February 2013: Gone Girl

[Mimi]

Gillian Flynn talking about Gone Girl, "To me, marriage is the ultimate mystery. You know, there's that phrase: No one knows what goes on in anyone's marriage. And I guess the bottom line of this book is no one knows what's going on in [their] own marriage, a little bit, because we can't entirely know each other," piqued my curiosity, and vague comments from friends about the ending didn't help. Even without knowing anything about Gone Girl, I would've read it quickly because each chapter was a revelation about Nick and Amy. Some of my favorite sections were from Amy's point of view even though I grew to dislike her. Nick didn't seem appealing, and I wasn't sure what attracted Amy to him after their first encounter with the olive joke.

Some reviewers said they didn't enjoy the second half of the book as much, and I agree it slowed down a bit. I wasn't as dissatisfied with the ending until I thought about it some more, and it just seemed too convenient.

[Stephanie]

I was terrified after finishing the first section (was alone at night!) and debated whether I should continue reading the book. I kept having these awful images of Amy being found in disheveled parts in the shed. With 2 more remaining sections to the book, I decidedly marched on knowing that just couldn’t be the ending; but this time, only during my daytime commutes.

I always find that I’m very quick to judge the characters and fluctuate way too much on my likes and dislikes. I just wish that I’m not like that in real life, because that would make me way too shallow :). Amy is a perfect example. Like Mimi said, I grew to dislike her as she revealed her true identity. I probably felt the same sympathy towards her in the beginning as the public may have, as the story broke out in the news. I think the author probably spent a lot more time analyzing the psyche behind Amy rather than with Nick. It just wasn’t very clear to me whether Nick was just as disturbed as a person. One minute, he was portrayed as completely indifferent, while another minute he’s uncontrollably blabbering “stupid bitch” like his father.

I thought the ending was as creepy as it could get, and Mimi’s probably right in that it just seemed too convenient. However, I think I would prefer this sort, rather than say, if the truth came out afterall because that would defeat the purpose of the twisty theme of the book. All in all, I was very entertained and gave it 4 stars for doing its job as a quick airplane read, rather than trying to be a masterpiece.

[Misono]

"Gone Girl" was an unsettling book to read, but it was suspenseful and kept my attention with its unpredictable twists and turns. I, too, empathized with Amy ("Diary Amy") in the first third of the book, but I definitely developed a distaste and mistrust of her as the book progressed and her true self emerged... which, towards the end of the book, had ballooned into fear of her psychopathic ways and what she'd had planned next. I feel like the character development of Nick was also a little lacking -- there were a lot more layers and background that was revealed about Amy, while Nick seemed hollow in contrast. He just kept switching between a guy that was constantly trying to be likable and please everyone, and a damaged misogynist, without a whole lot of explanation as to why he was shaped into the person he was... just a few vague references about his strained relationship with his father, and of course his crumbling relationship with Amy. We learned that Amy was pretty disturbed from a young age for all the ways she framed and set up people who had upset her, but not as much history was provided about Nick's younger years.

I'm not sure how I expected (or wanted) the book to end, but it wasn't what I expected and I think I was a little disappointed that it was a little too convenient, as both Mimi and Stephanie mentioned -- sort of an abrupt, uncomfortable cop out. I guess the final comment by Nick to Amy on how he felt sorry for her, and about how she dwells on it, the words eating away at her is supposed to be the payoff. For a good portion of the book, I felt bad for Nick as the victim of Amy's twisted, psychotic scheme, but in the end he's letting Amy define him, giving him his new role as a father... he can't exist alone without her, and is almost as disturbed as she is. They're both beyond redemption and I think in the end, they deserve each other.