Thursday 15 January 2015

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins


What They Say:

YOU DON'T KNOW HER. BUT SHE KNOWS YOU.
Rear Window meets Gone Girl, in this exceptional and startling psychological thriller
'Gripping, enthralling - a top-notch thriller and a compulsive read' 
S J WATSON, bestselling author of Before I Go To Sleep
Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She's even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. 'Jess and Jason', she calls them. Their life - as she sees it - is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.
And then she sees something shocking. It's only a minute until the train moves on, but it's enough.
Now everything's changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she's only watched from afar.
Now they'll see; she's much more than just the girl on the train.
What I Say:
I would like to thank Transworld Publishing for approving me on NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

As you all know I’m not a thriller reader, preferring chick lit or fantasy.  I had heard so many wonderful comments about this book that I thought I would stick my toe in the world of thrillers and give this a read.

The story is told from the point of view of the three main female characters, Rachel, Megan and Anna.

Rachel is the main lead character but she isn’t your typical main character, she is very flawed with so many problems that I wouldn’t know where to start, she passes the same houses every day and gazes at a couple whose life she wishes she had, thinking everything is perfect.  ‘Jess and Jason’s’ life is far from the perfect picture in her head, catching a glimpse one day in passing takes Rachel on a voyage of discovery, not just about Jess and Jason but about herself, her past and her alcohol addiction.

I have read that someone found this hard to get into, what I found was that it is a little confusing to start offwith as it switches between main characters, and also years, this all becomes clear later in the book and it is a unique way of showing the background to a story without it being told to another character in the book.  I ended where I really enjoyed how the story was told in this way, it was confusing but in a good way.

So what do I think of it? Especially given that I’m not into reading thrillers, I did enjoy the story on the whole and the more I got into it I wanted to find out what had happened.  I was gripped by the story and the twists and turns in parts had my head spinning.

Would I read any more thrillers? Yes, I would.  This is a tense, gripping story that had me on the edge of my seat, I was intrigued with what would happen next always wondering who?   An excellent debut and I will look out for more books by Paula.  I think anyone that loves a good thriller will really enjoy this book.  I’m off back to chick lit and fantasy for now but will be dipping my toe in to more thrillers this year.


About The Author

Paula Hawkins worked as a journalist for fifteen years before turning her hand to fiction.

Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989 and has lived there ever since. The Girl on the Train is her first thriller.


No comments:

Post a Comment