My Best Friend’s Exorcism
Grady Hendrix’s novel My Best Friend’s Exorcism is a story about a young working class girl named Abby Rivers, a social outcast from Charleston, South Carolina. Abby becomes best friends with Gretchen Lang, a rich girl who is the only classmate to show up for Abby’s fourth-grade birthday party.
A book’s cover does not usually come up in a review, but this one is awesome. It is designed to resemble an old worn-out VHS tape, complete with the “be kind, rewind” sticker that used to be ubiquitous at video rental stores. The cover captures the novel’s tone perfectly.
A Retro Tale Of Demonic Evil
The novel is mainly set in 1988. Six years after Abby’s fateful birthday party, she and Gretchen are best friends and high school sophomores. Everything changes when the girls, accompanied by their friends Glee and Margaret, decide to throw a wild party at Margaret’s lake house.
After taking LSD and going skinny dipping, the girls notice that Gretchen has mysteriously disappeared. They eventually find her, but Gretchen is somehow different. Abby begins to notice strange behavioral changes in her best friend. Gretchen becomes sullen, cold, and manipulative.
Abby worries that her friend has been sexually assaulted (possibly by Gretchen’s father) but eventually concludes that Gretchen has been possessed by a demon. Hendrix leaves Gretchen’s true status ambiguous for most of the novel. We’re left guessing whether she is possessed or having a mental breakdown.
Naturally, none of the teachers and parents believe Abby. They think that she’s a troublemaker who is trying to sully Gretchen’s pristine reputation. Abby finally finds an adult willing to help her when she meets the eccentric Brother Lemon, a Christian bodybuilder who claims to be an amateur exorcist.
Abby isn’t comfortable with Brother Lemon’s controversial methods and ideology, but he seems to be her only hope. Abby isn’t sure who is more dangerous, the demon or the exorcist. She may be the only person who is capable of saving her friend.
An Easy But Disturbing Read
My Best Friend’s Exorcism isn’t going to win commendations for fancy writing, but Hendrix’s no-frills style is enough to get the job done. Hendrix sprinkles in a plethora of ’80s pop culture references to spice up the story. This is a past-faced novel written in a simple, accessible style.
Unfortunately, like other Hendrix novels, there is a lack of development for the supporting characters. Abby and Gretchen are great, but the rest of the cast are little more than barely drawn, one-dimensional caricatures.
This novel is definitely not for everyone. Readers should know what they’re getting into before diving in. My Best Friend’s Exorcism contains references and themes related to sexual assault, child abuse, and animal abuse.
Rating
My Best Friend’s Exorcism features a believable and often funny friendship. This relationship adds some much-needed heart and emotion to a bittersweet tale of betrayal, corruption, and evil.
Rating from 1 (avoid at all costs) to 10 (masterpiece): 7/10. Recommended for horror fans who enjoy the demonic possession subgenre.
