Reviews with content warning for Animal cruelty - The Final Girl Support Group

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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sngspicysword's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious 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

4.75

THE PLOT TWIST OMG! THIS IS SUCH AN AMAZING BOOK! it’s really helped me get out of my reading slump. Highly recommend!!! I will say the author is a bit dramatic at times but the writing is INSANE.

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ewarde's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-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

4.0

This book is nuts. I am not a horror movie fan, but this book is a sort of behind the scenes peak at the slasher dramas and it is insane. This book explores the concept of "the final girl" and makes you understand the connection between them and the killer. Its just a mind bending thriller from start to finish that makes you question everything.

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brookey8888's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this one and I know a lot of people don’t t like this so it’s an unpopular opinion. I just was so invested in the story and the characters and I didn’t see a lot of things happening. I thought the concept was interesting and the topics thought provoking and I liked some of the discussions in this. I really liked Lynnette as the main character and the strength and growth she went through. This also made me weirdly emotional at times, but it’s just the dark themes and the horrible world it’s hard not to. This was also pretty funny at times. I don’t know something about this just worked for me. I liked the sister aspect which I think really made me enjoy this.

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erica_reads_things's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book was SUCH an amazing introduction into Grady Hendrix's books for me. Wow. I'm very impressed with how he wrote women and from their perspective - super well done. Loved the homage he paid to classic horror films and stories. Things like how the chapters were named??? Genius touches that showed that he truly holds this genre dear. So so good!!

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magikorbert's review

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dark emotional funny hopeful tense fast-paced

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

4.5

i really really wish they had given fu(bar)gate a different username in that lil reddit screenshot. it made me immediately suspicious of steph and it feels like it’s giving something away way too early

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