About the Book
My Best Friend's Exorcism is a horror-comedy novel set in 1988 Charleston, South Carolina. The story follows Abby and Gretchen, two high school sophomores who have been close friends since childhood. After a late-night skinny-dipping trip goes wrong, Gretchen starts behaving strangely, withdrawn, cruel, and at the center of increasingly disturbing incidents. Abby becomes convinced something is genuinely wrong, and not in any ordinary teenage sense.
Grady Hendrix plays the premise mostly straight while leaning hard into the era. The novel is saturated with 1980s pop culture references, the kind that serve as both texture and emotional shorthand. Friendship bracelets, cassette tapes, TV evangelists, and aerobics classes all show up as part of the fabric of Abby and Gretchen's world. This isn't nostalgia for its own sake; the decade's specific cultural anxieties around Satanic panic feed directly into the plot.
The central conflict is less about whether Gretchen is actually possessed and more about what Abby is willing to do, and sacrifice, to hold onto her friend. The horror elements are genuine, some scenes are genuinely unsettling, but the book's emotional core is a portrait of adolescent female friendship under pressure. Readers who come for the horror will find it, and those who come for the friendship drama will find that too.
Narration & Audio Performance
Emily Woo Zeller is an experienced audiobook narrator with a wide range of credits across genres, and she's a reasonable fit for this material. Her performance is consistent and clear, and she handles the shifts between comedic and darker moments without overselling either. The 1980s teen voice she adopts for Abby is believable without becoming a caricature, which matters in a book that could easily tip into parody.
Where Zeller is strongest is in the quieter emotional scenes, the moments where Abby is scared or grieving the friend she's losing. The horror sequences are delivered with appropriate restraint rather than theatrical escalation, which suits the book's tone. Character differentiation is adequate; Gretchen's gradual shift in behavior comes through in vocal texture changes, though some of the secondary characters blend together more than they would on the page.
Listeners sensitive to narrator-character mismatches should sample before committing. Zeller's style is measured and controlled, which works well for the book's pacing but may read as slightly flat during the more frenzied set pieces. On balance, this is a competent and functional narration that doesn't detract from the experience.
The Audible Verdict
My Best Friend's Exorcism is a well-constructed horror novel that translates reasonably well to audio. Emily Woo Zeller's narration is competent and keeps things moving, but it doesn't add much that the print version wouldn't give you on its own. The dense 80s pop culture references, which are central to how the book works, lose some of their visual punch in audio, since the print edition uses chapter headers and formatting to mirror the era's aesthetic. Worth a free trial credit; harder to justify as a paid one.
Listen on AudibleIs This Book a Good Fit for Audio?
The book's linear structure and consistent point of view make it a natural fit for audio. Abby is the sole narrative lens throughout, so there's no confusion tracking perspective shifts, and the plot moves forward in a clear, episodic rhythm that holds up well across listening sessions. This is the kind of horror novel you can follow without visual aids.
The one meaningful limitation is formatting. The print edition of My Best Friend's Exorcism is designed to look like a high school yearbook, with chapter headers styled to resemble 1980s advertisements and cultural artifacts. That visual layer is entirely absent in the audio version. It's not essential to understanding the story, but it is part of what makes the print edition memorable. If you're drawn to the book partly for its aesthetic, the audio version will feel like a reduced experience.
For commuters, gym sessions, or any passive listening context, the audio version works fine. It's a plot-driven book with enough momentum to hold attention without demanding your full focus.
Popular Listener Questions
Is this suitable for listeners who don't normally read horror?
Yes, with some caveats. The horror is real, a few scenes are genuinely disturbing, but the book is also funny and grounded in a coming-of-age friendship story. Readers who enjoy John Hughes films but are curious about horror often respond well to this one.
Is this book part of a series?
No. It's a standalone novel. You can start and finish it without any prior Grady Hendrix reading.
Do you need to be familiar with 1980s pop culture to enjoy it?
Not strictly, but the book leans heavily on the era. The references are dense enough that listeners who lived through the 80s or have a strong familiarity with the period will get considerably more out of it.
Is the audiobook appropriate for younger listeners?
The book deals with themes of possession, bodily horror, and adolescent trauma. Some scenes are graphic. It's aimed at adults, though mature older teens who read horror will likely find it accessible.
Similar Audiobooks
Paperbacks from Hell
Also by Grady Hendrix, this nonfiction survey of 1970s and 80s horror paperbacks covers much of the cultural territory that inspired My Best Friend's Exorcism. A natural next listen for anyone who wants more from Hendrix.
Hendrix's 2021 novel operates in a similar space, horror with self-aware genre commentary and a female protagonist at the center. Fans of the 80s setting in Exorcism may appreciate the slasher-film lens here.
The Exorcist
The obvious comparison point for any possession narrative. Blatty's novel is played completely straight; listening to it alongside Hendrix's take shows how much of the same material each author works with and how differently they deploy it.
Dangerous Girls
A YA thriller about female friendship under extreme pressure. Listeners drawn to the relationship dynamics in My Best Friend's Exorcism rather than the horror elements will find similar emotional territory here.
Horrorstor
Hendrix's novel styled to resemble an IKEA catalog. If the yearbook design of My Best Friend's Exorcism appealed to you on the page, Horrorstor takes that visual concept even further, though again, the audio version loses the formatting.
Audiobook Details
| Title | My Best Friend's Exorcism |
|---|---|
| Author | Grady Hendrix |
| Narrator | Emily Woo Zeller |
| Genre | Horror Comedy |
| Year | 2016 |
| Publisher | Andrews McMeel Publishing |
| Abridged | Unabridged |
| Cast | Single narrator |
| Author-narrated | No |
Ready to listen?
My Best Friend's Exorcism is available on Audible and is a reasonable use of a free trial credit, particularly if 1980s horror-comedy is a genre you want to explore.
Open on Audible