Review: The Girl on the Train

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins is a mystery/thriller novel which follows the story of Rachel, who takes the same train to work every day. Everything changes for her one day when she witness something while travelling and the events that follow push her into a story that is filled with crime, passion, sex, deception and a whole lot more.

Now this review is going to be little hard to write because I want to make absolutely sure that I don’t give out any spoilers. The story is narrated from the point of view 3 women who basically form the backbone of the story. When an incident/crime happens it turns the world of these three women upside down. The actions of all three of them gives ample reason to suspect them and right through the book you can’t really be sure of who was responsible. One is a raging alcoholic who can’t remember anything she did when she was drunk, one is a chronic liar and the other a person who has cheated in the past. Who can you possibly trust?

There are several other characters in the book who form the perfect suspects and I feel that’s where this book excelled. Just about every person you come across seems like a suspect and you don’t quite know who you should root for. Each character has their own vices which although make them very human, also doesn’t make these characters very likable.

The overall tone of the book is generally very dark especially with all the cheating, drinking, abuse etc. It however doesn’t take it overboard and adds just enough to the story so as to keep the reader gripped. If you have read/watched Gone Girl before and liked the story, you’re very likely to like this as well. It has a very Gone Girl feel to it.

Though the book is slow initially but once the “incident” happens it rushes forward at a breakneck speed and ensures that the reader finds it very hard to put the book down. Paula Hawkins does a great job of developing each character just enough and succeeds in making a very gripping story for the reader. No wonder that this book was awarded the Goodreads Choice Award in the Mystery/Thriller category. For those of you who like crime fiction and mystery thrillers, this is a must read.

My Rating: 3.5/5