Gone Girl

'What are you thinking? How are you feeling? What have we done to each other? What will we do?'

I'll be honest, Gone Girl freaked me out no end. Yet I would still class it as one of the better books I've read. I finished reading Gone Girl a few weeks ago (to see what all the fuss was about) yet I felt I could not write a review straight away. I had to let the dust settle, let my thoughts re-collect, allow my mind to stop imagining possible crime scenes. When I first started reading this novel I was disappointed, it was not what I had expected - the general atmosphere was negative and ever so slightly depressing. It took me a long while to get into (which is not what I want from a book) but it was completely worth it in the end. Gone Girl unearths some serious issues that need to be addressed such as abuse within relationships and gender inequalities, however it does so in the most psychotic way possible. Writer Nick Dunne is married to blonde beauty Amy Elliott Dunne and on the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary (slightly cliche?), Amy mysteriously disappears, leaving Nick appearing to be the prime suspect of her suspected murder.

The book is divided into three parts which I liked as you have the chance to stop and think. If you're a fast reader like me and if there is a lot to take in then the break is much appreciated! I totally, yet unintentionally, went along with how Gillian Flynn wanted the novel to be read. Part one; boy loses girl, being from Nick Dunne's point of view which leaves you feeling sympathetic towards Amy yet still suspicious as the mystery has a few loopholes. Embedded between Nick's parts are Amy's diary entries which contribute to the suspicion although Amy is still the damsel in distress. We then get on to part two; boy meets girl, and the readers breathe a universal sigh of 'Ohhhhh I just knew it'. You are now left feeling clever that you had, in fact, worked out minor parts of the mystery but also had, in fact, missed the bigger picture.

What I like most about Gone Girl is the sheer intelligence of it. I have never really delved into the crime/thriller/mystery genre before so this is an ideal place to start. The film adaptation sticks extremely closely to the book which I like... Apart from the ending. Yes! The highly discussed ending. But still, the book is better than the film (always the way).


Title: Gone Girl
Author: Gillian Flynn
Genre: Fiction, Adult, Contemporary, Mystery, Crime, Thriller
Published: 2012, Broadway Books
Pages: 560

My rating: ★★★★
Favourite quote: 'Because every morning you have to wake up and be you.'

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn on Goodreads