The Girl on the Train in ♥ Nothing Better Than Reading!! ♥

Jun 13, 2017 Brenda H rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Girl on the Train is a debut psychological thriller by Paula Hawkins. Ms. Hawkins gave us a great book on her first time out. So much so that I will put Ms. Hawkins on my list of authors to check out further.

Rachel rides the train every day on her way into London. Having been a longtime passenger, she knows when the train will be stopping at various signals. The longest signal on the route is next to a modest neighborhood of cute little 2-story homes. In one of those homes, live Jason and Jess, ...more

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May 15, 2023 Angela Blount rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary

2.5 Stars

This was a bit of a tedious read. Very slow in the middle, with a cast of thoroughly unlikeable and increasingly unsympathetic characters. It's the sort of book you read to find out if you were right... not because you have any real emotional investment in the characters.

Our POVs begin with Rachel--a miserable non-functional alcoholic (and our most unreliable of the unreliable narrators.) Hers is the primary first-person perspective, but it fairly regularly alternates with her ex-husban ...more

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May 28, 2018 Madge rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: one-and-a-half-stars, books-i-wish-i-never-read, thriller-mystery

This was possibly the most boring and eye-roll inducing book I've read all year. I was *thisclose* to DNF'ing it, but around 40-50% it seemed like it was going to get interesting, so I powered through. I kind of wish I'd just abandoned it. I wrote a long rant about it, around 80%, but I try not to do that in reviews/otherwise online most of the time, unless I really hated a book. I didn't completely hate this book, but it's definitely on the list of books I wish I'd just passed on reading, and I This was possibly the most boring and eye-roll inducing book I've read all year. I was *thisclose* to DNF'ing it, but around 40-50% it seemed like it was going to get interesting, so I powered through. I kind of wish I'd just abandoned it. I wrote a long rant about it, around 80%, but I try not to do that in reviews/otherwise online most of the time, unless I really hated a book. I didn't completely hate this book, but it's definitely on the list of books I wish I'd just passed on reading, and I don't get the hype.

This is probably mostly just me. I'm starting to think that thrillers are just not my thing, because I don't often enjoy them. I want to, it just doesn't work out that way often, unfortunately, and I tend to get bored or really irritated by them.

The only reasons I even read this one was because A) it works for several challenge prompts, and B) I've seen it on lists for unlikable protagonists/characters, and sometimes I end up liking those books a lot more than most people I know. I can't even remember anyone's name for sure from this, and I just finished it like 2 hours ago. Even while I was reading I couldn't remember their names until they were mentioned :/ My feelings about the book aren't helped by me figuring out who the culprit was, and probably what their motive was, way before 50%, I think around 35%, maybe sooner. I wish I'd listened to my gut and given up then, because I kept expecting to get some twists and surprises, but it never happened.

(view spoiler) ...more

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Apr 27, 2016 Alexandria rated it it was amazing

This was definitely twisted.......The ending is the ultimate surprise! It was a very good book from the beginning to end. This is one book, that I did not want to end!

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Jun 19, 2016 Rachel Pruchno rated it really liked it

Fast-moving psychological thriller. Took a road trip from Philly to Boson with my husband and listened to the audio book. We didn't want to stop driving.

Great characters. Thoughtful story. I love the short chapters that keep you wanting to see what happens next.

The ending of the book was a little anti-climacteric, but all in all, I'll look forward to reading more by this new author. ...more

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Oct 31, 2016 Kari rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, mystery-thriller-horror

This is an easy to read thriller that keeps you guessing. The female narrators are intriguing in their own right. It's hard to know who to trust. If you judge just by what you see people-watching from your seat on the train, it's easy to make snap judgments. But, things are not as they seem for any of the characters. Megan, the carefree beauty with the perfect marriage, may have some cracks in her life that lead to disaster. Rachel, the alcoholic and Tom's crazy ex-wife, may not be as crazy as w ...more

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Jul 26, 2017 Jessica rated it really liked it

Shelves: new-author, fiction, murder-mystery

Even though I already watched the film i was intrigued to see how the novel was written! glad I picked it up!! The characters were detestable and pitiable, which made me enjoy the novel because of Hawkins' ability to make me feel such. I look forward to reading more of her novels ...more

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