The Girl On The Train Review

Sunday, 21 August 2016

Hello everyone! 

Recently I have been seriously flexing my reading muscles and getting into a lot of books. Last week alone I read 8 books! Yep, that's a crazy number of books. I think this month's reading wrap up may have to be done in two parts. One of the most well known books of those I read was The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins :-) 


The Girl On The Train caused quite the literary storm when it first hit the shelves, selling record numbers of copies throughout the world and quickly signing up for the making of a movie. People were calling it the thriller of the year and even now the hype hasn't died down! I put it off for quite a while as I didn't want various reviews and the extreme hype to colour my reading of it, so I finally got around to it last week. 

First I have to say it is a very unique book, following three different female voices at various points in time. It starts out the same way as many other thrillers with the disappearance and subsequent location of a woman's corpse. The unique aspect to this story is that the main narrator Rachel, aka the girl on the train, is a drunk. Any opinions or memories she gives are unreliable and cloudy. Megan is another unreliable narrator, she suffers from quite a few mental health issues and seems to have a very shady past. The final narrator, Anna, could be deemed unreliable too in that she is half paranoid and feels harassed by Rachel "stalking" herself and her husband. I love an unreliable narrator, it leaves you guessing throughout the entire story. 

Rachel used to have it all: the husband, the house, the great job in London and then she started drinking. Fast forward a few years and she is living with an old university friend, faking going into work by getting the same train everyday and constantly harassing her ex-husband with his new wife Anna and their baby. As Rachel gets her train she goes past her old house every day, she also passes their neighbours whose lives she loves to fantasise about. Those lives are far from the perfect they seem and when Megan disappears Rachel is pulled into a murder investigation. How do we as readers know it wasn't her acting out of jealousy? How can she know that? As she goes deeper into hot water her life unravels, as does the life of Anna. 

This book is more than just a murder mystery, it is also an incredibly in depth psychological thriller. I really enjoyed reading it, although I guessed the ending much earlier on than I thought I would, carrying on reading to find out if I was right. Maybe I have read too many thrillers? That aside, it is a fast paced and gripping novel. I think it will translate so well to cinema and will continue to enthral audiences. I would give this 3.5 stars, purely because I guessed the ending, but still enjoyed going to the finish. 

Have you read this? Let me know what you thought in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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8 comments :

  1. I love thrillers and I haven't read one in a while so this sounds really great! I've heard a lot about this book!
    Aleeha xXx
    http://www.halesaaw.com/

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    1. I hope you enjoy it :-) Try not to let all the hype, opinions and reviews cloud your reading experience!
      xoxo

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  2. Everybody keeps talking about this book, I must read it!
    xx
    LA VEINE

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  3. This book sounds intriguing. I haven't read it but I believe I had seen it on television possibly once. When you mentioned that you've read EIGHT books in a week, to me it meant that I just need to read more!

    PS: Found your blog via someone else's blog.
    #sweetreats xxx
    www.bakingboutiquebirds.blogspot. co.uk/

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    1. Haha I know eight is a lot, but I was on a week off so I was really reading loads. I don't normally read that much! This book is really good :-) I hope you enjoy reading it!
      xoxo

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  4. I read this book a while ago and I loved it! I can't believe you guessed the ending, haha! Maybe you do read too many thrillers (or I read too less). I did not see that ending coming lol! I'm excited to see the film. :)

    Nicole | In The Life of NM

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed it :-) I was a little surprised that I had guessed right, but I think it is force of habit from reading too many of the same type of books! I might read less of them so I get to have more surprises! I can't wait for the movie either, it will be so fantastic!
      xoxo

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