Ian Downunder VS RIDE THE SPIRAL

Ian hops on the spiral to see what’s really hiding on the other side in Ben Young’s Ride the Spiral.

TITLE: Ride the Spiral

AUTHOR: Ben Young

GENRE: Cosmic horror

PAGES: 303

FORMAT: eBook

PRICE: $11.99 paperback, eBook $4.99

G’day all, hope you’ve had a great week since our last review. How was mine, you ask? It was great! Couldn’t have been better… Actually, no. That’s a lie. To be honest, I’m still trying to recover from the emotionally devastating tale in Ben Young’s Ride the Spiral. I’ve been lucky enough to read some absolute bangers this year but this one for me has usurped the throne that was previously held by John Ward’s A Blackened Heart, A Blackened Soul. I don’t know what they’re feeding the Wicked House authors but the quality of the books they’re putting out easily rivals anything by the Big Five. A huge call, I know but I stand by it. Why do I love Ride the Spiral so much? Read on and find out.

As all of us with kids know, being a parent is one of the toughest but rewarding things there is in life. When things go right, we are living on cloud nine. When things go wrong, we’ll walk through fire to help them. Ride the Spiral tells the tale of the latter. Spencer and his wife, Marty are desperate to find out what’s happening with their five-year-old son, Luke. His behaviour is explosive, unpredictable, and unexplainable. Violent meltdowns, and abusive behaviour have become part and parcel of Spencer and Marty’s everyday lives, and they are at their wits end. They’ve tried psychologists, medication, and every parenting technique under the sun, but nothing is helping.

It’s a heartbreaking situation for any parent, and Young captures that pain with devastating precision. But the story doesn’t just sit in the parents’ perspective. We also see the world through Luke’s eyes as he battles with the voices in his head urging him to cause chaos. His innocence, his desire to be good but ultimately losing to this thing in his head is hard to bear witness to.

This is where the strangeness kicks in. Thirty-two years ago, the sky ripped open, an event now dismissed as a conspiracy theory. Those who witnessed it that day have mysteriously either forgotten it or now deny it happened at all. But Spencer remembers, and he’s convinced that whatever caused it is connected to Luke’s behaviour.

His friend, a fellow colleague who works at the university, knows about Spencer’s troubles with Luke and is also a believer in the ripped sky event. He comes to Spencer and tells him about a new machine he has built that can help Spencer solve Luke’s problems. Spencer, desperate for answers ultimately gives in and agrees to try it. Will he find out the source of Luke’s problems? You’re going to have to read the book to find out.

Young has a way of words that really brings out emotions in a beautifully vivid way. Every sentence lands exactly where it needs to for maximum impact. Parents of neurodivergent children will especially relate to the struggles this family have and tears may very well be shed.

I can’t say enough about how incredible this book is. It’s impactful, it’s thoughtful, it’s intelligent, and it’s scary. It’s all of these things and so much more. In the spirit of the Camus obsessed Spencer, I’ll say this: One must imagine Ride the Spiral as being one of the top releases of the year.

I give this 5 perfect spirals out of 5.

Ian Gielen is a writer of all things spooky and a horror fanatic. Ian embraces his inner geek with pride, his dedication on display in the intimidating collection of horror novels and video games that threaten to take over his living space. He is mad for all things Alien, Star Wars, and cats; his furry companions are always there to keep him company as he scribbles down his latest ideas. With the sheer number of furry and human companions in his life, it’s a wonder he isn’t a little crazier than he already is.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing. Thank you for understanding.