Imaginary Friend
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo first 3 months
Amazon Prime member exclusive: get any 2 titles with your free trial. Terms apply.
Imaginary Friend
Buy Now for $45.44
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Christine Lakin
-
Written by:
-
Stephen Chbosky
About this listen
A young boy is haunted by a voice in his head in this "haunting and thrilling" (John Green) epic of literary horror from the number-one New York Times best-selling author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
Christopher is seven years old.
Christopher is the new kid in town.
Christopher has an imaginary friend.
We can swallow our fear or let our fear swallow us.
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 her child. 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, it 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.
Twenty years ago, Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower made audiences everywhere feel infinite. Now, Chbosky has returned with an epic work of literary horror, years in the making, whose grand scale and rich emotion redefine the genre. Listent to it with the lights on.
©2019 Stephen Chbosky (P)2019 Hachette AudioYou may also enjoy...
-
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
- Written by: Stephen Chbosky
- Narrated by: Noah Galvin
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 195
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 169
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 169
The critically acclaimed debut novel from Stephen Chbosky, Perks follows observant "wallflower" Charlie as he charts a course through the strange world between adolescence and adulthood. First dates, family drama, and new friends. Sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Devastating loss, young love, and life on the fringes. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it, Charlie must learn to navigate those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
This book gave me feelings I didn’t know I had
- By Gunay on 2019-09-09
Written by: Stephen Chbosky
-
Girl in Pieces
- Written by: Kathleen Glasgow
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Kathleen Glasgow
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 55
Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At 17 she's already lost more than most people do in a lifetime. But she's learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don't have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you. Every new scar hardens Charlie's heart just a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed feelings
- By Alexis on 2019-06-04
Written by: Kathleen Glasgow
-
Horror Movie
- A Novel
- Written by: Paul Tremblay
- Narrated by: Ari Fliakos, Dani Martineck, Micky Shiloah, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 20
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 19
-
Story3.5 out of 5 stars 19
In June 1993, a group of young guerilla filmmakers spent four weeks making Horror Movie, a notorious, disturbing, art-house horror flick. The weird part? Only three of the film’s scenes were ever released to the public, but Horror Movie has nevertheless grown a rabid fanbase. Three decades later, Hollywood is pushing for a big budget reboot.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
No substance
- By Yuriy on 2024-10-06
Written by: Paul Tremblay
-
Nestlings
- Written by: Nat Cassidy
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Nat Cassidy
- Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 17
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 17
Ana and Reid needed a lucky break. The horrifically complicated birth of their first child has left Ana paralyzed, bitter, and struggling: with mobility, with her relationship with Reid, with resentment for her baby. That's about to change with the words any New Yorker would love to hear—affordable housing lottery. They've won an apartment in the Deptford, one of Manhattan's most revered buildings. Reid dismisses disturbing events and Ana’s deep unease and paranoia as the price of living in New York—people are odd—but he can't explain the needle-like bite marks on the baby.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Narration was good. Book was not
- By Dana Clow on 2024-06-20
Written by: Nat Cassidy
-
Incidents Around the House
- A Novel
- Written by: Josh Malerman
- Narrated by: Delanie Nicole Gill
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 51
To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddo, and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: “Can I go inside your heart?” When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the question over and over, Bela understands that unless she says yes, her family will soon pay. Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe, but other incidents show cracks in her parents’ marriage. The safety Bela relies on is about to unravel.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Decent
- By Jessa on 2024-10-01
Written by: Josh Malerman
-
The Haunting of Ashburn House
- Written by: Darcy Coates
- Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 5
Everyone knows about Ashburn House. They whisper its old owner went mad, and restless ghosts still walk the halls. They say it's the dwelling place of something cruel and sinister. But when Adrienne, desperate and in need of a place to stay, inherits the crumbling old mansion, she only sees it as a lifeline...until darkness falls.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
spine chilling listen
- By Lisa Layton on 2024-10-17
Written by: Darcy Coates
-
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
- Written by: Stephen Chbosky
- Narrated by: Noah Galvin
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 195
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 169
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 169
The critically acclaimed debut novel from Stephen Chbosky, Perks follows observant "wallflower" Charlie as he charts a course through the strange world between adolescence and adulthood. First dates, family drama, and new friends. Sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Devastating loss, young love, and life on the fringes. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it, Charlie must learn to navigate those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
This book gave me feelings I didn’t know I had
- By Gunay on 2019-09-09
Written by: Stephen Chbosky
-
Girl in Pieces
- Written by: Kathleen Glasgow
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Kathleen Glasgow
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 55
Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At 17 she's already lost more than most people do in a lifetime. But she's learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don't have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you. Every new scar hardens Charlie's heart just a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Mixed feelings
- By Alexis on 2019-06-04
Written by: Kathleen Glasgow
-
Horror Movie
- A Novel
- Written by: Paul Tremblay
- Narrated by: Ari Fliakos, Dani Martineck, Micky Shiloah, and others
- Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 20
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 19
-
Story3.5 out of 5 stars 19
In June 1993, a group of young guerilla filmmakers spent four weeks making Horror Movie, a notorious, disturbing, art-house horror flick. The weird part? Only three of the film’s scenes were ever released to the public, but Horror Movie has nevertheless grown a rabid fanbase. Three decades later, Hollywood is pushing for a big budget reboot.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
No substance
- By Yuriy on 2024-10-06
Written by: Paul Tremblay
-
Nestlings
- Written by: Nat Cassidy
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Nat Cassidy
- Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 17
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 17
Ana and Reid needed a lucky break. The horrifically complicated birth of their first child has left Ana paralyzed, bitter, and struggling: with mobility, with her relationship with Reid, with resentment for her baby. That's about to change with the words any New Yorker would love to hear—affordable housing lottery. They've won an apartment in the Deptford, one of Manhattan's most revered buildings. Reid dismisses disturbing events and Ana’s deep unease and paranoia as the price of living in New York—people are odd—but he can't explain the needle-like bite marks on the baby.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Narration was good. Book was not
- By Dana Clow on 2024-06-20
Written by: Nat Cassidy
-
Incidents Around the House
- A Novel
- Written by: Josh Malerman
- Narrated by: Delanie Nicole Gill
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 51
To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddo, and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: “Can I go inside your heart?” When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the question over and over, Bela understands that unless she says yes, her family will soon pay. Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe, but other incidents show cracks in her parents’ marriage. The safety Bela relies on is about to unravel.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Decent
- By Jessa on 2024-10-01
Written by: Josh Malerman
-
The Haunting of Ashburn House
- Written by: Darcy Coates
- Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 5
Everyone knows about Ashburn House. They whisper its old owner went mad, and restless ghosts still walk the halls. They say it's the dwelling place of something cruel and sinister. But when Adrienne, desperate and in need of a place to stay, inherits the crumbling old mansion, she only sees it as a lifeline...until darkness falls.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
spine chilling listen
- By Lisa Layton on 2024-10-17
Written by: Darcy Coates
-
Ghost Story
- Written by: Peter Straub
- Narrated by: Buck Schirner
- Length: 22 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 77
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 67
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 67
For four aging men in the terror-stricken town of Milburn, New York, an act inadvertently carried out in their youth has come back to haunt them. Now they are about to learn what happens to those who believe they can bury the past - and get away with murder. Peter Straub's classic best seller is a work of "superb horror" ( Washington Post Book World) that, like any good ghost story, stands the test of time - and conjures our darkest fears and nightmares.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The narrator has never met a woman
- By Rebecca Calder on 2020-07-21
Written by: Peter Straub
-
The Reformatory
- A Novel
- Written by: Tananarive Due
- Narrated by: Joniece Abbott-Pratt
- Length: 20 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 19
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 16
Twelve-year-old Robbie Stephens, Jr., is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, a reformatory, for kicking the son of the largest landowner in town in defense of his older sister, Gloria. So begins Robbie’s journey further into the terrors of the Jim Crow South and the very real horror of the school they call The Reformatory.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Absolutely beautiful gut destroyingly beautiful
- By Amie on 2024-03-29
Written by: Tananarive Due
-
Keep It in the Family
- Written by: John Marrs
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden, Steve West, Simon Mattacks, and others
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
Mia and Finn are busy turning a derelict house into their dream home when Mia unexpectedly falls pregnant. But just when they think the house is ready, Mia discovers a shocking message scored into a skirting board: I WILL SAVE THEM FROM THE ATTIC. Following the clue up into the eaves, the couple make a gruesome discovery: their home was once a real-life murder house, with the evidence still concealed within the four walls.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Not his best
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-09-10
Written by: John Marrs
-
The Whisper Man
- Written by: Alex North
- Narrated by: Christopher Eccleston
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 193
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 161
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 161
After the sudden death of his wife, Tom Kennedy believes a fresh start will help him and his young son Jake heal. A new beginning, a new house, a new town. Featherbank. But the town has a dark past. Twenty years ago, a serial killer abducted and murdered five residents. Until Frank Carter was finally caught, he was nicknamed "The Whisper Man," for he would lure his victims out by whispering at their windows at night.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Phenomenal
- By Ash Erin on 2019-12-31
Written by: Alex North
-
The Book of Accidents
- A Novel
- Written by: Chuck Wendig
- Narrated by: Xe Sands, George Newbern
- Length: 16 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 79
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 72
Long ago, Nathan lived in a house in the country with his abusive father—and has never told his family what happened there. Long ago, Maddie was a little girl making dolls in her bedroom when she saw something she shouldn’t have—and is trying to remember that lost trauma by making haunting sculptures. Long ago, something sinister walked in the mountains and the coal mines of their hometown in rural Pennsylvania. Now, Nate and Maddie Graves are married, and they have moved back to their hometown with their son, Oliver. And now what happened long ago is happening again...to Oliver.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
My thoughts
- By Patty on 2021-08-12
Written by: Chuck Wendig
-
The Last House on Needless Street
- Written by: Catriona Ward
- Narrated by: Christopher Ragland
- Length: 12 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 147
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 130
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 130
In a boarded-up house on a dead-end street at the edge of the wild Washington woods lives a family of three. A teenage girl who isn’t allowed outside, not after last time. A man who drinks alone in front of his TV, trying to ignore the gaps in his memory. And a house cat who loves napping and reading the Bible. An unspeakable secret binds them together, but when a new neighbor moves in next door, what is buried out among the birch trees may come back to haunt them all.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Really well written and performed
- By Colin Tipton on 2023-04-16
Written by: Catriona Ward
What the critics say
"Imaginary Friend has been a long time coming. And like a fine Bordeaux, it rewards that wait in countless ways. This is a fearsome, remarkably ambitious novel that breaks through the boundaries of the horror genre to become epic - in all the best senses of the word." (Lincoln Child, number-one New York Times best-selling coauthor of Verses for the Dead and City of Endless Night)
"If you aren't blown away by the first fifty pages of Imaginary Friend, you need to get your sense of wonder checked." (Joe Hill, number-one New York Times best-selling author of The Fireman and NOS4A2)
"Imaginary Friend is a sprawling epic horror novel that hearkens back to the classics of the 1970s Golden Age, but, like Stranger Things, with a twinkle in its malevolent eye. Enormous, scary fun." (Dan Chaon, best-selling author of Ill Will)
What listeners say about Imaginary Friend
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story2 out of 5 stars
- Lucy
- 2019-10-12
Couldn't finish it, too many similes!
I tried really hard to finish this book. I got about halfway through before the amount of similes that the author kept using got the best of me. I just couldn't bear another 10 hours of simile overuse. I'm pretty sure the book would be only about half the length if all of the similes were removed. The storyline itself was quite interesting, I think that's what kept me going for so long.
The narrator was wonderful though, she did such a fantastic job of all the different characters and her voice was absolutely a pleasure to listen to.
I wish that whoever edited this story had cautioned the author against the overuse of similes. It really would have made the book so much better and much more enjoyable. As it was I was just too irritated to finish it and had to return it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Christy Robinson
- 2019-10-22
Excellent, pulled me right in!
Loved this book right from the start. The narrator does an amazing job! This is a definite must listen!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- Nathaneal Vail
- 2020-02-04
Amazing until the last hour
Really enjoyed this book! The narration was great and the story was very well written. I was really into the book up until the last hour or two when it started to drag on I skipped to the end to know what happened because by this point I lost interest. The first 3/4 of the book were amazing and my favourite since the Institite by Steven King
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 2020-07-17
best story I've heard in a long time
Why has this not been made into a movie or a tv show would make a great horror mystery on netflix. the author needs to release more like this amazing couldn't stop listening.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story2 out of 5 stars
- Nathan Epp
- 2019-11-13
Too Long
I was going to give it 4-5 stars but then it kept going and going ad nauseum. The story could have been told in half the length.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Craig W.
- 2020-10-15
long book and holds you to the end
loved it. one of the best i have listened to.hoping he writes more books or they translate his other titles. the narrator was the best i loved the way she read the book. never once got lost like most of the narrators when doing multiple characters
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story2 out of 5 stars
- Prya McCabe
- 2019-12-16
Narrator makes the story
The best part of this book by far is the narrator. Like other reviewers have said, this entire book could easily have been half the length and be stronger for it. The author seems to be immensely proud of his comparisons, because once one is made you will hear it at least once every chapter, which ends up being over 100 times (blue moon, frogs boiling, two-by-fours like baby teeth, floods, father son holy ghost,etc, etc). It has heavy Christian themes throughout, and in the final chapters leaves gaping plotholes in order to fully embrace the religion theme. I'm glad I bought this, just so that I can find more by the narrator, but I'll be skipping works by this author.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Raven C.
- 2019-12-13
Intense, scary and thrilling!
My new favorite book and a phenomenal performance by Christine Lakin. Loved every minute of it!!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Scott Mears
- 2020-02-27
Good story but too long!
I read a lot of the reviews before starting this book myself, and I have to agree with most of them.
While the story is good, I enjoyed most of the characters and the plot overall, it was too long! By the time I was half-way through, I was ready for it to end. It just went on and on. The ending, when it finally happened seemed rushed and messy.
The narration was great and Christine did a fantastic job with the different voices and wasn't monotone at all. She was very engaging and kept me going, even when I was getting bored after the second half.
I am big fan of horror/thrillers, and while the story was good, this book could have been so much better if it was cut down---Less similes, not as many characters and a cleaner ending. I won't be re-reading/listening to this one and I'm unsure if I'll look at other books by this author.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- Kyle
- 2020-05-03
great story, I just couldn't get into it
I struggled to finish this one, though I tried several times. I think that the story was good as I was captivated at the beginning and was very interested. though somewhere in the middle I began to lose my drive to listen.
overall great story just wasn't for me !
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!