The Final Girl Support Group

By: Grady Hendrix

Narrated by: Adrienne King

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

VOTED GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD BEST HORROR NOVEL OF 2021

A Good Morning America Buzz Pick

“The horror master…puts his unique spin on slasher movie tropes.”-USA Today

A can't-miss summer read, selected by The New York Times, Oprah Daily, Time, USA Today, The Philadelphia Inquirer, CNN, LitHub, BookRiot, Bustle, Popsugar and the New York Public Library

In horror movies, the final girls are the ones left standing when the credits roll. They made it through the worst night of their lives…but what happens after?

Like his bestselling novel The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, Grady Hendrix’s latest is a fast-paced, frightening, and wickedly humorous thriller. From chain saws to summer camp slayers, The Final Girl Support Group pays tribute to and slyly subverts our most popular horror films—movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream.

Lynnette Tarkington is a real-life final girl who survived a massacre. For more than a decade, she’s been meeting with five other final girls and their therapist in a support group for those who survived the unthinkable, working to put their lives back together. Then one woman misses a meeting, and their worst fears are realized—someone knows about the group and is determined to rip their lives apart again, piece by piece.

But the thing about final girls is that no matter how bad the odds, how dark the night, how sharp the knife, they will never, ever give up.

Great Premise but falls short

I was so looking forward to this book. Pre-ordered months ahead.

Story: Great premise and loved the idea. Thought after Southern Book Club this would be similar vein but with a mix of Horrorstor. Well it wasn’t quite either as much as it tried. I didn’t believe in the characters camaraderie and the characters even point this out how much they don’t really know each other. After 16yrs of support group? Nope - not plausible and the sudden Thelma and Louise jaunt in the book was repetitive and awkwardly written. I just don’t feel for most of these characters and don’t like the main character either. There’s so much that could have been cut. There’s a lot I do like but overall its a 3 story wise just not greatly executed in comparison to his other books.

Narration: I thought the main character was an old woman. She reads slooooooow and talks and enunciates like a woman in her 60/70s. When you understand the main character is actually only 30/40s the voice feels 100% wrong. Definitely need a do-over with a more youthful interpretation. I think I would have enjoyed the story more. Definitely not what I’d consider an enjoyable listen and King was just cast wrong for this book narration.

In short, I’ll likely return as I don’t see listening to this ever again as it’s not an enjoyable listen and story not engaging enough. Bummer.

A slasher for all/Lives up to the hype

If you've ever wondered if your taste in horror was sick, or questioned why some creators have big, bloody murder fetishes...this packs a lot of brain candy. But, if you are a horror nerd or love a gruesome slasher... you're also going to love this book!

Meticulously researched; characters you can see and feel,;thoughtful insight into trauma, grief, and violence; and a plot that won't stop. CW: Everything? But delivered with care and a critical eye...But also gore galore.

A rollercoaster of a thriller

First, I actually love the narration. Everyone is right about the speed but set to 1.2x speed, and it’s just perfectly dramatic.

This keeps you guessing so much it’s almost exhausting. Couldn’t stop listening!

This narrator ruins the book

This narrator ruins the book. Every word is over enunciated. She puts emphasis in the weirdest spots. The accents.. moments that should be scary and intense keep a weird cheery tone. It made this so difficult to get through.

I loved the narrator

I know that there is some controversy here with the narrator but I actually really loved her work. She brought a lot of life into the text and matched in my opinion the type of person the main character embodies. This was a great listen during my slower work hours and I really found it easy to pay attention especially BECAUSE of her someone eccentric narration.