Reviews with content warning for Animal death - My Best Friend's Exorcism

Grady Hendrix is the only boy I will ever allow at the sleepover. The way he encapsulates some of the most intimate and incredible aspects of girlhood and coming of age are moving and wholesome. He also makes my skin crawl with his use of vivid descriptions of horror casually peppered.

As someone who grew up in a Christian community the characters actions and beliefs contradict themselves beautifully and in the exact right way.

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ctwntn's review

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emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

Fun read that is humorous, frightful, and doesn’t take itself too seriously.

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bethnash's review

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challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

3.5

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bringmorecoffee's review

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dark emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated

4.0

The book does read exactly like a summer horror flick. It's giving Jennifer's Body, a little bit of Stranger Things, some of the vibes from the Fear Street series on Netflix. It was very fast paced, going through many years in a short amount of time while making it seem like a thoroughly fleshed out montage.

Sometimes horror being set in the protagonist's teen years feels "overdone," but I think part of the digestible horror of it is how little agency a young adult has and how much they are never believed for the hardships they are going through.

Anyway, the friendship that Hendrix shows us is one that I think most people have either experienced or had a taste of, which makes the pain of the story all the more potent.

Very recommend for a fast, fun read. Like a good 90 minute movie.

Spoiler ahead

Hendrix really ended this book by rhetorically asking

"What could be more holy than friendship? What could be more pure than the love of a young heart and a shared history? What is more evil than the world we live in and the things we do to each other, and what is a better light against that darkness than the spark of hope and belief in another person?"

I was bawling, I was a wreck. As Abby recited every inch of their shared history to expel a demon from her friend, I cried because that love is honestly everything. I thought of every person I could exercise with this "incantation," every friend whom I love and could recite the building blocks of our relationship for. I hope that was Hendrix's aim, too.

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