Horror in Hot Pink: The Ring by Koji Suzuki

A horror novel in a hot pink cover? That is exactly how the book Ring by Koji Suzuki presents itself and it stands out perfectly.

It has been a long time since I have gotten spend time perusing books at a bookstore (yay!). It was at Barnes and Noble where I discovered this book: Ring by Koji Suzuki. It stood out to me because it was the only book with a hot pink cover in the horror section of the store (Seriously, it’s awesome that B&N has a whole section devoted to this genre).

I almost didn't get it.

I love a good scary novel and I love hot pink and can’t resist the juxtaposition of those two things together so, of course, I am going to…..

Wait….

There is a problem.

I’ve seen the movie already! When this movie came out I had no idea it was based on a novel. Had I known I would definitely have read the book first.

I am about to put the book back on the shelf (despite the awesome hot pink cover) when I read the blurbs on the back:

“Ring… Holds some shocking surprised for those familiar with the films.” - The Globe and Mail as quoted on back cover of book.

Hmmmm… “surprises” even though I already saw the film? I decide to get it.

I'm glad I did.

Spoiler (not really): I enjoyed it!

However, seeing the movie beforehand did ruin the experience just a little bit because even though there were some ‘shocking surprises’, I still had the gist of the story. This is the reason I didn’t necessarily *love* the novel. (Also, it includes some other things elements that are not my favorite to read but discussing that would spoil it so I won’t). However, I do plan on reading the rest of the trilogy and that says something.

Is this a book to pick up and read even after you have seen the movie? I think ‘yes’!