Reviews tagging 'Eating disorder'

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

7 reviews

rosesofthespring's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I wish it had wrapped up a few more plot threads, but overall an excellent novel. I'm not surprised that this one is so popular.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Death of parent, Body horror, Cancer, Ableism, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Medical content, Police brutality, Cursing, Misogyny, Stalking, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, and Confinement

Moderate: Excrement, Kidnapping, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Racism, Torture, Cannibalism, Animal death, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Homophobia, Mass/school shootings, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, and Toxic relationship

There is a description of a previous ex-relationship with a huge power imbalance and considerable age gap. The younger party is 18.

sav_22's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book is a lot of fun. Very captivating, interesting plot. The concept of final girls in the real world is very alluring to me as someone who loves slashers and horror movies like the Scream franchise. I also admire the diversity in age range specifically, as the narrator is in her 30-40s, which I feel is rare in these circumstances. I also appreciate

how unreliable the narrator can be due to her trauma! She is very complex, she grows on you but it really does a good job exploring how trauma changes your entire way of thinking and feeling. The more you read, the more you question her sanity and her truthfulness.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, Death, Blood, Bullying, Dysphoria, Violence, Cursing, Eating disorder, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Stalking

kimberlyswalters's review

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Cancer, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Child death and Grief

Minor: Alcohol, Pedophilia, Car accident, Eating disorder, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Misogyny

anoveldestination's review against another edition

dark reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I was intrigued when I first started this book, but I wasn't sold until the ending. At the beginning, I struggled to understand the character's motivations and questioned the choice of Lynette as the narrator over other girls in the book, but by the end, Gary Hendrix had once again made me fall in love with all of the characters and their journeys. There's so much that happens in this book and so much to unpack, that I'm honestly still processing it. However, Grady Hendrix is a talented writer, and he juggles so many complex themes, characters, and plot points with ease. The writing and story are both emotionally impactful and suspenseful and entertaining. 

With all that being said, I thought the pacing was off. The story starts with a bang, but I thought the whodunnit plot dragged in the middle, and the scenes at the police station, while important for Lynette's character backstory and growth, felt like they didn't add anything to the plot and were an unnecessary interruption. I also think that while each character was developed well in the story, there were too many characters. I don't think we needed to see Michelle in the story. I also think some of the themes could've still been communicated without having both Garrett and Stephanie in the book. I wasn't sure if Garrett needed to be an actual character in the book or just someone we heard about through Lynette. Also, Pax, while essential to the plot, I don't think the story needed him and that Gary Hendrix could've found a way to make the plot work without Pax. Still, I was never overwhelmed by the number of characters. I just think some of the characters and their purposes felt too similar. 

Despite my issues with the book, I love the way everything comes together at the end. The book is also engaging, with great moments of suspense. It's a true thriller that you won't want to put down. Within this entertaining plot, Grady Hendrix manages to insert truly original characters and communicate important feminist themes. The book is the perfect balance of reading for pleasure and reading for enrichment. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Police brutality, Sexism, and Violence

Moderate: Cancer, Car accident, Drug abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Homophobia

anjalirenee's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

lynette tarkington mediocre pathetic woman representation

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Death, Death of parent, Cancer, and Blood

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Adult/minor relationship

jenniferpalmblad's review

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Ok so… I actually kind of loved this book. Horror is not my thing, but basing the characters on final girls from the larges and most recognisable slasher movie franchises made gave it an instant edge. From the very start I felt connected to these women (even Lynette, having never heard of Silent Night Deadly Night) and wanted to learn all about their lives in the aftermath of their horrible experiences that landed them in the support group. I felt the instant loss of Adrienne, grieving her very early demise. Hendrix really doesn’t waste any time getting the action and chaos going. 

I appreciated the social commentary on how we view violence against women as entertainment. It’s fucked up, yet I myself thoroughly enjoy learning about true crime- having watched more YouTube videos and Netflix adaptations than I’d like to admit. The women in this book are the storytellers, they control the narrative and are active participants in everything that happens. We learn about their monsters, but ultimately I don’t recall their names as much as I do Dani, Julia, Marilyn, Heather, and even Chrissy. And I think that will be a lasting impression.
Halloween is about Michael Myers. Nightmare on Elm Street is the story of Freddy Krueger. Texas Chainsaw Massacre is synonymous with Bubba. A lot of these franchises focus on the male perpetrators, that’s how they’re remembered. It’ll be interesting to see how the film adaption of Final Girl Support Group handles this. At the moment, I’m hopeful.

This was overall a great read that left very little room for one to breathe in between horrifying events. There was a part where I was genuinely frightened, which I didn’t expect. I’m very happy I decided to pick up this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Physical abuse, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief

avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

This book is bizarre, the mc is unlikable and highly unreliable, I usually like unreliable narrators, but this one just seems to have NO common sense. This book just never drew me in.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Medical content, Mental illness, Police brutality, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, and Violence

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Grief, and Panic attacks/disorders