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3.07 AVERAGE
3.07 AVERAGE
This book just ended up not being for me. The setup led me to believe this book was something it was not, but I tried not to let that influence my judgment of the book itself.
Ultimately, this book was too slow and the ending did not give me the pay off I wanted.
Ultimately, this book was too slow and the ending did not give me the pay off I wanted.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ever since her suicide, Lisa has been stuck haunting the railway station where she met her untimely demise. She spends her days observing, watching the people that take the train and those who run the station. They can't see her, but she can see them. And most importantly, she can see those like herself who are about to, or contemplating, the end of their life.
One early morning, she sees a gentleman who she knows is about to jump. She tries to stop him but is to late. And for reasons she can't understand, she feels a connection. This will be a catalyst for her, as she starts to recovery memories from her life before her death, memories that will help her realize that maybe, her death is not what they think it was.
First, I feel it is absolutely imperative that you understand how incredibly misleading the marketing of this story is. It is, in no way, a horror/thriller. If anything, I would say this is a contemporary domestic drama with a speculative element as the perspective is told through that of a ghost. While that fact could have potentially given this a spooky vibe, it did not.
Additionally, the synopsis provided, is almost completely unrelated to what this story proves to be about. While there is another suicide in this book, the storyline of that man and his past are very much secondary and completely unrelated to the main character herself. In fact, I have no idea why it was even included. I think it was simply meant as a plot device for Doughty to further the story for Lisa.
Because the style and tone of this read was markedly different from my initial expectations, I found the first section to be fairly dull. The majority of the main character's narrative included observing people and events around her, and commenting on them. So rather then getting a haunting vibe, it was more ordinary and studious.
Additionally, the perspective, though first person, gives the same feeling as third-person as it is fairly disconnected. As she is a ghost, no one can see her or speak to her, so we are in her head only.
Progressing through the story, I found myself moving from bored to confused as Lisa spots a passenger in the train station, someone she has never met before but feels a connection with, and suddenly she is in love and free to leave the train station at will? I found that to be an extremely convenient plot device. As is the fact that, once she does leave, she finally regains all of her memories from when she was alive!
Holy Meandering Plotline, Batman! We were all over the place in this story
Once we were following Lisa's personal story, I found myself more invested and interested. Although, I must say, I am tired of the "guy seems perfect on the outside, but really he is a manupulative and abusive bastard" plot line. It is extremely overdone and predictable and we practically never see the oppositie occur within stories. I mean, can we not take inspiration from the recent Johnny Depp revelation and include a story where the woman is the abuser? We all know that bitches be cray and so there is no sense in overusing one overused plot line.
So I did find the overarching story to be fairly unoriginal.
Overall, I found this book to be a mess. I personally ended up enjoying the slow, character-drivent aspect of the story as I find people interesting, and so I enjoy learning their stories. However, I still can't quite understand why this was marketed as a thriller. And the fact that not much at all happens in the story, leaves it to be quite senseless as well. That, coupled with the unoriginal plot, made this book very "meh" for me.
One early morning, she sees a gentleman who she knows is about to jump. She tries to stop him but is to late. And for reasons she can't understand, she feels a connection. This will be a catalyst for her, as she starts to recovery memories from her life before her death, memories that will help her realize that maybe, her death is not what they think it was.
First, I feel it is absolutely imperative that you understand how incredibly misleading the marketing of this story is. It is, in no way, a horror/thriller. If anything, I would say this is a contemporary domestic drama with a speculative element as the perspective is told through that of a ghost. While that fact could have potentially given this a spooky vibe, it did not.
Additionally, the synopsis provided, is almost completely unrelated to what this story proves to be about. While there is another suicide in this book, the storyline of that man and his past are very much secondary and completely unrelated to the main character herself. In fact, I have no idea why it was even included. I think it was simply meant as a plot device for Doughty to further the story for Lisa.
Because the style and tone of this read was markedly different from my initial expectations, I found the first section to be fairly dull. The majority of the main character's narrative included observing people and events around her, and commenting on them. So rather then getting a haunting vibe, it was more ordinary and studious.
Additionally, the perspective, though first person, gives the same feeling as third-person as it is fairly disconnected. As she is a ghost, no one can see her or speak to her, so we are in her head only.
Progressing through the story, I found myself moving from bored to confused as Lisa spots a passenger in the train station, someone she has never met before but feels a connection with, and suddenly she is in love and free to leave the train station at will? I found that to be an extremely convenient plot device. As is the fact that, once she does leave, she finally regains all of her memories from when she was alive!
Holy Meandering Plotline, Batman! We were all over the place in this story
Once we were following Lisa's personal story, I found myself more invested and interested. Although, I must say, I am tired of the "guy seems perfect on the outside, but really he is a manupulative and abusive bastard" plot line. It is extremely overdone and predictable and we practically never see the oppositie occur within stories. I mean, can we not take inspiration from the recent Johnny Depp revelation and include a story where the woman is the abuser? We all know that bitches be cray and so there is no sense in overusing one overused plot line.
So I did find the overarching story to be fairly unoriginal.
Overall, I found this book to be a mess. I personally ended up enjoying the slow, character-drivent aspect of the story as I find people interesting, and so I enjoy learning their stories. However, I still can't quite understand why this was marketed as a thriller. And the fact that not much at all happens in the story, leaves it to be quite senseless as well. That, coupled with the unoriginal plot, made this book very "meh" for me.
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book starts with a clever narrative restriction, having to stay confined to the area around Peterborough station. It introduces a few threads whose connections to Lisa are not immediately clear (which mirrors her current state well).
But I liked the set up; by the time you get into Lisa's story it's hard not to be invested because you know where it's leading. But I also really liked how she has to delve into so many other people's experiences before she can remember her own (Dalmar, Melissa, Andrew, Lockhart). It left me intrigued to return to the present as well as curious to know about the past.
There's a devastating futility in the story, but there's also oddly a stream of hope that manages to keep flowing even after the worst circumstances. It's quite a clever examination of our ability to heal.
But I liked the set up; by the time you get into Lisa's story it's hard not to be invested because you know where it's leading. But I also really liked how she has to delve into so many other people's experiences before she can remember her own (Dalmar, Melissa, Andrew, Lockhart). It left me intrigued to return to the present as well as curious to know about the past.
There's a devastating futility in the story, but there's also oddly a stream of hope that manages to keep flowing even after the worst circumstances. It's quite a clever examination of our ability to heal.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Suicide
Moderate: Pedophilia, Physical abuse
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
I didn't really like this, but it is probably the best book that I didn't like that I read this year, if that makes sense. The novel is narrated from the point of view of a ghost, a woman who has recently died, as she wanders through a train station, observing the lives of the people passing through and the staff who work there. Initially she has no memory of who she is, or was, but slowly she starts to recover her memories and we learn what her life was like in the months leading up to her death. We discover that she was in a horribly dysfunctional relationship with a controlling, gaslighting and psychologically abusive partner - and this part of the book is so convincingly and brilliantly written; it really is an excellent - and harrowing - depiction of coercive control.
The problem I had was the premise didn't work for me - it's not that it's bad, it's just a personal taste thing. It might well work for other people. Books narrated by ghosts are not my sort of thing - as ghosts are ridiculous. But in certain horror contexts the concept might work - but in this case, it didn't work, because the book deals with real, disturbing, domestic abuse themes. So the book became too harrowing for me, because as I was reading about the increasingly appalling abuse directed towards the protagonist, and witnessing her gradual deterioration, I was constantly aware, at the forefront of my mind, that she ends up dead. It was too bleak.
Another issue is that the book feels very meandering in the early stages and takes a long time to settle down. I think for much of the first 100 or so pages I wasn't sure what the focus of the book actually was. And really this does continue throughout the book - the focus isn't solely on the protagonist's life: she observes several other characters and we learn about their lives too. By the end I wasn't sure how all these disparate elements fitted together, but that could just be me being stupid.
What I liked a great deal about this book was Louise Doughty's exquisite writing. I think she is brilliant writer, and the quality of the prose throughout this book is exceptional. it is also a very compelling account of domestic abuse and coercive control, and how an intelligent and confident woman can fall prey to an abuser of this type. The way his controlling behaviour starts in small ways and gradually worsens felt very believable to me, and I found myself getting more and more angry at what an utter piece of shit he is. If the book had just been this story - without all the ghost stuff - it would have been far, far more interesting to me.
The problem I had was the premise didn't work for me - it's not that it's bad, it's just a personal taste thing. It might well work for other people. Books narrated by ghosts are not my sort of thing - as ghosts are ridiculous. But in certain horror contexts the concept might work - but in this case, it didn't work, because the book deals with real, disturbing, domestic abuse themes. So the book became too harrowing for me, because as I was reading about the increasingly appalling abuse directed towards the protagonist, and witnessing her gradual deterioration, I was constantly aware, at the forefront of my mind, that she ends up dead. It was too bleak.
Another issue is that the book feels very meandering in the early stages and takes a long time to settle down. I think for much of the first 100 or so pages I wasn't sure what the focus of the book actually was. And really this does continue throughout the book - the focus isn't solely on the protagonist's life: she observes several other characters and we learn about their lives too. By the end I wasn't sure how all these disparate elements fitted together, but that could just be me being stupid.
What I liked a great deal about this book was Louise Doughty's exquisite writing. I think she is brilliant writer, and the quality of the prose throughout this book is exceptional. it is also a very compelling account of domestic abuse and coercive control, and how an intelligent and confident woman can fall prey to an abuser of this type. The way his controlling behaviour starts in small ways and gradually worsens felt very believable to me, and I found myself getting more and more angry at what an utter piece of shit he is. If the book had just been this story - without all the ghost stuff - it would have been far, far more interesting to me.