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A review by lovelymisanthrope
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I have had this on my radar since its release because I have historically really enjoyed Grady Hendrix.
"The Final Girl Support Group" follows Lynnette, a woman who survived a massacre and gained the title of a "final girl". For over a decade she has been meeting with other final girls in a support group, in an effort to try to help one another survive life after tragedy. When one of the women misses a meeting, Lynnette quickly realizes that their worst fears are coming true, and someone is determined to bring down each of them.
Of all of the Grady Hendrix books that I have read, this one was my least favorite. One of the elements that I have really enjoyed about his books in the past is that although his books are dark and tackle challenging elements, there is always this outlandish, comedic element. Unfortunately, this particular book did not feel like Grady Hendrix's normal brand of horror, to me. This story was dark and forced the characters to face some of their deepest fear, but there did not feel like there was the same level of comedy.
Lynnette was such an unlikeable main character. She has centered her entire life around being a final girl, which I empathize that her trauma probably did that to her, but I felt like she had nothing else to her personality. She has purely been in survival mode, and she has not found any joy in life for decades. Additionally, for someone so closed off from people because she is always expecting the worst, she seemed to trust characters a little too quickly. This did not feel authentic to her character, and it felt more like a way to make the plot move along.
Although I did not initially see the big reveal about who was behind this, I also did not feel hooked or shocked by it either. By the time it was revealed who was behind this, I was so done with this story that I almost did not care.
I think this idea had a lot of potential, and I am sad that it unfortunately just did not work for me. However, I will still continue to read Grady Hendrix in the future, and I will still continue to recommend his books to the right reader.
"The Final Girl Support Group" follows Lynnette, a woman who survived a massacre and gained the title of a "final girl". For over a decade she has been meeting with other final girls in a support group, in an effort to try to help one another survive life after tragedy. When one of the women misses a meeting, Lynnette quickly realizes that their worst fears are coming true, and someone is determined to bring down each of them.
Of all of the Grady Hendrix books that I have read, this one was my least favorite. One of the elements that I have really enjoyed about his books in the past is that although his books are dark and tackle challenging elements, there is always this outlandish, comedic element. Unfortunately, this particular book did not feel like Grady Hendrix's normal brand of horror, to me. This story was dark and forced the characters to face some of their deepest fear, but there did not feel like there was the same level of comedy.
Lynnette was such an unlikeable main character. She has centered her entire life around being a final girl, which I empathize that her trauma probably did that to her, but I felt like she had nothing else to her personality. She has purely been in survival mode, and she has not found any joy in life for decades. Additionally, for someone so closed off from people because she is always expecting the worst, she seemed to trust characters a little too quickly. This did not feel authentic to her character, and it felt more like a way to make the plot move along.
Although I did not initially see the big reveal about who was behind this, I also did not feel hooked or shocked by it either. By the time it was revealed who was behind this, I was so done with this story that I almost did not care.
I think this idea had a lot of potential, and I am sad that it unfortunately just did not work for me. However, I will still continue to read Grady Hendrix in the future, and I will still continue to recommend his books to the right reader.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail