Cover Image: The Final Girl Support Group

The Final Girl Support Group

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Member Reviews

This is my second Grady Hendrix book. It was an entertaining one in the fact that premise is so unique. I love when a genre has been done from different angles, but then an author comes along and finds a new angle. I had high hopes for this book, but found the execution lacking. It didn’t reach the depth I was searching for and I felt as if the author was trying to convey a message but wasn’t able to get it across. I do like the writing style and would be picking up a new Hendrix book in the future.

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This is amazing! Just a few minor quibbles. I was never quite sure how old the final girls actually were. We never really meet Adrienne so I kind of.. . don't care that she died. I know it was going for over the top slasher style showdown, but uh, some of those injuries seemed pretty game ending.

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Ever wonder what happens to a final girl on the other side of her traumatic event? The trauma just keeps happening, obviously. This story wrestles with how we choose to move forward and the people we rely upon.

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Grady Hendrix is known for his horror and exciting premises. This book takes a look at the popular final girl trope from horror movies—the one woman, usually young, left bloody and traumatized but alive and undefeated by the killer. Lynnette Tarkington survived a massacre twenty-two years before and has been meeting up with other final girls and a therapist in a support group. Together, they try to work through their trauma and not let their past define them—until one of the girls goes missing and Lynnette and the others are faced to confront the fear that someone might be hunting them again.

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Lynette Tarkington is a final girl. What is a final girl? She's the last girl standing at the end of the horror movie after her friends/family/loved ones have all been massacred by the Murderous Monster. Lynette survived her monster and has met with other Final Girls in a support group led by Dr. Carol. Lynette believes she is coping just fine in her secured apartment unit with her plant: living in isolation, on constant hyper-vigilance, and escape routes for any situation. Yet, despite all her precautions, tragedy strikes these women once again and someone seems to be picking them off one-by-one. Who survives when Final Girls are attacked once again?
Told from Lynette's POV, this was a novel that took the concept of "the last girl standing" - what happens when the credits roll and how they cope after. Lynette tries to figure out who is out to get them, but the other women are disregarding the threat as her extreme paranoia and Lynette questions who she can truly trust. Grady Hendrix very obviously takes from classic horror/slasher movies and also incorporates some true crime in his narrative. There is a very important point towards the end of the novel (especially after the rise of true crime documentaries, podcasts, books, etc.): the thin line between our societal obsession with survivors of tragedies and the killers who commit these heinous crimes. This is a perfect read for spooky season! Overall, 3.5 rounded to 4.

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This was definitely my least favorite Grady Hendrix book I've read so far, but it was still a lot of fun. I loved the idea of the book and I was thrown off by some of the red herrings, but I could never quite connect to the main character enough to feel fully invested in the story, and I can't explain why (it's especially odd because I usually ADORE the main characters in Grady's books!).

Something was missing in Lynn's character and I wish I could put my finger on what it was, because even though I loved the idea of this final girl who's become so obsessed with her own potential demise that she forgets how to truly live, I never could connect to her as a character enough to particularly empathize with her until the last few chapters. I will say that she grew a lot as a character in the final quarter of the book and I gradually began to love her a little, but it wasn't like that all-encompassing adoration for Grady's protagonists that I have had from the first chapter of his other books.

All of that said, The Final Girl Support Group is still a fun read, and I could even see myself revisiting it someday. I loved the commentary on misogyny within the slasher industry and the inherent problems with how final girls are treated, and I enjoyed watching Lynn's relationships with the other women shift and change, for better and for worse. I loved the final twist and reveal and have to say that the big fight scene at the end was easily my favorite part, because by that point, Lynn had developed into a character I could root for, and I was rooting hard.

I wouldn't recommend The Final Girl Support Group for anyone's first experience with Grady's writing, because I strongly feel that it's the weakest of the many books of his that I've read at this point, but if you're generally a fan of his books, definitely give it a shot because it's certainly worth reading and a lot of readers are going to have one hell of a good time with it.

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This was a really fun, twisty horror story. If you're a fan of the slasher genre, there are a ton of fun nods and references, but not so much that it becomes distracting. Another great Grady Hendrix read!

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I could not put this book down! Edge of my seat ! I am not a slasher film connoisseur but this slasher book was amazing. Lynette is a member of a support group for women who are “final girls” . This means they have been the sole survivor of horrific murder scenes and also survived a second murder event. Lynnette is incredibly paranoid, has no friends or life. The group is starting to fall apart just as Lynette realizes the members are once again in a murderer’s crosshairs and she must save them all.
Thanks so much for the ARC Netgalley!

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I don't really know how to describe The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix, other than it is a total blood bath and full of every trigger imaginable. Somehow this is my first time reading him and it was quite an interesting experience, especially via audiobook. I don't even know how firm my ratings are on the book itself or the audio since both are super unique and it's hard for me to pinpoint exactly how I feel. Adrienne King (which I didn't know because I don't watch horror) is apparently a final girl herself as she appeared in that role in the first Friday the 13th movie. It sounds as though Hendrix was super excited to have her narrate, and yet was she really appropriate for the character? Lynnette is maybe in her 30s or 40s and King is in her 60s, so I just don't know if her voice and sound was the correct choice here.

There is a ton of action in this book, and really the only sad part for me was that the support group didn't actually spend that much time together. I would have loved more scenes with them, but I still enjoyed everything from Lynnette's viewpoint, and granted we do get to see a lot of the other women in the group as well. I loved the way Hendrix included mixed media throughout and how it always related to the storyline. It kept things interesting, and it made the physical book more fun as well. I don't read much horror, but I think if you are a fan or just like this author, you will definitely need to pick up The Final Girl Support Group. You will just need to be aware there are a ton of triggers, and it is super gory. This is my first book by this author, and it most definitely won't be my last.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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, this is totally a binge-worthy book. I quite literally had a hard time putting it down, as there wasn't a dull moment from start to finish. The first 10% of the book sets the tone and background, and from there it's a race to the finish line, and seeing who will make it out of the book alive. The pacing is so on point, that I would recommend it to anyone needing a book that will jump start your reading again after a slump. That is, if you can stomach the gory content...

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Grady Hendrix has made a name for himself as a horror writer - scary premise and great book! Has been recommended to library patrons.

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I struggled to get through this book. I feel like the concept was great initially but the author did not execute in their writing.

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Grady Hendricks is a automatic buy author for me I've read all of his books so of course I was excited for this one and especially because I absolutely love final girls I love the whole kind of Mythology around them now that's built up so it was really excited for this one.


I did really like this one but it did feel like kind of dragged on a little bit and I didn't know how to feel about the characters I still don't know how I felt about the characters it was interesting it was cool it was a fun quick read but it's not one I think I'd ever reread.

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The Final Girls Support Group by Grady Hendrix is a 2021 Berkley publication.

The Final Girls- We all know what that phrase means...

In present day- six famous or infamous 'final girls' belong to a secret support group, moderated by Dr. Carol Elliot. Unfortunately, someone is trying to kill them off- one by one. Despite all their precautions, they are all once again in the fight of their lives…

I don’t know what this says about me, but while some of my peers jeered this one- I cheered it. Truly, though, this is not exactly a pure horror novel- it’s more of a mystery/thriller, really, but Hendrix is satirizing the slasher films, so in a way it still fits into the horror genre.

I say the book is partly a satire, but it was also an homage, and a bit nostalgic, as well. The humor is sly and those well versed in slasher films will love all the references, the final girl trope, and even the clichés. The book moves fast, though not always cohesively, but there’s plenty of action, and the story has depth and adds a long overdue feminist viewpoint.

I’m glad I gave this book a try, and though I have now enjoyed all four books I’ve read by Hendrix, I must admit this one is not his best work-. The story does some issues, for sure, but I thought it was a wildly entertaining, if a bit unorthodox, thriller, and I rather enjoyed it.

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As a fan of horror/slasher movies, I thought this premise was great. It was interesting to contemplate how each person had responded to their trauma in different ways, from paranoia to opportunistic to complete denial. My only complaint is that I was distracted trying to figure out which movie final girl each character was modeled after.

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Ooh time goes by and if i don't write the review right away...sigh. I'm trying to be better. The best i can do right now is give a star count...

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I wanted to like this one more, but it fell a bit flat for me. There were also some bits that were difficult to read (lots of triggers for me!), so definitely check out the trigger warnings before you dive in. I plan on giving Hendrix another try, as I liked his writing style. This one just wasn’t quite the right fit for me.

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I've come to accept the fact that Grady Hendrix is just not the author for me. I am always excited by the premise of his books, but they never work for me in execution - I think this will be my last attempt at his work.

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While I'm not a huge horror movie fan, I know enough to appreciate Hendrix's latest novel, which features a group of "final girls" trying to contend with the trauma of living through their own horror movies. Hendrix takes the cliches of horror films and twists them into a tightly plotted, fast paced mystery as to who is trying to take them out.

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This wasn't among my favorites of Hendrix's works, but still enjoyable. A very "meta" horror novel, which felt a little tiresome at points. Overall a fun read, though.

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