Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

On Nick and Amy's fifth wedding anniversary, he comes home to find an odd scene at home, and Amy gone.  Signs of a struggle, the iron being left on, and the front door wide open all lead Nick to call the police.  Once the police are involved it's routine for them to "look at the husband" first.  But Nick is being evasive and his outward emotions appear off.... and it leads to media speculation that he's a killer.  As Nick follows Amy's "treasure hunt" anniversary present, he soon realizes that even though their marriage wasn't in a good place, her letters have made him feel like she really does get him.  With mounting pressure, the police are pressing harder on Nick... will he be arrested for his wife's murder??  Is there a reasonable explanation for his standoffish and stoic behavior?  If Nick didn't kill Amy, who did?











Ummm what did I just read???  Talk about a book hangover!!  I can honestly say this is one of the craziest books I have ever read.  Someone said that this book should be renamed "bitches be crazy" and I completely agree.  Because bitches do be crazy in this book.  It's hard to talk a lot about the book without major spoilers... and you don't want to be spoiled for all the twists and turns this book takes!!  I know I haven't been this surprised by a book since I became a book-blogger.

It almost felt likeI read 2 different books in one.  The first half felt like an in-depth study of a marriage.  I could relate a lot with some of the stuff they were going through (or were they going through it??), and it made me sad.  How people treat their spouses better and feel more for them before they get married... and once you've been married a while, it's just blah.  I'm not saying it's like that for everyone, but it is for a lot.  It also made me think about appearances.  How people aren't always as you see them, and how people don't see you the way you see yourself.

While reading the diary entries that Amy wrote and the treasure hunt notes, I immediately did not like her.  She came off as one of those "miss perfect" types that get under my skin.  Although I knew the way Nick was acting was either telling or sick, I couldn't help but hope for him.  I hoped they would find the real killer and he could go on and find someone more suited to him.

THEN: holy crap!!  I was blindsided by this HUGE revelation.  Amy Elliot Dunne was much more than she seemed.  A terrific victim and villain all in one.  This book made me so mad I thought I would throw it.  I haven't hated someone in a book so much since Umbridge (Harry Potter).  It really is amazing that this author was able to write a story with 2 antagonists and yet you still want to know what's going to happen to them and hope they can redeem themselves somehow.  I usually have to LIKE a character in the book to get invested in it, but there was no problem here.  I liked Nick for about 20 pages, and then I got over it, but I still HAD to read and obsess about it when I had to live life and couldn't read it.  (I'd also like to apologize to my co-workers for pestering them with all my theories and freak-outs).

When I was done my first thought was: What kind of fucked up person thought this craziness up??  And not that I don't totally respect the author's writing and admire her creativity, but I also don't think I'd like to hang out with her alone.... or in a group.  Same feeling I get after reading Stephen King.

Although I'm left with the feeling that I would definitely recommend this to anyone and everyone... I still HATED that ending.  BLAH.  The only way I was able to move on from it is I made up my own future for the character(s) in my head 5 years down the road.  And it's probably NOT what the author would do for them, but it's what happens in my make-believe book world.

OVERALL: This book left me with my mouth hanging open.  Shocked and mildly horrified at what I'd just read.  It's super addicting, unputdownable, and will give you a mindfuck.  Read when you have NOTHING to interrupt you so you can just completely lose yourself in this wild story.


Add it to your To-Read List!!!

My Rating: 4/4

How I got this book: I bought it
Date Published: 5/24/2012