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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting
Minor: Miscarriage
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
i’d only recommend this if you’ve already seen and loved the movie. if you have, you can read this as a kind of behind-the-scenes companion. if you haven’t, i can’t imagine how tiring it would be to drudge through Amy and Nick’s ego-filled narrations before you even get to the twist.
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
(Note: Listened to this on audiobook. The voice actors did a terrific job at brining Nick and Amy to life. They conveyed the tension and high stakes drama of the book very well.)
I went in only roughly knowing the plot twist. But even with that knowledge, oh my gods! This has got to one of the most twisted and tense thrillers I've ever read/listened too. The situation is just so bleak for Nick, and the villain has to be one of the most despicable, but intelligent and cunning villains I've ever come across in a book or any media.
She and Light from Death Note would probably get along famously! She's just THAT good.
I was just in awe of the scheming and planning. While I hated the villain, her sheer intelligence really was admittedly reluctantly brilliant and frankly scary. I just felt so bad for Nick even though the guy was far from perfect. It was a situation that I would probably not survive. The mind game that goes on in this book is just jaw dropping.
Just really liked it, and I highly recommend it to thriller lovers.
I went in only roughly knowing the plot twist. But even with that knowledge, oh my gods! This has got to one of the most twisted and tense thrillers I've ever read/listened too. The situation is just so bleak for Nick, and the villain has to be one of the most despicable, but intelligent and cunning villains I've ever come across in a book or any media.
She and Light from Death Note would probably get along famously! She's just THAT good.
I was just in awe of the scheming and planning. While I hated the villain, her sheer intelligence really was admittedly reluctantly brilliant and frankly scary. I just felt so bad for Nick even though the guy was far from perfect. It was a situation that I would probably not survive. The mind game that goes on in this book is just jaw dropping.
Just really liked it, and I highly recommend it to thriller lovers.
This book is terrifying. Sickeningly good. Sinisterly captivating.
The first half of the book got me almost concretely to believe that it was Nick, who killed his wife. That it was Nick who killed his loving, wonderful, innocent wife. I kept waiting for it to be confirmed that it was really Nick, and that somehow they'd be able to find Amy's body or something. But really though, everything was just confusing. Somehow Nick also seemed innocent. It looked a bit like something else has happened and that it maybe couldn't have been Nick, but there's no one else to pin this suspicion on. I was just rooting for Amy. That's how convincing her narrative was.
And it turned out I got it all wrong. I forgot, or perhaps, neglected the fact that Amy was supposed to be an insanely intelligent woman. She faked her own death! It's terrifying the way she did it. The more the truth is revealed, the less I rooted for Amy. Up till the end, I kept on hoping Amy would get busted. But the woman is just too wickedly smart, she ended up winning.
But like one of those reviews at the front, the ending is even more chilling than all the revelations. Nick is cornered. Now there's nowhere for him to go. And how ironic, that (Cool Girl) Amy once despised the "dancing monkeys", now, once again whilst impersonating that "Cool Girl", she turned her own husband into a "dancing monkey", a scared, terrified one, obeying her so as to escape death.
Did Amy love Nick? Sure, let's say that. But does she love him now? Is it because of love that she came back home? Probably not. Again, this woman, sickeningly intelligent, knew that her husband could not do anything to her. She knew she won.
The first half of the book got me almost concretely to believe that it was Nick, who killed his wife. That it was Nick who killed his loving, wonderful, innocent wife. I kept waiting for it to be confirmed that it was really Nick, and that somehow they'd be able to find Amy's body or something. But really though, everything was just confusing. Somehow Nick also seemed innocent. It looked a bit like something else has happened and that it maybe couldn't have been Nick, but there's no one else to pin this suspicion on. I was just rooting for Amy. That's how convincing her narrative was.
And it turned out I got it all wrong. I forgot, or perhaps, neglected the fact that Amy was supposed to be an insanely intelligent woman. She faked her own death! It's terrifying the way she did it. The more the truth is revealed, the less I rooted for Amy. Up till the end, I kept on hoping Amy would get busted. But the woman is just too wickedly smart, she ended up winning.
But like one of those reviews at the front, the ending is even more chilling than all the revelations. Nick is cornered. Now there's nowhere for him to go. And how ironic, that (Cool Girl) Amy once despised the "dancing monkeys", now, once again whilst impersonating that "Cool Girl", she turned her own husband into a "dancing monkey", a scared, terrified one, obeying her so as to escape death.
Did Amy love Nick? Sure, let's say that. But does she love him now? Is it because of love that she came back home? Probably not. Again, this woman, sickeningly intelligent, knew that her husband could not do anything to her. She knew she won.
It's been months since I read this book and I never posted a review. I am now because this book still haunts me.
I loved this book. I loved everything about it! I still think about this book and the twisted minds of the characters within it.. All the characters were perfectly them throughout the whole book. I loved that everything ended up making sense. The only thing this book left me wondering is...
I loved this book. I loved everything about it! I still think about this book and the twisted minds of the characters within it.
Spoiler
Gillian Flynn wrote Amy so well that I question her own sanitySpoiler
Do I love Amy? Or do I hate her?
A charming story about two absolutely awful people. You’ll never know who you hate more
I've been on a Gillian Flynne kick lately, reading all her novels in no particular order. Dark Places was my favorite but this was a close second. I watched the movie first, when it came out, but still really enjoyed the novel. I highly recommend this one.
This is brilliantly written! I was so into the story after the first 50 pages. I enjoy when authors can actually pull this off: lead you one way in the beginning until you are totally convinced you know what happened and then flip it, just like that. The characters are so well written that by the end it totally made sense to me... I was thinking "yes, of course that is what he would do".
About the style
Not long ago I read Allegiant (apparently I need to know how a story ends) and the double narrators did not make any sense so I am really glad I found an example of when it actually serves a purpose in telling a story.
About the style
Not long ago I read Allegiant (apparently I need to know how a story ends) and the double narrators did not make any sense so I am really glad I found an example of when it actually serves a purpose in telling a story.
Amy Dunne is a psycho, wanna be perfect, revenge seeking woman.