Imaginary Friend
Author: Stephen Chbosky
Published by: Orion Books
Pages: 710
Format: Hardback
My Rating ★★★★
Published by: Orion Books
Pages: 710
Format: Hardback
My Rating ★★★★
Imagine…
Leaving your house in the middle of the night. Knowing your mother is doing her best, but she’s just as scared as you.
Imagine…
Starting a new school, making friends. Seeing how happy it makes your mother. Hearing a voice, calling out to you.
Imagine…
Following the signs, into the woods. Going missing for six days. Remembering nothing about what happened.
Imagine…
Coming back a totally different person. Thinking you’re going crazy – or being the only one who knows what’s coming.
Imagine…
Something that will change everything… And having to save everyone you love.
Leaving your house in the middle of the night. Knowing your mother is doing her best, but she’s just as scared as you.
Imagine…
Starting a new school, making friends. Seeing how happy it makes your mother. Hearing a voice, calling out to you.
Imagine…
Following the signs, into the woods. Going missing for six days. Remembering nothing about what happened.
Imagine…
Coming back a totally different person. Thinking you’re going crazy – or being the only one who knows what’s coming.
Imagine…
Something that will change everything… And having to save everyone you love.
My thoughts
What if a little boy realised that for the last two weeks it was always the same face in the clouds looking back at him?
Single mother Kate Reese is on the run. Determined to improve life for her and her son, Christopher, she flees an abusive relationship in the middle of the night with Christopher at her side. Together, they find themselves drawn to the tight-knit community of Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. It's as far off the beaten track as they can get. Just one highway in, one highway out.
At first, Mill Grove seems like the perfect place to finally settle down. Then Christopher vanishes. For six awful days, no one can find him. Until Christopher emerges from the woods at the edge of town, unharmed but not unchanged. He returns with a voice in his head only he can hear, with a mission only he can complete: build a tree house in the woods by Christmas, or his mother and everyone in the town will never be the same again.
Chbosky’s latest book comes as a complete surprise. After the huge success of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, it is great to see the author branch out into horror fiction this time. Whilst I don’t generally read a lot of horror (I’m not very brave!) I immediately loved Imaginary Friend. It might just be the creepiest thing I’ve ever read, and the writing kept me gripped and on the edge of my seat throughout. I loved not knowing what was going to happen next. It’s such an addictive read. The chapters are very short and usually end with a sentence that leaves you shocked and wanting more.
There are so many great characters within this novel and I really enjoyed the way their storylines all intertwine and connect throughout the book. It was so satisfying to watch that happen.
The cast of characters in this book reminded me a little of those in Stranger Things. I mention Stranger Things because the book has a similar feel in pace and intrigue, some supernatural elements, the young cast of characters, the sheriff who plays a major role, and the mother who features as a main character as well. Christopher's journey was fascinating, full of twists and turns and nightmarish moments. All the characters had very interesting backstories and Christopher’s was definitely the most intriguing journey to watch.
I loved the way the author explored themes of adolescence and imagination within the book, and in those moments his writing will perhaps feel familiar to fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. It’s clear how much Chbosky enjoys writing about emotion and using young characters. This allows him to present such intense emotional reactions. Childhood is a powerful time of life and in Christopher’s complex world, there is so much to be afraid of.
Imaginary Friend is a horror novel with a lot of profoundly disturbing moments. It also provides a compelling portrait of small-town life, while taking readers along on this journey through a perfectly balanced blend of paranormal and realistic horror. The spiritual dimension of the plot does not become fully clear until the entire story has been told. I couldn’t read the book at night or it would freak me out too much to fall asleep afterwards. It’s truly that creepy.
Despite how different Imaginary Friend is to Stephen Chbosky’s first book, I think this novel has a lot of crossover appeal for younger readers who are ready to venture into adult fiction. This felt like a very accessible piece of horror fiction with a strong narrative and relatable plot. I can easily see this book becoming an entry point for YA readers who want to progress to the adult horror genre.
Imaginary Friend may have seemed a little daunting to me at first, but the time reading it was certainly well spent. This was an incredibly engaging narrative that pulled me in from the very first page. While I normally would struggle with long horror novels, I flew through this seven-hundred-page hardback incredibly quickly. This is an absorbing, original and genuinely surprising novel. A highly addictive read that I simply couldn’t put down!
Overall reaction:
What if a little boy realised that for the last two weeks it was always the same face in the clouds looking back at him?
Single mother Kate Reese is on the run. Determined to improve life for her and her son, Christopher, she flees an abusive relationship in the middle of the night with Christopher at her side. Together, they find themselves drawn to the tight-knit community of Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. It's as far off the beaten track as they can get. Just one highway in, one highway out.
At first, Mill Grove seems like the perfect place to finally settle down. Then Christopher vanishes. For six awful days, no one can find him. Until Christopher emerges from the woods at the edge of town, unharmed but not unchanged. He returns with a voice in his head only he can hear, with a mission only he can complete: build a tree house in the woods by Christmas, or his mother and everyone in the town will never be the same again.
Chbosky’s latest book comes as a complete surprise. After the huge success of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, it is great to see the author branch out into horror fiction this time. Whilst I don’t generally read a lot of horror (I’m not very brave!) I immediately loved Imaginary Friend. It might just be the creepiest thing I’ve ever read, and the writing kept me gripped and on the edge of my seat throughout. I loved not knowing what was going to happen next. It’s such an addictive read. The chapters are very short and usually end with a sentence that leaves you shocked and wanting more.
There are so many great characters within this novel and I really enjoyed the way their storylines all intertwine and connect throughout the book. It was so satisfying to watch that happen.
The cast of characters in this book reminded me a little of those in Stranger Things. I mention Stranger Things because the book has a similar feel in pace and intrigue, some supernatural elements, the young cast of characters, the sheriff who plays a major role, and the mother who features as a main character as well. Christopher's journey was fascinating, full of twists and turns and nightmarish moments. All the characters had very interesting backstories and Christopher’s was definitely the most intriguing journey to watch.
I loved the way the author explored themes of adolescence and imagination within the book, and in those moments his writing will perhaps feel familiar to fans of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. It’s clear how much Chbosky enjoys writing about emotion and using young characters. This allows him to present such intense emotional reactions. Childhood is a powerful time of life and in Christopher’s complex world, there is so much to be afraid of.
Imaginary Friend is a horror novel with a lot of profoundly disturbing moments. It also provides a compelling portrait of small-town life, while taking readers along on this journey through a perfectly balanced blend of paranormal and realistic horror. The spiritual dimension of the plot does not become fully clear until the entire story has been told. I couldn’t read the book at night or it would freak me out too much to fall asleep afterwards. It’s truly that creepy.
Despite how different Imaginary Friend is to Stephen Chbosky’s first book, I think this novel has a lot of crossover appeal for younger readers who are ready to venture into adult fiction. This felt like a very accessible piece of horror fiction with a strong narrative and relatable plot. I can easily see this book becoming an entry point for YA readers who want to progress to the adult horror genre.
Imaginary Friend may have seemed a little daunting to me at first, but the time reading it was certainly well spent. This was an incredibly engaging narrative that pulled me in from the very first page. While I normally would struggle with long horror novels, I flew through this seven-hundred-page hardback incredibly quickly. This is an absorbing, original and genuinely surprising novel. A highly addictive read that I simply couldn’t put down!
Overall reaction: