The Girl on the Train

By Paula Hawkins

Publication Date: 2015

Number of pages: 336

Setting: London, England and surrounding suburbs

Time Period:  Contemporary  (2012-2013)

Synopsis:

Rachel’s life has fallen apart around her.  Her husband left her and she doesn’t have a job.  In order to keep up the pretense of employment for her flatmate, she still takes the train to London each day while enjoying generous amounts of gin and tonic.  At the daily signal stop, she is able to see an idyllic couple, whom she names Jess and Jason and creates for them a wonderfully happy back-story.  However, her fantasy is shattered when she witnesses “Jess” kissing another man. This is a painful reminder of her own failed marriage where her husband left her for another woman.  Rachel is determined to tell “Jason” of his wife’s infidelity and goes to the house.  The next morning she wakes with no memory of the previous night and in a bruised and bloody state.  She is completely unhinged when she sees the headlines the next day announcing the disappearance of “Jess”—Megan Hipwell.  In order to solve the mystery of what happened to Megan, Rachel begins to insert herself in Megan’s old life and that of her ex-husband and his new wife.  When trying to piece together the night of Megan’s disappearance, Rachel can’t trust her own memories—are they real or alcohol induced? 

Characteristics that fit into Suspense:

•       Mysterious event where the protagonist is trying to track down the truth.
•       The protagonist is aware of danger gradually—people aren’t whom she imagines them to be.
•       Two perspectives are shown between Megan and the year leading up to her disappearance, and Rachel’s present within the heart of the mystery.  This allows the reader to see events that are not known to the characters.  This also provides insight into each woman’s thoughts and feelings.
•       Unreliable narrator—Rachel drinks and blacks out, making her memories questionable.
•       Character archetypes: jealous ex-wife, mistress, emotionally damaged woman, questionable pasts, and suspicious motivations.
•       As new clues are presented, more questions arise as to what happened that night in question and the motivations behind actions.  
•       Unpredictable events during the narrative—Rachel never makes good decisions and her continuous determination to insert herself into the mystery leads to the reader never being able to predict the outcome.  

Read-Alikes:

•       Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
•       The Other Woman’s House by Sophie Hannah
•       Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson
•       In Fidelity  by M.J. Rose
•       The Dark Room by Minette Walters
•       Black Out  by Lisa Unger

My Thoughts:

I have been anticipating the release of this books since I read about it in Book Page last month--I immediately put a hold on it.  With this assignment being a perfect connection, I broke down and bought the book--unable to wait for the library's copy.  For me, it did not disappoint.  I am a HUGE fan of Gone Girl and anything by Gillian Flynn.  This is being hailed as the "next Gone Girl".  While I do not believe that it is as good, it is still a great mystery.  Rachel is a very unreliable narrator in that she is a black-out drunk and can't always trust her own memories.  However, as she begins to examine the night of Megan's disappearance she begins to see layers that contribute to her confusion.  It is a very interesting book in that I did not like Rachel.  I felt sorry for her, but I also have the outside perspective that many of her difficulties are a result of her actions--which is also true to real life!  Terrible decisions are made daily by everyone with no hindsight as to how it will or can affect your life.  This novel is categorized as "fast paced", yet I didn't find that to be the case.  The time jump between Megan and Rachel's stories lead to a slow build of the paths converging   There are numerous red-herrings, yet I had guessed the "murderer" long before it was revealed.  I would recommend this book to those who enjoy suspense/thriller/mystery genres.  This is an enjoyable read, but I didn't LOVE it.