March 2025 Top Novel: “The Final Girl Support Group” by Grady Hendrix
March is a weird month—too cold for beach reads, too bright for heavy existential dramas. So, when I picked up The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix, I wasn’t expecting it to become my favorite book of the month, maybe even the year so far. But there’s something about Hendrix’s mix of dark humor, nostalgia, and genuinely sharp observations on survival that just hit at the right time.
For anyone unfamiliar, The Final Girl Support Group flips the classic horror movie trope, the “final girl” who makes it out alive, on its head. What happens after the bloodbath? After you survive your worst nightmare? Turns out, you meet in a support group with other women who’ve lived through something similar… and try to function. Until, of course, someone starts hunting them again.
It’s fast-paced, brutal, and oddly funny. Hendrix doesn’t just lean on slasher clichés; but he reimagines them, writing characters who feel real despite their absurdly traumatic backstories. And maybe that’s why I loved it so much—it reminded me, in the weirdest way, of the group chats I have with my closest friends. No, we’re not final girls (unless surviving college counts), but there’s something familiar about the way these women check in on each other, argue, fall apart, and show up anyway. Survival looks different for everyone, but sometimes it’s just about knowing someone else gets it.
I also respect a book that doesn’t try too hard to be profound. The Final Girl Support Group isn’t here to solve the meaning of life, but it is here to remind you that trauma doesn’t follow a three-act structure. There’s no clean ending. You’re still here, figuring it out, messing up, trying again.
By the last page, I felt like I’d been through a war with these women. And maybe that’s what made it stick with me this month. Life isn’t always a neat “happily ever after,” but it’s nice to think we all have our own version of a support group—whether it’s old friends, family, or the barista who knows your coffee order.
So yeah, if you’re into thrillers with heart, sharp dialogue, and a little self-aware gore, read this book. It’s a wild ride—but honestly, aren’t we all just trying to survive?