Don’t go backpacking in Sweden, like the beautiful backgrounds on those postcards, or else you will get attacked by a nameless cult. That’s all, folks.
And, scene. Thank you for bearing that terrible introduction of the horrifying literary magnum opus, The Ritual by Adam Nevill. Not to be confused with a dark romance. It was a strain to look up. Without further ado, I have my positive feedback about the book, which there is much of, and I have the negatives. However, negatives aren’t much. For all you horror fans, this book will certainly be a treat.
Pros: I have an attention span. You have an attention span. We all have an attention span! For those who have trouble staying focused (ahem, totally not me), I recommend this book for its chapter length. The words aren’t too small, so you won’t have to squint, and the chapters are wonderfully paced. It might go from a sequence of 5 two page chapters to one long chapter, so it is easy to predict where you’d like to stop reading and insert your bookmark.
Additionally, the movie stays true to that original charm that the book had. They both emphasize description and sound. While the movie utilizes music to enhance surrounding, the author employs particular words to increase a slow and agonizing drama segment. Plus, some spooky chords of doom and gloom.
Cons: Vocabulary in this is complicated, and Nevill tends to repeat the word ‘maelstrom’ an unhealthy amount of times. However, I’d like to hone in on the story elements and plot more. The story takes place in the backroads of Sweden, where a group of 4 friends venture on a trip through the woods as a supposed “shortcut.” Hutch, Dom, Phil, and Luke all end up getting lost and stalked by a mysterious monster that attacks them one by one. Luke is our main character from pages 100 to the end, and I really liked him. The only problem is: I watched the 2017 movie first.
After the movie, I thought, “Wow, that was excellent. I wonder how horrifying the Nevill novel will be.” And, boy, was it the craziest thing ever, but I could not empathize with Luke. In the movie, the plot centers around the 4 honoring a fallen friend by going on the trip they promised to afford with him. Luke felt guilty for his friend’s death, encouraging his outbursts and summoning of fights with his friends. It strengthened the setting and placed the friends right in the jaws of the beast, also highlighting the importance of relationships to get through tough times. As for the book, none of this happened. Sure, there is the Nordic god Moder, the beast, but there is no dead friend. Luke acted on pure psychopathy and fury in this book, punching his friends simply because he was as tired as them. His only motive was having to trudge through the bramble and saying, “I’m tired. I can’t help it.” I’m sorry, are you the only one in this situation? Not to mention, he constantly pestered them about their appearance or playing the you-think-I’m-lame game when he doesn’t know what’s going on inside their lives. He finds out eventually that everyone has to deal with their own familial problems, and they’re not trying to trample on his pathway, but he is the main cause for severely limiting kinship.
Despite my rambling on Luke, I think this is one of the best books read this year. To be fair, it’s only the beginning of 2026, so this might not count for much, but then again . . . I don’t read much. I recommend it only for those who can handle the spooky and the scary, the short and convenient, and the plot heavy pages. If so, please take the time to read The Ritual, again by Adam Nevill, not the other one!