Paula Hawkins is a former journalist who was reporting on business. She turned to writing in 2009, when she wrote a bit of romantic comedy fiction under the pen name Amy Silver. But she got a commercial breakthrough once she turned to darker literature – The Girl on the Train was first published in 2015 and became an instant success. This month a film, starring Emily Blunt, Luke Evans and others, came out just showing that, if a book is successful, the film will happen instantly.
The Girl on the Train is a mystery thriller about Rachel, who has lost her job, her family and her home, all she has is her fantasies about a couple she passes every day on the train. Until one day something shatters her view of these strangers and makes Rachel believe that she has actually played a role in a terrifying event that included Megan and Scott.
First of all I have to say that this book was nothing at all what I expected. Based on the huge popularity of the book, I thought that I will like it, maybe even love it, but it was just a meh for me and I have trouble seeing why people would say that it was amazing.
The characters seemed broken in weird psychological ways, which made it quite impossible to like them (can’t even speak of relating to them). Besides the way they acted very often was not logical at all and seemed like the author took the short way out of a problem or into a problem, because let’s be honest, getting drunk and doing something that will drive the plot forward, is not a very good way to develop the story, especially if it happens more then once and includes some very convenient blackouts. I didn’t like any of the characters and I didn’t like the way story was pushed forward.
The writing didn’t seem to be anything special really. I sometimes noticed bits that I disliked or some repetitiveness, but really, nothing worth pointing out, because it was just fine. Nothing brilliant, but there’s definitely worse work out there. I did however hate the fact that in some parts of the book (like train), it wasn’t clear what exactly is happening and if the author is keeping to her plan (like the direction of the train and exact place where’s Tom’s house and where’s Scott’s house), it seemed jumbled up and besides that I noticed a couple more plot holes there as well.
I find it also hard to believe all the things that were described to happen on the train. I read the the author lives in South London, which generally has a bad train service, which could explain a couple of descriptions… But the protagonist doesn’t live there and my train experiences have been completely different than the one’s described in the book.
I generally like mysteries and thrillers where I can work my mind and think about the one at fault, but I didn’t like this one. It seemed dragged out to me, predictable and with insufficient base to make a story out of. I am disappointed, but at the same time, I want to see the film, because I adore Emily Blunt and perhaps on screen it will all look different to me and I will actually like it.
This book received two stars from me, because it was interesting, but had a lot of things that did not agree with my taste and the length seemed too much for me (although it is a fairly small book). It’s really hard to say to whom I would like to suggest this book, because there doesn’t seem to be any logic in who is liking it and who isn’t. So give it a try and let me know, how and why you liked or disliked the book and/or the film!
Hope you enjoyed my review and as I already mentioned on twitter, I’m going on holiday next Tuesday, so light and easy plane read suggestions are welcome. Cheerio!
October 15, 2016 at 16:26
Good Review. I love when others have a totally different feel for a book than I did. Check out my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1205681395
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October 15, 2016 at 16:26
I just finished reading this book last night and I have to agree. It definitely wasn’t anything special and comes overhyped. Not one of my favourite reads this year. And definitely not much of a thriller. Oh well! Onto the next book!
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October 15, 2016 at 17:50
Yes, pretty much the same feelings here, but such a shame though. After all this love and hype to be so disappointed!
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October 15, 2016 at 17:15
I almost convinced myself to read this one despite my inner sceptic, but your review made me lean towards a “no” again. If you read Gone Girl, how does it compare?
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October 15, 2016 at 17:50
I haven’t read Gone Girl, but I actually just bought it to see what the fuss is about, so stay tuned, probably by November (after my holiday), I’ll put out a review for that as well.
I am the same, I am sceptical about all ‘bestsellers’, because it seems that I am a book hipster, who doesn’t go mainstream, so it’s hard to pick up a popular book.
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October 15, 2016 at 23:34
Thank you for being honest. I too am starting to think I’m more into any book that is not a bestseller. I might borrow “book hipster” if you don’t mind 🙂
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October 15, 2016 at 17:23
Great review. You’ve justified your criticism well 🙂 Everyone seems to be talking about it, but I’ve yet to pick up a copy myself. Randomly, did you know they set the movie in the States?
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October 15, 2016 at 17:48
Thank you! And no, I didn’t know that! After writing this review I saw the trailer and was wondering about the trains and houses, but the scenes were too short to think about the location. It’s quite disappointing and, obviously as someone living in London, want to see the film now less. 😦
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October 15, 2016 at 18:38
It’s crazy, isn’t it? I really have no idea why they would do that. It’s funny how we never see the reverse. The latest adaptation of, say, The Great Gatsby but in Birmingham.
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October 15, 2016 at 23:02
Totally agree- this book was pretty meh for me too- I don’t get all the crazy hype
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October 16, 2016 at 11:59
I agree with your review. I read it to see what the hype was about, but I don’t understand why it is so popular.
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October 16, 2016 at 19:29
I’m on the same page as you for the review but what truly bothered me was that it was predictable. I guessed it in the first 50 pages…. That sure made the book much less enjoyable
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October 16, 2016 at 21:17
It was an interesting book, wasn’t it? I can see how it would not appeal to some, but it was a very fast read. I somewhat figured it out halfway through, but the last couple of scenes kept me glued to the pages. It was fascinating to read a book in which none, and I mean, NONE of the characters were remotely likeable. They were pathetic, aggravating, dangerous, but I really couldn’t like any of them. Which made the read all that much more interesting. Great blog post! If you’re interested in my take on this book, here’s the link. I’d be interested in your thoughts. Thanks! https://foodinbooks.com/2016/04/01/the-girl-on-the-train-by-paula-hawkins/
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October 18, 2016 at 04:17
I didn’t want to read this book because it got a lot of comparisons to Gone Girl, which I also didn’t like, but I adore Emily Blunt too so I did. I couldn’t relate or like any of the characters either and I thought the plot and writing weren’t anything special but I liked it better than Gone Girl if only because it didn’t leave a bitter taste in my mouth.
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November 3, 2016 at 18:03
Reblogged this on ckbooksblog and commented:
I like this post because it points out a couple things: 1 – Not all best sellers are good books. 2 – I’m not the only one who’s critical of bestselling books!
Thanks Bookowly!
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November 6, 2016 at 03:05
I agree with your review. I read the book a while ago at the beginning of all the hype. I thought the author somehow missed an opportunity by taking the shortcuts you point out. It’s too bad because I did like the voice the author developed. And, much like Laarni pointed out in the above comment, like Gone Girl, you either liked the book or didn’t. There’s just not much middle ground to be thrilled over.
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December 11, 2016 at 23:15
I listened to the audiobook which was enjoyable as a time killer as I worked on other things (housework, assignments, etc.). I enjoyed the English accent of the readers and hearing different voices for each woman-the readers did a great job. But near the middle, I had an idea of how it would end and it did not surprise.
I saw the movie which I found to be on the same level as the book in terms of enjoyment, but Emily Blunt’s performance as Rachel was great aka she played the part of an alcoholic believably (for me at least). I feel it was over hyped as well, but I think it might have been coasting in the wake of Gone Girl (which I haven’t read nor have I seen the film adaptation).
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March 2, 2017 at 23:28
I just read this book and didn’t like it that much either.
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