BOOK REVIEW: THE FINAL GIRL SUPPORT GROUP by GRADY HENDRIX



THIS REVIEW CONTAINS A SMALL SPOILER:

"Out there in the world it's a nonstop murder party and if I make the slightest mistake I'll wind up dead."

In spite of surviving trauma-inflicted atrocities, it's hard out there for a Final Girl--the stress, the paranoia, the survivor's guilt, the invasive media. That's why 22 years since their escape from death, Lynette Tarkington and the other survivors have been regulars in the Final Girl Support Group--for solidarity and therapy. But when one of the women misses a meeting, Lynette starts to suspect their secret safe-space has been compromised, the ladies are all targets, and someone wants them all dead.

As someone who LOVES slasher movies, this was a thrilling experience--recognizing nods towards movies like "Friday the 13th" and "Scream", following the story from the paranoid perspective of our protagonist, never knowing who to trust as the hero or the villain! Loads of fun! I loved Hendrix's dissection of the slasher sub-genre as our protagonist wonders why it's always the monsters who are immortalized and never the victims. I especially loved how each Final Girl's tragic backstory is actually based off a real slasher movie (I'll leave it to you to guess who was inspired by who when you read the book). Needless to say, lovers of meta-horror and the slasher genre will devour this one!

I did, however, have one dislike with this story, and it's based on a pattern I've noticed with Hendrix's books that has become harder and harder for me to overlook. Women of color are often poorly represented in Hendrix's badass feminist narratives. Like the all too familiar trope of the black character always dying first, Hendrix killed off the only black final girl in the beginning of the story. In fact, she doesn't even get to really be a character. We get word of her demise and we're given a few pages of her backstory and that's it. Her death kick-starts the plot and action, but I would've loved to have seen her kicking ass and being a part of the story with the other ladies. I feel like I'm constantly made to feel like an "other" when reading Hendrix's books and that's a shame because I want to love them to the fullest like everyone else. This isn't me as a WOC reader demanding Hendrix write a black lead into all of his books. This is just me wanting women of color to be better portrayed and represented IF they are included--not as the "magical negro" or "the help" or a tragic but fond memory after their deaths, but as a TRUE part of the narrative.

This one dislike DID NOT however ruin my overall experience with this book and I truly did enjoy it. If you are as much of a fan of slashers and Final Girls as I am, or if you’re simply a Hendrix fan, this book is definitely for you!

(4/5⭐)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts