopagans who play in a band called "Blood Frenzy". Also the body count is starting to mount. Hmmm... I wonder if there could be some link between those two things? Picked a copy up from the library earlier on the basis of Dr. Strange's enthusiastic wotds, and am looking forward to getting stuck into it. The "book about the Scandinavian "satanic metal underground scene" that he used in his research" is Michael Moynihan & Didrik Soderlind's Lords Of Chaos: The Bloody Rise Of The Satanic Metal Underground (Feral House, 1998), and it is the most extraordinary read. Below is slightly tarted up but still piss poor excuse for review from Vault MK I where the subject matter drew a respectable response. Michael Moynihan & Didrik Soderlind - Lords Of Chaos: The Bloody Rise Of The Satanic Metal Underground (Feral House, 1998)
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Post by mattfinucane on Nov 10, 2012 17:31:17 GMT
Ah, I absolutely loved this one.
So full-throttle and stripped-down, it's like its own screenplay (if that makes sense): would make a fantastic low-budget Brit horror film, but it's so vivid and lucidly-written, it almost doesn't need filming.
Also nice to read something well-crafted that also functions on a visceral pulp level - it just rockets along, doesn't it?
Every time you think things can't possibly get worse... they do.
(That said, his next one - "Last Days" - is much more sprawling and a bit of a snoozer, but fair play to him for trying something different with each novel.)
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Post by David A. Riley on Nov 10, 2012 19:13:27 GMT
I know it'll go against the grain for a few people here, but I've just downloaded this onto my Kindle. It'll be my next read. (By against the grain I'm referring, of course, to the Kindle.  ) |
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sara
Crab On The Rampage
Posts: 69
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Post by sara on Nov 11, 2012 19:13:45 GMT
Got The Ritual for Christmas and thought it was great as I love scary monster stories that are actually scary (easier to do on film than in books I think). I thought this particular beastie was fantastic and believable too.
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Post by Dr Strange on Nov 12, 2012 15:13:23 GMT
Ah, I absolutely loved this one. So full-throttle and stripped-down, it's like its own screenplay (if that makes sense): would make a fantastic low-budget Brit horror film, but it's so vivid and lucidly-written, it almost doesn't need filming. Also nice to read something well-crafted that also functions on a visceral pulp level - it just rockets along, doesn't it? Every time you think things can't possibly get worse... they do. (That said, his next one - "Last Days" - is much more sprawling and a bit of a snoozer, but fair play to him for trying something different with each novel.) Totally agree with all that - the plot of The Ritual motors along at quite a clip, just piling the horror and the tension on. Both pulpy and very well written. Last Days was OK - a great idea, but it just seemed to run out of steam a bit. But you are right - all 4 of his novels are so different from each other in tone, setting and subject that you can't help but be grateful for him trying out different ideas. I hope The Ritual is enjoyed as much by everyone else as it was by me - it was my second favourite novel of last year, just pipped by Brian Ruckley's The Edinburgh Dead. |
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Post by mattfinucane on Nov 12, 2012 15:33:44 GMT
The Ritual's one of those where from page one you can see there's absolutely no way it's going to end well... Unless the author cops out, which thankfully he didn't.
It's so bleak it comes out the other side, somehow, as quite triumphant and exhilarating in its nihilism.*
(Most pretentious sentence written on this board...? Hmm.)
Last Days is interesting, sure, but not as gripping - more of a shaggy dog story, shows signs of being written in a bit of a hurry: baggy structure, too much research on show, repetition...
But yeah, after the - admittedly very effective - Campbell-influenced Apartment 16, this one was a fantastic surprise, felt like a real leap forward.
*And with sly H P Lovecraft references! Now that's class.
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Post by cw67q on Nov 13, 2012 8:48:18 GMT
The Ritual is a great read that completely changes direction midway through. It is by some distance the strongest of the three novels I've read by Nevill. It read to me very much like a novel that would adapt well to film and which might have been written with half an eye n this possibility.
I also liked Banquet for the Damned although I think it would have been stronger if it had been edited down a little and the ending seemed a little rushed compared to the set up (IMHO).
On the whole, and despite some well crafted scary moments.I didn't care much for Apartment 16. I thought it started well but the format of alternating chapters between two main protagonists quickly outstayed its welcome as one of the story lines became very repetitive with the character staggering from one hallucinogenic episode to the next with ever decreasing returns. I think this would have benefited even more than Banquet from judicious editing. Like Ritual I think this one could make a good film, indeed a much better film than the book is (and I'm not really a film fan) as it would be forced to concentrate on one of the story threads weaving the other into the background. As it is A16 is good in parts but (again) IMHO fails as a whole.
That said I do think that Nevill writes well and i'll probably try the 4th novel at some point.
- Chris
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Post by mattfinucane on Nov 13, 2012 17:12:23 GMT
The Ritual is a great read that completely changes direction midway through. It is by some distance the strongest of the three novels I've read by Nevill. It read to me very much like a novel that would adapt well to film and which might have been written with half an eye n this possibility. Exactly. It'd transfer across superbly: the dialogue's a nice mix of one-liners and character-driven stuff, said characters are very three-dimensional and well-drawn... And it doesn't muck about. Could be filmed pretty much as is, it feels like. Brutal but elegant! True, Apartment 16 while impressive is less engaging - can see what he was aiming at, but... Anyway, be interesting to see where he goes next. |
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Post by Dr Strange on Nov 13, 2012 17:55:59 GMT
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Post by cauldronbrewer on Nov 13, 2012 20:46:03 GMT
be interesting to see where he goes next. Creepy dolls, apparently - That is never a bad idea. |
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Post by mattfinucane on Nov 14, 2012 14:53:19 GMT
Absolutely - never fails.
(Nice to see Talons of Weng Chiang get a name-check in that link... Sets the bar for creepy dolls *very* high, wonder if Nevill can top it?)
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Post by cauldronbrewer on Nov 14, 2012 19:22:13 GMT
Sets the bar for creepy dolls *very* high, wonder if Nevill can top it? By coincidence, I recently looked back at this thread from the old site after having reread Mary Danby's creepy puppet masterpiece, "The Engelmayer Puppets," in Party Pieces. It may be due for an update. My hall of fame for creepy puppet/doll stories would also include Sarban's The Doll Maker, A. Merritt's Burn, Witch, Burn!, Fredric Brown's "The Geezenstacks," Robert Aickman's "The Inner Room," and Chris Priestley's "The Un-Door." That's just scratching the surface, however. |
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Post by Dr Strange on Sept 11, 2017 16:17:27 GMT
Just found out The Ritual has been made into a film, due for release on Friday 13th October. I am ridiculously excited about this. Trailer, cast, etc. here - link
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Post by dem on Jul 14, 2018 10:42:53 GMT
Just started on Adam Nevill's third book, The Ritual. Brilliant start - absolutely no "build up", just straight in there - Four British guys are on an "adventure-trek" through some remote forests in northern Sweden when they first stumble on what appears to be some sort of animal sacrifice strung up in a tree, and then on a creepy old abandoned house. What they find inside the house is very disturbing, and they know they have to get out as quickly as they can... if the forest will let them. It is incredibly fast-paced, and that seems to be heightened by the structure of the book, which has very short chapters (typically just 3 or 4 pages - I am at this moment on Chapter 16, but I've only read 60 pages). In his intro Nevill name-checks Blackwood and Machen, as well as James "Deliverance" Dickey, but he also lists a book about the Scandinavian "satanic metal underground scene" that he used in his research... so something for all tastes, I guess. Made a start proper on this last night, 13 chapters in and hooked. Particularly like that the prologue dumps you straight in at the deep end and The Ritual hasn't let up since. The four estranged college friends are currently holed up at the lonesome stuga in the black wood amidst several wooden crosses and rows of tiny animal bones and skulls piled high. These early chapters have a Blair Witch Project/ Sticks vibe, but am guessing we're headed for a very different horrible experience ... |
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Post by Dr Strange on Jul 14, 2018 12:00:49 GMT
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts, Dem. I can't imagine anyone around here not enjoying The Ritual (no pressure there, then).
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