Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

327 reviews

beebeewin's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Grady Hendrix did a fantastic job of keeping me on the edge of my seat with the unreliable narrator of Lynette. Each of the final girls was beautifully characterized and their relationships felt fleshed out and real. This could have easily been my world as the backlash and struggle of these women seemed plausible. The story felt relavent to any person who has faced violence from men and how trauma can permanently alter your world forever. 

I will say that I felt like there could have been more of a build up to the mystery. I was trying to solve it the entire time and felt like more hints could have been peppered in. Due to this lack of foreshadowing or hints, the ending did feel a little rushed/out of the blue. I think by building up to the "Monster" a little bit more the suspense and pay off would have been greater.

I would recommend this book for anyone who wants a little bit of a thriller read with poignant commentary on the world and how violence affects the women subjected to it. Grady gave nuisance to a story that could have been very heavy handed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Mass/school shootings, Alcoholism, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

arsenicmind's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Death, Gun violence, Murder, and Mental illness

Minor: Sexual violence

theemptynotebooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Blood, Gun violence, Violence, Death, Gore, Misogyny, and Suicide

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Addiction

Minor: Cancer and Vomit

britkbrown's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Murder, Sexism, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Misogyny, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, and Child death

tey_lynn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Child death, Death, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Vomit, and Blood

Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Drug use

leahopkins's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is the second Gradx Hendrix book I've read (first one being my best friend's excorcism) and I am starting to become a fan (though mbfe was better). 
I thought the concept was very interesting and an entertaining twist of the genre, especially since the final girls' backstories/franchises actually take heavy inspiration from existing horror movies. I am not a very big slasher connoisseur (I have only watched the first scream movie), so I had a lot of fun using my very limited knowledge and the power of Google to figure out what movies the different characters were references to. The characters themselves were fun as well, although I wished they were fleshed out a little more. Lynette especially was a very interesting protagonist because of here intense paranoia, which made the reader question whether you could trust her or if all of this conspiracy was just happening inside her head.

I have to say though, it was a little unnecessary that Adrienne, the only black character, dies first. Yeah, I get that it's supposed to be humouring the slasher trope of "black dude dies first", but I would have really appreciated seeing more (/anything at all) of her, because based on what we got to know of her, she seemed like a very likable and caring character.

There were a lot of different twists, some more foreseeable than the others

(for example, Skye being the killer didn't shock me at all, but when it was revealed that Steph was also involved I was truly surprised)

and it was very fun trying to keep track of all the plot points and connections. However, in the middle part of the book, I thought it was slacking a bit and I had trouble staying engaged. The characters of Garrett and Chrissy felt a little out of place and at times even surreal

(the part where they visit Chrissy, her weird final girl museum and her homicidal boyfriend felt more like a bad dream than anything else. Same thing with the scene in which they leave a dead Michelle in a park with some old man.)

. 
I really enjoyed the ending.

I liked that noone died, and the scene in which a heavily injured Lynette runs away from the killer to distract him from the others was very well written and almost moving. The last chapter itself also felt very touching, because it showed the characters healing, physically and mentally.

Overall, this was a very fun read and I am excited to put more of the author's work onto my TBR.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, and Gun violence

Moderate: Grief, Kidnapping, Terminal illness, Cancer, Medical content, Vomit, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Excrement

melodyseestrees's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I read this book after several people recommended it. This book kept pacing well but that is about where the positives stop for me. The writing style was not my taste. There were a lot of plot conveniences. The main character built herself a panic room and it just happens to fail once the group decides to disband? All these women shaped by their trauma to survive let their guards down at the same time, save our main character? Sure, Jan. The varied reactions to a traumatic event did show a realistic variety- some of the girls prepping, some ignoring, one losing her composure. The characters just weren't written in a very 'final girl' way. I did not like how the antagonists were just squished into the plot wherever and I especially did not like the identity of the main antagonist. If you love slashers you will probably find this to be an okay read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Torture, Blood, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Addiction, and Cancer

chasingpages1's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Terminal illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, Torture, Mental illness, Cancer, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Blood, Car accident, Gore, and Grief

Moderate: Gaslighting, Addiction, Drug abuse, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Child death, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Kidnapping

Minor: Confinement, Police brutality, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, and Cursing

abmochapman's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The Final Girl Support Group has such an interesting premise and didn’t necessarily disappoint, even though it was not exactly what I expected. It is, of course, mirrored after slasher movies and  it focuses more on those themes than the support group itself. There is only one session with the main cast of final girls before their world starts to fall apart, again. From there, the plot inches forward until about halfway when it picks up and the book feels almost impossible to put down. The number of incredible, almost ridiculous twists is dizzying. As compelling as the climax is, I found it difficult to suspend my disbelief. The resolution is gratifying, but still, I am left with so many questions and pieces that don’t seem to fit together.

As other reviewers have said, that may be because The Final Girl Support Group doesn’t quite know what it wants to be. Is it a parody of slasher movies, or is it meant to be taken seriously as a thriller? Is it an ode to the genre, or is it a satirical deconstruction? Reviews praise it as having accomplished both, but I am a bit more conflicted. To me, the novel does not subvert its tropes as much as it relies on them.

The main character, for example, is overly-cautious to recorrect the naivety that she blames for her final girl status. Yet, it is also her irrational and naïve choices that lead her once again into the arms of the monster. She should not have been able to survive but by some miracle, she does.

Like the movies, it’s compelling but unbelievable.

Perhaps the best function the novel serves is to highlight our society’s disgusting obsession with and gross exploitation of victims of violence. The novel explicitly asks readers, “what does it say about us that so much of the entertainment we consume is about killing women?”. The plot, too, confirms the harm that movies and media that glorify mass murder can cause. It’s a very necessary conversation, and one that I am glad the horror genre is having. It’s interesting, though, because the novel is so self-aware except about how it might also contribute to the problem. Doesn’t it also exploit the phenomenon of violence against women (and our morbid curiosity about it) for entertainment and profit? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Blood, Stalking, Terminal illness, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Police brutality, Excrement, Grief, Addiction, and Suicidal thoughts

lycheejelly's review against another edition

mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Murder, Sexism, Gore, Vomit, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Cancer, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Torture, Violence, Bullying, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Blood, Car accident, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual assault

Minor: Self harm, Cursing, Police brutality, Ableism, Hate crime, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Confinement