I honestly had no idea what to expect from this book. I was not a fan of Perks of Being a Wallflower but I could not resist reading a book with such a promising and amazingly creepy premise. Imaginary Friend is the story of a boy named Christopher who has just moved to a new town with his mother, Kate. Shortly after the move, Christopher goes missing in the woods for 6 days and reemerges a changed boy. Before he was a normal seven year old, dyslexic and struggling with school. After he is incredibly intelligent...and he can hear a voice in his head.
The first 15% or so of this book is one of the best openings I have ever read. Had the rest of the book maintained this tone, it would have easily been a 5 star read. There is just something so likeable about all of the characters and though it's weird to say in a horror novel, it's actually really comforting to read about their lives. There is still the undercurrent of things about to go wrong but it's so refreshing to read a horror book where no one is an asshole. It's a common horror trope and I didn't realise how sick of it I was until now.
It's a cliche to compare good horror to Stephen King but this honestly has a very similar feel and plot to a King novel, albeit with characters who aren't terrible people. The King quirks aren't present which helps create a unique voice, and I intend this comparison as a compliment rather than a criticism. It doesn't feel derivative, it feels exceptionally well-written.
Sadly I can't say much about what made it drop in rating except for that the plot ultimately just wasn't for me. The book becomes very focused on themes of religion and the horror elements become muddled and hard to follow. By the end I had little idea of what was going on and it made me disconnect from the work. This is mostly down to personal tastes so if you like more abstract horror or books with heavy themes, you may enjoy it more than me.
The only other thing I want to mention is there is a character called 'Special Ed'. This is initially introduced as a cruel nickname some bullies use but then the narrative continues to use it for no real reason. I just wanted to mention it as an odd choice.
Overall, Imaginary Friends is a solid book. I was surprised how engaging I found it given its length, and this was down to both the great writing style and characters. It is mostly the plot that lets it down in the end but I am glad I read it and I can see some readers really connecting with it.
Overall Rating:
.5
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