Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

223 reviews

jreason's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol

ceej_aye's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

For a book that is largely a commentary on the slasher genre and Final Girls, there are moments where it falls prey to the cliches that are so prevalent in slashers that I was able to clock them pretty early. Overall, I really enjoyed the book. It was a thrilling descent into madness with the gratification that maybe they weren’t mad at all. The feeling of being consistently gaslit and unsure of what to trust or where to look adds tremendously to the themes and feelings of the characters. I wish the ensemble was more present earlier in the book, but they were all well thought out characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

butchybats's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Cancer, Cursing, Grief, and Alcohol

alisonnobrega's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

lotoblanco's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

haileyhardcover's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

You know how you watch a horror movie and you find yourself yelling at the characters on screen? “OH, SHIT! RUN, GIRL, RUN!” No… just me? Ok. Well, that was my experience reading this book as well lol It is SO GOOD and SO hard to put down! I am sad that I started it late in the day on Sunday because if I hadn’t had long days at work yesterday and today, I absolutely would’ve blown through this entire book in one sitting. It had me hooked from page 1! Easily my favorite Hendrix I’ve read so far. 

Since I recently read Final Girls by Riley Sager, I wanted to read TFGSG relatively soon after to compare the takes on the final girl premise. Both books explore a group of final girls under threat again, but that’s where the similarities end. Sager’s Final Girls was much more of a psychological thriller, where as Hendrix’s TFGSG is more action packed and campy-leaning horror. Though I really enjoyed Final Girls, TFGSG takes the cake for me. Both are five star reads, but I was more invested in and excited by TFGSG. I especially loved the added bonus material at the end of every chapter - interview notes, movie reviews, journal entries - it gave just enough extra information for context but in a fun and quickly digestible way. The titles of the chapters aligning with the progression of titles in a typical slasher film franchise was also a beautiful touch. 

One tiny critique - Dr. Carol needs a HIIPA refresher course. You cannot just go around introducing people as your patients, Dr. Carol! Jeez! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Drug abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Ableism, Bullying, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

erinjeanette's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault and Police brutality

slimejules's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Violence, Police brutality, and Murder

emi_miller's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, and Stalking

bottlecaps's review against another edition

dark sad slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Mass/school shootings, Stalking, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Excrement, and Abandonment