The Exorcist
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The Exorcist 〰️
This book claims to be the most terrifying novel ever written. (At least the edition I was reading has it so on the cover). It perhaps was back when it was first published. Not to say it wasn't bad. It just wasn't as "scary" as I was hoping. Not even remotely. Still a good read.
This book messes with the mind in a way I didn't expect. We know Regan is passed, most likely by the demon Pazuzu. But the way the book is written, we can almost begin to question whether she is indeed possessed or has some mental disorder. (I'm impressed with all the medical knowledge that Blatty seems to possess. He did his research for writing this book. And not just with medical knowledge but with Catholicism and Satanism as well).
Now fear can be subjective, so while I didn't feel any sense of horror in this book, it doesn't mean it isn't terrifying in its own right. I'm sure even people to this day may find it frightening. However, I will say that for its lack of horror elements, Blatty certainly knew how to make me uncomfortable. When Regan begins to masturbate with a cross (among other things), I felt highly uncomfortable, and those scenes didn't sit well for me. It worked to show she was passed by a demon, but yeah. Felt borderline child p**n, and I did not like that. I haven't seen the movie, but I'm sure they cut that out. At least, I hope they did, and if so, thank God.
I will note that I hated the dialogue. Every character sounded the same or very close to each other. The prose was wonderfully written, and it's in the prose where I got a sense of how each character is and acts. But when they opened their mouths to speak, not going to lie; I was not too fond of most of it. It did get more bearable near the end, but I wouldn't say I liked the dialogue in this book.
That being said, this is still a classic story that has earned its right to be called one of the best.
