Tag / Grady Hendrix

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Book 43 (of 52) – Witchcraft For Wayward Girls

Grady Jendrix – Witchcraft for Wayward Girls

In the late 1960s, unwed pregnant girls are sent to Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, hidden away until they give birth and are forced to give up their babies for adoption.  When four of the girls sneak out into the woods behind the home, they encounter a witch who promises to give them their life’s desire if they swear fealty to her.  When it comes time to pay up, however, they can’t live up to their commitments, causing the witch and her cover to go on the offensive.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls is the latest from Grady Hendrix.  He uses the trappings of the horror genre to look at the true horrors placed upon these girls prior to the passage of Roe v Wade, stripped of their ability to choose what happened to their baby and sent away from any and all support systems because of their so-called shame.  I look forward to seeing what he comes up with next.

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Prolific Authors – Four Books

It is time once again to take a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, I’m once again on pace to set a new record for books read in a year, so I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August of this year. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 114 books, so there should be some movement over the past two years.  Without further ado, it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much over the years.  We continue today with the fourteen authors I’ve read two times, up four from two years ago.

Scott Adams

The now-cancelled creator of Dilbert, who can’t seem to help himself from spouting racist takes on Twitter, Adams used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

Suzanne Collins

A return to the world of the Hunger Games brought Collins back to my reading list in 2024.

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned into one of my favorite authors, though she still hasn’t written a new full-length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

The Book of Lost and Found – Lucy Foley

Lucy Foley

A recent favorite, Foley, a New York Times best seller, has shown up annually since 2021 until this year, although there are still five months to go.

Diana G. Gallagher

The author, who passed away in 2021, can credit the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for all four of her entries, the most recent of which I read in 2011.

Lee Goldberg

A writer for the Monk television series who went on to pen a series of tie-in novels about the show.

Megan Goldin

The former Reuters correspondent first appeared on my radar in 2021 with her debut, The Escape Room.

The Blue Hour – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins

The best-selling author of The Girl on the Train, her latest novel was released last year and read in early 2025.

Greer Hendricks

After spending two decades as an editor at Simon & Schuster, she has teamed up with Sarah Pekkanen for four novels, which I’ve read one annually starting in 2020 until this year.

Grady Hendrix

Winner of a 2018 Bram Stoker Award, the horror novelist debuted on my reading list with The Final Girl Support Group in 2021.

Carrie Soto Is Back – Taylor Jenkins Reid

Taylor Jenkins-Reid

I first came her work thanks to her smash Daisy Jones & The Six.  Her latest is currently on my waitlist at the library, so she will continue to move up this list.

Minka Kent

Two new reads in 2024, The Stillwater Girls and Unmissing, push her up this list.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

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2023: The Year In Books

As 2023 comes to a close, my third full year of remote working, I managed to far surpass my previous records by completing a whopping 59 books, four books more than my previous high from last year and my third consecutive year completing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge.  I completed the challenge in late November and surpassed last year’s total in mid-December.  I read (or listened) to 21,394 pages, by far my highest total of all time and only the fourth time I’ve passed 10,000.

Of those books, eleven were non-fiction and, of the remaining 48 novels, only four were tied to a TV show, either as the source material or as a tie-in.  None of the books came out of my dwindling “to-read” drawer, with 53 e-books and two audiobooks.  I continued to take advantage of my library card, which helped me procure 44 of the books I consumed throughout the year.

Over 61% of the books I read this year were by authors I had read before. The 22 authors that I read for the first this year were:

Selma Blair Stacy Willingham Gillian McAllister Chuck Klosterman
Gabrielle Zevin Ronan Farrow Matthew Perry Amor Towles
Jason Rekulak Emily St. John Mandel Bonnie Garmus Thomas Mullen
Naomi Hirahara Maitland Ward Busy Phillips Elliot Page
Jinwoo Chong Maureen Ryan Minka Kelly Britney Spears
Emily Henry Rebecca Makkai

Jennifer McMahon, Karin Slaughter, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Erle Stanley Gardner, Grady Hendrix, Jeffery Deaver, Laura Lippman, Ruth Ware, and Stacy Willingham were the only authors that I read multiple titles from during 2023.

18 of the books I read were released this year, while only five of them were released last century, with the oldest first published in 1934.

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Prolific Authors Wrap Up

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through October. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 118 books, so there could be some movement over the past two years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we wrap things up with a look back at the 97 authors I’ve read more than once.

Largest Increase (since 2021)

The Silent Wife – Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter – 6
Erle Stanley Gardner – 5
Jeffrey Deaver – 4
Grady Hendrix – 4
Richard Osman – 3
Alex Finlay – 3
Taylor Jenkins Reid – 3

Largest Increase (since 2011)

The Skin Collector – Jeffery Deaver

Jeffrey Deaver – 14
Erle Stanley Gardner – 14
Richard Castle – 13
Karin Slaughter – 12
Mary Kubica – 8

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Prolific Authors – 4 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since I’ve far surpassed my “normal” reading output the last three years, I thought it would be nice to once again take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through the start of October. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 118 books, so there could be some movement over the past two years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  We continue today with the ten authors I’ve read four times, an increase of four over the past two years.

Scott Adams

The now-cancelled creator of Dilbert, who can’t seem to help himself from spouting racist takes on Twitter, Adams used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

The Big Nowhere – James Ellroy

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned in to one of my favorite authors, though she hasn’t written a new full length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

Rebecca Forster

One of my first Kindle finds, I’ve read the first four entries in her Witness series.

Diana G. Gallagher

The author, who passed away in 2021, can credit the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for all four of her entries, the most recent of which I read in 2011.

You Are Not Alone – Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Greer Hendricks

After spending two decades as an editor at Simon & Schuster, she has teamed up with Sarah Pekkanen for four novels, which I’ve read one annually starting in 2020.

Grady Hendrix

Winner of a 2018 Bram Stoker Award, the horror novelist debuts thanks to the four novels I’ve read over the past three years, starting with The Final Girl Support Group in 2021.

Kimberly McCreight – Reconstructing Amelia

Kimberly McCreight

A New York Times bestselling author thanks to her debut novel, Reconstructing Amelia, she has been a steady presence since 2013.

Sarah Pekkanen

She has teamed up with Greer Hendricks for four novels, one of which I’ve read one annually since 2020.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

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Book 15 (of 52) – How To Sell A Haunted House

How To Sell A Haunted House – Grady Hendrix

When Louise gets the call that her parents have died in a car crash, she returns to her childhood home.  She was unprepared for all the things that awaited her, including her brother, a lifetime of secrets, and a not-so-innocuous puppet.  When the puppet somehow finds itself attached to her daughter’s arm back in San Francisco, Louise realizes she needs to do whatever she can to break her family’s cycle of grief.

How To Sell A Haunted House, the latest entry from Grady Hendrix, tackles the creepy possessed doll (or puppet) genre.  it was an enjoyable read that avoided some of the misgivings I had with some of Hendrix’s earlier works.  I’m sure to be on board with whatever he comes up with next.

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2022: The Year In Movies Part 2

129 different people starred in the movies I saw last year (starring in being the first two named stars, a tradition dating back to the old Chicago Tribune TV guide which populated the early days of my database), and a whopping seven of them were in more than one film.  Those seven thespians are:

Films Per Actor Per Year

Actor Name Films
Gerard Butler 2
Daniel Craig 2
Elsie Fisher 2
Elizabeth Olsen 2
Jenna Ortega 2
Aubrey Plaza 2
Chris Pratt 2

Now let’s take a look at the remaining movies that I saw in 2022, following up on the previous Friday’s post.

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)
Will Ferrell returns as anchorman Ron Burgandy, who has moved to New York and reunited his news team for 24-hour cable news.

Emily The Criminal (2022)
A young woman turns to a life of crime in order to pay off her student loans.

The Omen (1976)
The legendary horror film about Damien, the devil’s child.

Before I Fall (2017)
A high school girl relives the same day over and over again until she realizes what she needs to do to get it right.

Everybody Wants Some!! (2016)
A comedy about a college baseball team in the early 80s.

Nope (2022)
Honestly, I can’t explain what happened in this.  Something about horses and aliens.

Black Bear (2020)
A movie about making a movie.

Damien: Omen II (1978)
Damien returns to continue his evil ways.

My Best Friend’s Exorcism (2022)
Based on the novel by Grady Hendrix, a teen tries to save her possessed friend.

The Final Conflict (1981)
The third, but not final, part of the Damien Omen trilogy.

Ticket To Paradise (2022)
George Clooney and Julia Roberts work to sabotage their daughter’s wedding.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
Benoit Blanc is back to solve another mystery when a group of people get together on a secluded island.

Thor: Love And Thunder (2022)
Thor reunites with Jane Foster and Valkyrie to battle a god-killer.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
An ace pilot returns to Top Gun after a long career to train a new set of fighter pilots for a special mission.

No Time To Die (2021)
Daniel Craig’s final go-around as James Bond.

Bullet Train (2022)
Five assassins aboard a swiftly-moving bullet train find out that their missions have something in common.

The Invitation (2022)
A young woman is invited to a wedding by newly found relatives, but quickly finds out that all is not what it seems.

Horizon Line (2020)
A young woman has to pilot a small plane when the pilot dies of a heart attack.

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Book 1 (of 52) – My Best Friend’s Exorcism

My Best Friend’s Exorcism – Grady Hendrix

When a girl spends a night alone in the woods after dropping acid for the first time, she comes out different.  Nobody seems to want to admit to it except her best friend, who keeps trying to find out what is happening.  When a group of Christian bodybuilders come to the school for an assembly, they open some minds to the truth: the girl has a demon living inside of her.  Can they get the demon out without killing the girl?

I saw the movie adaptation of My Best Friend’s Exorcism a few weeks back and, learning it was based on a novel by old friend Grady Hendrix, I added it to my hold list at the library.  A mixture of horror, young adult shenanigans, and 80s nostalgia, this was a decent enough tale, but one I may have enjoyed more given more time between reading it and seeing the movie.  What a way to kick of 2023.

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52 Books in 52 Weeks – 2023 Edition

A new year is upon us, and it is time to once again set a goal of reading a book a week for the entire year, totaling 52 books in 52 weeks.

Last year, for the second straight time, I passed my goal, ending with 55 books finished.  Prior to that, I’d had a low point of 8 books back in 2010 and a high point of 54 books.

Since I have nothing but time again this year, now that I am officially a remote worker, I’m going to give it another go.  I’ve got plenty of new books stocked up in the Kindle app on my iPad, not to mention one or two birthday and Christmas presents and my handy dandy library card, so I’ve got a good pile to start with.  As a reminder, the rules I am using are:

  • You can count a book as read as long as you have completed the book in 2023 and at least 50% of that reading takes place in 2023.
  • Any book counts as long as you’re not embarrassed to count it.
  • Poetry collections do indeed count.
  • Re-reading a book is okay as long as it isn’t done this year. (Reading Twilight twice in 2023 only counts as 1 read).
  • Audiobooks also count.

My first book of the year looks like it will be My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix.  Here’s hoping 2022 is another good year when it comes to books.

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Book 25 (of 52) – The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampires

The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampires – Grady Hendrix

Neglected by her husband, Patricia Campbell takes solace in her book club, reading true crime stories to bring excitement to their quiet Southern suburb.  However, when a mysterious new man shows up in town, Patricia starts to think he is responsible for killing black children on the “other” side of town.  Years later, the stranger has intertwined himself into the community, but Patricia continues to be suspicious.  When she comes upon some evidence which proves he may be more dangerous than she even thought, she rallies her book club to do what their husbands and the police won’t.

Released in 2020, The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampires is the second outing I’ve read from Grady Hendrix.  I found it to be a bit of a let down, both compared to his latest book, The Final Girl Support Group, and to the hype that surrounded this one.  Maybe it has been too long since I’ve read a true horror novel, but this one seemed a little off.  The vampire was not quite a vampire, but was certainly some type of supernatural creature.  It’s not that it was a bad story, but maybe just not what I was expecting.  Oh well, you can’t win them all.