Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Book Review - Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn


Gone Girl
Title: Gone Girl

Author: GillianFlynn

Review:   You cannot say a lot about this book without giving away the plot, but I will say I enjoyed it.  I have the opportunity to teach teenagers on accession and when the subject of relationships comes up I usually share that any two people can be happy with each other; just some couples will require a lot more work than others to maintain that happiness.  Gone Girl breaks down a relationship that the two involved did not really get to know each other before jumping into marriage.  Plus the workload to maintain it ends up being incredible.

As for the basic plot, I liked the story but found the details a little to farfetched to be believable.  No one with that psychopathy would be able to maintain that long-term of a front without their true character bleeding through the edges.  Specifically they would eventually breakdown and be found out by the masses.  Now I agree they could get away with it once, but not several successive times over many years, especially when the number of people who really know who they are increase.

That aside it was a good story and the writing was solid.  Well worth the read and easy to see why it is the it book of the season.

Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 978-0-307-58836-4
Copyright: 2012
Pages: 415
Quick Review: 4 stars out of 5
Why I Read It: This is the “It” book of the year.  I jumped on the bandwagon.
Where I Obtained the Book: At my local library.

Synopsis: On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?

With her razor-sharp writing and trademark psychological insight, Gillian Flynn delivers a fast-paced, devilishly dark, and ingeniously plotted thriller that confirms her status as one of the hottest writers around.
Gillian Flynn
Author Biography:     Gillian Flynn is an American author and television critic for Entertainment Weekly. She has so far written three novels, Sharp Objects, for which she won the 2007 Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for the best thriller; Dark Places; and her best-selling third novel Gone Girl.

Her book has received wide praise, including from authors such as Stephen King. The dark plot revolves around a serial killer in a Missouri town, and the reporter who has returned from Chicago to cover the event. Themes include dysfunctional families,violence and self-harm.

In 2007 the novel was shortlisted for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar for Best First Novel by an American Writer, Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie, CWA New Blood and Ian Fleming Steel Daggers, winning in the last two categories.

Flynn, who lives in Chicago, grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. She graduated at the University of Kansas, and qualified for a Master's degree from Northwestern University.

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