From the Bookshelf of Shut Up & Read…

The Girl on the Train

Paula Hawkins

Start date: June 1, 2015

Finish date: June 1, 2015

Discussion: Book of the Month

Discussion leader: Tanecia

Why we're reading this: June BOTM Pick
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What Members Thought

Mar 28, 2015 Carrie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: library, mystery-thriller, england

Have you ever driven by stretches of houses wondering what life was like behind those walls? Now imagine driving past them daily, the stories you can make up in your own mind of the people inside, their lives, even giving them names. What happens when you see something, something that changes how you think of these people. What do you do?

What do you do when you don't know who to trust? When everything is lie, or everything is a black hole because you can't bear the reality so you drink away the ...more

39 likes · Like · see review

Mar 22, 2016 Terri rated it liked it

Shelves: thrillers-suspense

Rachel is an alcoholic mess and to avoid her own issues, she fantasizes a perfect life for a couple she see most days when she passes their house on the train. Only no life is perfect and one day she sees something that shocks her and gets her involved in their life and a crime.

Overall, I liked the book. That said, my biggest issue was how unlikable every character was. I mean, REALLY unlikable. It certainly kept me from enjoying the book as much as I had hoped.

13 likes · Like · see review

Oct 15, 2014 Yzabel Ginsberg rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, arc-netgalley, crime

(I got an ARC through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

3.5 to 4 stars. Perhaps not the most original thriller ever for someone who's read a lot of such books already, but for me—since I seldom read that genre—it was an interesting story. Guessing who the culprit is turned out to be relatively easy, but this book is of the kind where the whodunnit doesn't really matter: it's how it happened, how and why the person got there, that is the most important part. The fact that the narrators (I got an ARC through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)

3.5 to 4 stars. Perhaps not the most original thriller ever for someone who's read a lot of such books already, but for me—since I seldom read that genre—it was an interesting story. Guessing who the culprit is turned out to be relatively easy, but this book is of the kind where the whodunnit doesn't really matter: it's how it happened, how and why the person got there, that is the most important part. The fact that the narrators are all more or less unreliable, especially Rachel, also add to the confusion, in a good way.

The story is told in first person, from three women's points of view, and each of those give a different insight and different sorts of tidbits, allowing to piece things together gradually. They're all flawed protagonists in their own ways, and this can be seen as either annoying or fascinating, depending on where you stand on the matter. Sometimes, they seemed pretty weak and clingy (as in, being unhappy about their lives but not exactly doing much to change things); on the other hand, I guess we all know that big changes in general aren't so easy to enact as it sounds, and so those protagonists are both relatable and slightly grating, because they might force us to face some problems of our own. (Had I read this book during another period in my life, I might have been uneasy, feeling like I was confronted with things I should be doing, but wasn't.)

Whether one ends up liking or disliking the protagonists doesn't really matter, because it's clear they aren't meant to be a hundred percent likeable, and that their roles are never all black or all white. Rachel's alcohol problem and disturbing voyeuristic side (watching people from the train, imagining what their lives may be, then wanting to make her own place in those lives...). Anna who acts all righteous but who still was the proverbial bull in a chine-shop. "Jess" whose boredom is understandable, but who also twists truths in her own narrative. "Jason" who may not be such the perfect husband. And so on.

I would probably not call this book "the next Gone Girl", though... but then, I don't like comparing novels in general in such a way. This one stands on its own. ...more

6 likes · Like · see review

Feb 07, 2015 Cooper rated it did not like it

If you liked Gone Girl, you'll like this book. Granted, I loathed Gone Girl to a greater degree, but this book had the same insipid, uninspiring plot line, and was filled with pathetic and uninteresting characters. I wish someone had told me of the similarity so I could have saved myself time and money. Rachel, the alcoholic main character, was such a irritating, shrew of a character, that I needed to drink just to get through the book. ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 15, 2015 Marla rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery, book-club, adult, award-winner, mixed-reviews, new-adult, buddy, zz-2016

3.5 stars. Strange, dark tale about strangers whose lives become intertwined thanks to a troubled woman. High rating for me, since I didn't like any of the characters. I think I was captivated with the strange little surprises that kept appearing.

Likes:
* Rachel speculating about people in houses
* Idealized Jess and Jason, but not truth
* Cathy, Rachel's patient but put-upon roommate/friend
(view spoiler) ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jul 19, 2015 Angie Taylor rated it liked it

What can I say? There were times I really enjoyed this book, and then others that I wished the author would hurry and get to the details I cared about.

I loved the fast paced pull and drive behind the murder mystery thriller, that made up most of the story. However, I felt the story became bogged down with emotional baggage and the predictable actions of characters.

When all was said and done the ending was kind of underwhelming. Although there were a lot of hidden details brought to light, I felt ...more

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Feb 22, 2015 Stephanie added it · review of another edition

Wow.

This was an intense ride. Pun intended. If you can manage to make it through the dull beginning, the mystery and pace picks up considerably. For fans of Gone Girl and The Silent Wife this is your next story of "marital bliss" and the horrors of suburbia. ...more

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