Grady Hendrix Bestselling 3 Books Collection: How to Sell a Haunted House; The Final Girl Support Group; The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires
This Grady Hendrix Bestselling 3 Books Collection 1. How to Sell a Haunted House 9780593201268 2. The Final Girl Support Group 9780593201237 3. The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires 9781683691433
He's also the jerk behind the Stoker award-winning Paperbacks from Hell, a history of the 70's and 80's horror paperback boom, which contains more information about Nazi leprechauns, killer babies, and evil cats than you probably need.
And he's the screenwriter behind Mohawk, which is probably the only horror movie about the War of 1812 and Satanic Panic.
So for starters, the story itself is not terrible however there are several key factors (to me at least) that made this such a hard read.
The Story itself is not bad, it's somewhat predictable but there are a few curve balls that get thrown in to make you say "Oh wow, now that was unexpected", but nothing to really wow you. While the story involves tons of characters outside of the just the protagonist and the villain, some feel like they should have played a bigger part in the story and some did not have enough story time.
The characters themselves are ok, with the exception of the main protagonist. I found her to be very weak and annoying. Questioning everything, making dumb decisions in the book and just being plain annoying. The villain was ok, nothing outside of this world and I felt like they could have played on his strengths a bit more, with you expecting him to be a certain kind of villain and it not playing out that way is kind of annoying.
The writing itself was bearable until you hit a conversation between two characters. When two or more people were having a conversation it did feel like the story was written by a high schooler just trying to fill up a minimum character report. Every conversation was full of Patricia said, Patty said, John said for every sentence that was spoken. Which is very annoying when reading a long conversation filled with short sentences.
All in all, for me was a hard read, not well written, pretty predictable with weak characters that seem to have lucked out in the end.
A great murder mystery novel, with a hint of fantasy. The story really picks up about halfway through and kept me coming back.
I appreciated the depth of the main character and her husband. The author did a great job of creating negative feelings for the reader toward the husband.
The story, overall, is a good mystery, typical thriller story. The characters are easy to keep apart, have their own elements that add to the story, and are for certain ones that make each page need them. I love the normal “southern lady” dynamic each adds to the group. As you read on, the plot become predictable, but not in the classic Dracula storyline for vampire books. It’s witty, it’s graphic and it touches on some of the easiest horrors a mother or even a lady can deal with. Overall, I enjoyed it. The ending fell a bit flat for me, in hopes of more, but it was a good way to tie it all up. A good first read for any Grady fans
The first 14 chapters had me almost DNF but I’m so glad I stuck in there. It just kept getting better and better. The focus really was on the lives of the women in the book club and not so much the story of the vampire. It was a down to earth story that touches on sexism, racism, and the dynamics of a marriage in this southern town. There are a few triggers such as rape and children getting abused. I really enjoyed listening to this book on audio! I loved the different voices and accents. It helped me get fully immersed.
Genuinely one of my favorite books. Wow- that was such a wild ride. I never typically have a physical reaction to something in a book, but this one had my jaw open for DAYS. I had to close it and sit down on my couch for DAYS as well, just to process what I had read. So much fun, one of Grady Hendrix's best works by far. 10/10
This book had great potential. I loved what the book was about but I found myself getting bored as the story was dragged out. It could have been condensed or more drama in the book would have kept my attention.
Meh. I wanted to love this book so bad! After reading Hendrix’s “How to Sell a Haunted House,” I wanted this one to be just as campy! I did enjoy the dark humor, but the story was so long and drug out that it became boring. 2.5 ⭐️
What a shitty book. Take my favorite literary character and turn him into a rapist and child molester. The author couldn’t rely on good writing and had to resort to violence against women and children. How over done. Everything I hate about humanity is in this book. Yay. What a waste of my time.
One of the best books I've read so far! A innovative, well thought and well written story. Really great character evolution that makes you feel the 90's! If you like that area (and badass women) you should totally read it!!
A little predictable, a little silly; just a very typical Grady book. I laughed, I shuddered, I rolled my eyes — it’s all the campy delight you can expect.
Some of Hendrix's best work. It deserves all the praise it gets. Great insight into friendship and the importance of having a village because you might need help slaying a vampire.