omar’s Reviews > The Exorcist > Status Update

help me

im questioning the more passive themes. i don't think blatty is trying to fearmonger sex, but i see where he uses it to advance the horror aspect by writing abt satanic, sometimes gay orgies with animals or christian icnonography. regan's demon is also extremely predatory towards her and the before (innocent, "angelic")vs after (lustful, rotting, "the devil") is really apparent. rlly unsettling either way

been in a little bit of a reading freeze, but now im back in. this book is getting really enjoyable! regan is still freaking me out. not in issue with the book itself, but more on the audiobook side: blatty edits his book as he reads, and it sometimes takes me out of the story. it's a little annoying, especially when you get to more intense scenes. the last page of part one had me skipping half the page.

regan??
im very curious abt how god, spirits, and authority are playing into this book. regan's father is deadbeat and the characters are starting to attribute this to her erratic behavior. father karras has lost his faith in god. chris, an athiest, has become distrusting of doctors and is fascinated in psychics and spiritual beings. the puzzle pieces are everywhere, but these are connected somehow. i just know it.

jumping back into horror with this book, and im very excited. the prologue is mysterious and im wondering how pazuzu is gonna connect to chris and her daughter regan (the card in father merrin's wallet was outdated 12 years late; regan is 11 👀) the writing is relatively easy, consise, and i can just tell this book is gonna be intense.