The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

 

GoodReads Summary:

Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.

And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel offers what she knows to the police, and becomes inextricably entwined in what happens next, as well as in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?

A compulsively readable, emotionally immersive, Hitchcockian thriller that draws comparisons to Gone Girl, The Silent Wife, or Before I Go to Sleep, this is an electrifying debut embraced by readers across markets and categories.

Review:

 This is a novel I picked up during my week of standardized testing... that was in April. To say the least school was hectic at the end of sophomore year, so my apologies for not posting anything since April. I finally got to finish this book at the beginning of summer, on the airplane rides coming to and from my first summer vacation. 

  

First off, this book isn't a real uplifting read. As you read in the summary, it is compared to Gone Girl so it's not full of hearts and rainbows. The main character is an alcoholic with a pathetic life (I'm not even trying to be brutal, I really can't describe her life any other way). Rachel finds some kind of solace in observing the lives of others that she romanticizes in her head; and, this unfortunately wraps her up in some insane murder mystery. Her character isn't particularly likeable, considering her lazy addiction prevents her from remembering the details of a murder, which is frustrating, obviously.

To tell the truth, I don't think any character was likeable. Anna, the new wife of Rachel's ex-husband, is a boring, slightly neurotic housewife with nothing to offer, but her adoration for the amazing life she's built for herself. And Megan, the stranger/murder victim is reckless (when she's alive, clearly) and manipulative. I think the characters were all developed quite well and I actually appreciate the fact that they were all kind of aggravating; because, they felt like real people.

Over all, I really enjoyed the read, because it reminded me how much I miss books and how much I like mystery-type novels. It took me a while to get through, but once you get into the words you don't want to stop until you figure it all out. This book is an adult novel, so I wouldn't recommend it for younger readers. 

To wrap this up, thank you all for being patient with me! I will be reading lots over the summer so I'll try to get a bunch of reviews up for you.