A review by becka6131
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix
2.0
Pretty disappointing. A sharp, interesting premise which is badly executed - I loved the idea of the final girl support group and I wish that any of the characters besides Lynette had gotten any kind of in-depth development. I get that, like writing in first person present tense, keeping the reader at a distance from characters was intended to replicate the tone of a slasher film - in which the whole cast has to be flexible enough that they could potentially be the killer - but surprise! This just doesn't work as well when you're marketing your novel as a deep dive into the traumatic aftermath of several different mass murders, while another one is unfolding around your characters! Hendrix got the pacing right - just like a good slasher, this book really moves along - but everything else felt shallow. And not to spoil, but the ending was also incredibly uninspired.
It is also distracting from the beginning that Hendrix steals all the backstories for the final girls from well-known franchises like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream, but changes names and small details. Come up with your own slashers! I assume he meant this to be slyly referential rather than a hack move, but it really is just distracting - like watching one of the live action Disney films where they've randomly inserted a new line into an old song.
I was disappointed in this book's lack of originality particularly because I know Hendrix can do better - Southern Book Club was one of the best books I read last year, and became an instant favourite for his nuanced treatment of female characters in horror. So what the hell was this follow-up?
It is also distracting from the beginning that Hendrix steals all the backstories for the final girls from well-known franchises like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream, but changes names and small details. Come up with your own slashers! I assume he meant this to be slyly referential rather than a hack move, but it really is just distracting - like watching one of the live action Disney films where they've randomly inserted a new line into an old song.
I was disappointed in this book's lack of originality particularly because I know Hendrix can do better - Southern Book Club was one of the best books I read last year, and became an instant favourite for his nuanced treatment of female characters in horror. So what the hell was this follow-up?