Being a bit of a horror fan, I have a soft spot for The Exorcist so when I spotted the novel in the library recently I knew I had to read it so I could compare it to the terrifying film that most of us will have seen. The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty follows the story of Regan MacNeil, an 11 year old with a strange illness. Doctors cannot get to the bottom of why Regan has become so poorly and as time goes on she develops some bizarre and terrifying symptoms. Eventually her mother, actress Chris MacNeil, calls in a Jesuit priest as she becomes more and more convinced that her daughter has been possessed by a powerful demon who will occasionally ...  Read the complete review

Can a book truly terrify? Can a reader sitting in the comfort of their own home, with the lights on and the doors locked really be scared by the power of words on a page? Yes, it is possible because I have read that book and been chilled to the bone. THE PLOT Regan is an 11 year old girl who lives with her mother, Chris. Regan is happy, pretty and normal until one day her mother finds her talking to herself. Regan insists that she is chatting to Captain Howdy. Chris obviously assumes that this is a traditional childhood imaginary friend but as Captain Howdy begins to hit Regan and to cause her bed to shake it becomes clear that there is something ...  Read the complete review

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty is the book that inspired the legendary film The Exorcist, and is by far in my opinion one of the best books he ever wrote. Without giving too much away the story centres around eleven year old Regan MacNeil who is the daughter to a famous Hollywood movie star. After moving to a rented house in Georgetown she finds a Ouija board and begins playing with it in her basement playroom. After hostile relations between her mother and father she uses the Ouija board more and more until strange things start to happen; the girl is then supposedly demonically possessed, after visits to doctors prove unfruitful she is forced to consult ...  Read the complete review

You've seen the film, surely? If you hadn't caught it during the cinema revival, you probably tuned in on Sunday to see it on the small screen. Possibly one of the most notorious movies ever committed to celluloid, with a reputation which goes far beyond the scope of the film. Similarly, the novel which inspired the film had so great an influence on the horror genre that it surely must sit with the work of M.R. James, Shelley, Stoker and others as a classic and defining piece of literature. A summary of the plot is almost redundant. Regan MacNeil, eleven year old daughter of actress Chris, is possessed by a devil. The Catholic Church, in the form ...  Read the complete review

It is almost impossible to ignore the fact that this novel was made into an extremely famous film. The name Linda Blair is possibly associated more often with the image of spinning head and projectile vomit, than that of Regan MacNeil the character she portrayed. So, although we cannot ignore 'The Exorcist' the movie, to truely appreciate the novel on which it was based, it is important to leave it to one side, and to try not to focus on the iconic images that the film brings to mind. 'The Exorcist', William Peter Blatty's novel is set in and around the rented home of actress Chris MacNeil, the world of this novel is small and confined to the ...  Read the complete review