The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
The book kept me captivated until the very end, I was, however, suffering the whole time. Even afterwards – I felt like I’ve inhabited the protagonist’s struggle to wake up from an alcoholic delirium with an unspecified feeling looming over me, as if something unknown yet distinctly horrible had happened to me. It didn’t help that in this case the reason was obvious (the book!) and that my memory of it was all too clear. The story is not only about a drunkard (and perhaps a murderer? No spoilers), but also written as if a drunk would have written it. Not a bad thing by itself, yet here only the limitation of such a state were shown. It was just a prolonged version of the numb, repetitive, disoriented anguish experienced in a drinking stupor. The reader is stuck in this womans head, a place where not a single sober thought points to the exit.
FRONA'S READS OR ELSE 
The focus on the drinking bothered me a little bit, it was so overly present, but I’m glad you saw the positive side of it and liked the book !
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I enjoyed the book, and I think I learnt something about alcoholism, but it was a very pessimistic book
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Thank you, I kind of like any book that I can read in one setting, but other then that, I wasn’t that impressed, I prefer oldies goldies when it comes to thrillers/mysteries:) I agree about the drinking part! Did you like the book otherwise?
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Very! It left me hopeless and exhausted, like a bad dream:)
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Well no, because I knew the ‘who’ fairly early on. I read too many crime books to not have seen that coming. If you get cheated on the surprise, there’s not much going for this book. I’m one of the few who doesn’t understand the hype. That’s just my opinion though, since it’s such a hype it seems I’m in the minority 🙂
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You’ve found some company here, I can’t understand all the fuss either! I assume it’s just because it’s such a quick and addictive read.. and I agree, the predictable ending was just one of the reasons why this is not a joyful, fulfiling book.
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Have this on my TBR pile.
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It’s a very quick read! Hope you will enjoy it more then I did:)
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I really liked this book too. I thought keeping the reader in the uncertainty of the narrator really kept the tension going.
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Yes, the tension was there all along, once I started it, I just couldn’t not finish it! But that was all I liked lol, everything else just bugged me:) I’m glad you liked it though!
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I started this one, prompted by your review. I gave it up after a few pages. Didn’t like it, felt it was manipulative or insincere.
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Oh no, I’m so sorry you’ve wasted your time because of me! I should have put it more clearly it’s not the best choice.
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Oh, not much time wasted. I gave it up after a few pages.😄
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Has anyone seen the movie? Is it as mundane as the book was?
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Nope, but based on Imdb it’s not so bad.. Though reviews of this book weren’t horrible either, so who knows?:)
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Hhhm, I quite liked it. It was gripping and I thought the protagonist was so addled it was sad yet something about the ending gave it a lift… or maybe I’m just a bit naive there.
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I’m glad you did and I know what you mean about the ending! Though for me even her sobriety seemed fuzzy and unable to change the general atmosphere.. If I liked the book, I’d agree with you completely, but this way the main part just overshadowed the ending.
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I might try reading the book first before seeing the movie.
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I think you won’t miss a lot if you don’t:) But there’s always a certain pleasure in comparing books with movies, so why not. And it’s also a quick read, so you won’t waste much of your life with it:)
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Good to know. Thanks!
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Thank you for your follow. It is always good to meet a fellow writer. Reviews suit you. Your writing has a nice bite. Wishing you love, health, happiness, and success in the New Year!
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Thank you very much!:) I enjoy your writings as well, they are very brave and enlightening. I wish you all the best in the next year as well and I hope you’ll have a nice celebration.
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Hello! Great review. I had trouble completing it and did it purely because of the hype surrounding the book. A lot of hyped novels kind of end up being overrated and maybe that’s why there’s a cult following of elusive novels from foreign authors. Happy new year and stay blessed. Cheers. ^_^
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Thank you and happy New Year to you as well!:) Hope you had nice holidays.
I was also thinking about that, if the most popular are normally rubbish, what’s easier to do then the total opposite. Of course there are gems among both, but this one certainly isn’t, I agree.
How to pick good books on regular basis remains a mystery to me.. Even recommendations from close friends are often disappointing.
Cheers:)
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I really enjoyed this book, but I just wanted to climb on to the pages of the book and kick this woman’s butt for being such a drunken idiot. I ploughed through this book, and like you I felt completely uncomfortable the entire time, but also had to see what horrible mess she was going to get herself into.
Great review – I love your writing style!!!!
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Haha, I can totally understand your dilemma. But just like in every cloud there’s a silver lining, every great book makes us desperately fall in love with reading again when we discover that one book after following a trail of not-so-great books.
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Thank you very much for your kind words, it’s much appreciated.
I felt quite the same while reading it, but I can’t say I enjoyed it at all – isn’t it interesting how many interpretations of such similar feelings there are..:)
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