My Best Friend's Exorcism

A Novel

De: Grady Hendrix

Narrado por: Emily Woo Zeller

A heartwarming story of friendship and demonic possession.

The year is 1988. High school sophomores Abby and Gretchen have been best friends since the fourth grade. But after an evening of skinny-dipping goes disastrously wrong, Gretchen begins to act...different. She's moody. She's irritable. And bizarre incidents keep happening whenever she's nearby.

Abby's investigation leads her to some startling discoveries - and by the time their story reaches its terrifying conclusion, the fate of Abby and Gretchen will be determined by a single question: Is their friendship powerful enough to beat the devil?

Like an unholy hybrid of Beaches and The Exorcist, My Best Friend's Exorcism blends teen angst, adolescent drama, unspeakable horrors, and a mix of '80s pop songs into a pulse-pounding supernatural thriller.

©2016 Grady Hendrix (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Part Horror, Part Comedy, Part 80's Thrill Ride

Where does My Best Friend's Exorcism rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I listened to this book in two sittings during a long road trip with my friend, and we kept busting out laughing or saying "ewww" or making faces throughout. It's one of the more entertaining stories I've listened to, both due to the way Grady Hendrix handles the topic (I mean, 80's "It" girls where one of them gets possessed? Come on!!) AND because the narration is more of a performance than someone reading to you.

What did you like best about this story?

My Best Friend's Exorcism strikes a good balance between horror, humor and friend-drama. It truly is "Beaches meets The Exorcist," as the synopsis states. Emily Woo Zeller puts a lot of emotion into the dialogue and as a narrator she has amazing comedic timing. I honestly think I would have missed some of the humor and playfulness in this book if I had bought the paper version (which I almost did)

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I don't think I could ever do that, but I did listen to it in two sittings, which is a first. It's just so entertaining.

Any additional comments?

If you prefer audiobooks with straight narration, I would pass on this one because the performance elements are so strong. But if you do pass and you were curious about this story, then DEFINITELY read the paper version!

Another reviewer mentioned that some lines of dialogue are very quiet and you have to turn up the volume to hear. We had to do the same thing but it wasn't a bother in the car. (This is an audio production thing, not the voice actor.) Turn it back down once the quiet part is over, because when the characters are loud, Emily is loud. As it should be :)

Lastly, I gave the story four stars instead of five for a couple reasons. It's written from Abby's point of view, and because of that we don't get to see things that happen to and around Gretchen (the girl who is possessed) unless Abby is present. There are some things I wanted to "see" firsthand in the story that either we never get to know, or we find out secondhand when Abby finds out. Also, I didn't always believe the way the different parents acted. But overall I loved it!

Terrified and loved it

I got this for the daily deal. It wound up being a great purchase.

Being a practicing Christian and having been raised in church, I was really skeptical about buying this as stories about demon possessions scare the hell out of me. However, I wanted to try something different; I was pleasantly surprised. The 80's it-girl narrative, a really authentic friendship, irresponsibly high school students and a paranormal threat more powerful than anything anyone could image all in one story? Seems like it could go really cliché but it wasn't. Abby and Gretchen's friendship was so really and sincere from start to finish. Their dedication to one and other brought tears to my eyes. The author made them so real and loveable. So when we see Gretchen start to spiral out of control, I felt like I was losing a close personal friend. The final chapters made me so emotionally conflicted. I was scared enough to want to rip out; but so invested I wanted to jump in and start praying with Abby. Which could only mean that it was a Great story.

Emily Woo Zeller had a great voice. Her delivery was perfect; she really committed to the emotional content. I really felt the high school 80's girl attitude wafting though my speakers

Excellent Re-Creation of the 80's

Despite being well past YA, I really enjoyed this book. Interesting and fully realized characters lent the story a reality beyond just the usual paranormal.
I am SO, SO thankful to the reviewer who warned about the sequence of the dog torture and killing. So happy I got to immediately fast forward without losing any of the story.
I especially loved the depiction of the 80's culture. Very fun.

Great story, annoying narrator.

This audiobook was recommended to me by a friend. I had no problems getting into the story; it definitely held my attention. The narrator, however, made listening difficult. Pauses after a sentence and "she/he said" made it sound like the later was a separate sentence. "I don't care what you think." Pause. "She said." It threw off the flow of the story and became increasingly annoying.

High School is Hell

An entertaining, funny, nostalgic and at times, very intense tale of friendship, possession and of course, high school, which can be pretty horrifying even without demonic possession. Hendrix does a fine of conjuring the era (the late '80s) and his '70s and '80s horror influences are up front and on display in some truly disturbing (and disgusting) scenes. I was moved by the ending, horrified by one particularly nasty sequence and involved with the characters, particularly Abby. A satisfying read!

Emily Woo Zeller's narration is top notch.

narrator was a little cartoony, but it worked

The narrator's voice could get pretty over the top and goofy at times, which annoyed me just a little bit at the beginning, but it really was a very good fit for the book and it wasn't long before I was won over. Plus she can do a killer Mickey Mouse impression, and I have nothing but respect for that.

Really Good Story Ruined by Bigotry

Great story. Would've been better without racist/homophobic elements that add absolutely nothing to the story.

Fun listen!

I really enjoyed the story, even when it turns quite cheesy towards the end! This is the third book I have listened to from this author, I really enjoy his dry humor and great characters in his books along with just enough creepiness! Horrorstor was great fun too!

Good and unexpectedly challenging

I generally have no interest in high school stories but really liked this.
Being raised in a weird born again Christian culture that was heavy on the patriarchal sexism, there were parts of this story that stirred me up, but since books rarely evoke strong emotions in me, I really enjoyed that. It made me think about religion and the 80s and the Satanic Panic.

A different kinda story

Funny and cute with a splash of excitement, bottom line two very best friends forever.