Gone Girl

by Gillian Flynn

'What are you thinking, Amy? The question I've asked most often during our marriage, if not out loud, if not to the person who could answer. I suppose these questions stormcloud over every marriage: What are you thinking? How are you feeling? Who are you? What have we done to each other? What will we do?' Just how well can you ever know the person you love? This is the question that Nick Dunne must ask himself on the morning of his fifth wedding anniversary, when his wife Amy suddenly disappears. The police immediately suspect Nick. Amy's friends reveal that she was afraid of him, that she kept secrets from him. He swears it isn't true. A police examination of his computer shows strange searches. He says they aren't his. And then there are the persistent calls on his mobile phone. So what did really did happen to Nick's beautiful wife? And what was left in that half-wrapped box left so casually on their marital bed? In this novel, marriage truly is the art of war...

• ISBN10: 0297859382
• ISBN13: 9780297859383
• Publish Date: 24 May 2012 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 17 January 2013
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Orion Publishing Co
• Imprint: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 416
• Language: English

Reviews

[Ashley]

Nose Graze — Book reviews & blogging tips

3.5 stars-ish. Take that rating with a grain of salt because I have no idea how I should actually rate it.

Okay, WHAT THE HELL was that ending? And I don't mean that in the "HOLY CRAP THAT WAS AMAZING!" way. I mean that in the: what was that pointless, unsatisfying ending?

To be clear, I adored Gone Girl for about 90% of the book. I was hooked, loving it, totally desperate for more. I loved the mystery and the not knowing and I was dying to hear about this famously shocking ending. Little did I know that it was a "shocking" ending not because of what happened to Amy or whether or not Nick was guilty, but shocking because of how totally, surprisingly unsatisfying it was. And that pisses me the fuck off!

I hate how I was loving this book so much, then the ending killed it. If not for the ending, this could have easily been a 5-star book. But the ending left me with a feeling of: that's it? I was so shocked that there weren't more pages; shocked that THIS how it's going to be left. That ending left me with a bad, annoying feeling of what was otherwise a phenomenal book.

This review has turned out so different than how I imagined. When I was like 80 or 85% finished, I was already picturing my review. I could see myself raving about the mystery and the "not knowing" and the desperate desire to get to the end. I was making guess upon guess upon guess and I wanted to see if any of them would be right! But most importantly, I wanted that bitch Amy to suffer some consequences. I wanted her parents and the world to see her for the lying, manipulative, crazy bitch she was. But the ending changed everything. It changed my whole opinion of the book and it changed my entire review, from one glowing with praise, to one dripping with frustration and annoyance. WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME?!?!

If you want to know what happens in the end, I'll recap it for you: Quite early on we learn that Amy is framing Nick for murder because she realized Nick was cheating on her. But at that same time, we realize that Amy is actually psycho. I mean, she has some serious mental issues that need to be treated. She tries on personalities like you'd try on shoes. For Nick, she tried on the "cool girl" personality, but after they got married, she started dropping that personae and as a result, Nick fell out of love with her (which is understandable, because she wasn't who he thought she was). So, he started cheating (that doesn't make cheating okay, but it makes it more understandable, I guess). Amy found out and wanted Nick to suffer so she decided to plan to run away, but frame Nick for her murder, and eventually kill herself to solidify the evidence (she was that crazy). Then Nick realizes that Amy is framing him (through a series of notes she left him) and is FUCKING PISSED because everyone thinks he killed her. So I'm sitting there wanting Nick to either kill Amy or at least have her sent to prison... instead, she goes back to him (killing an innocent guy to get there, further proving her psycho behaviour), spins a false tale of kidnap, rape, and abuse (by the innocent guy), and then she and Nick just get back together. And have a child. What the fuck. That poor fucking child. It's going to have the most fucked up parents ever, because the parents both hate each other but pretend to love each other (they actually say those words).

For most of the book, Gone Girl was intense, captivating, and full of surprises. I loved it so much, which was a huge deal for me because I was hating a lot of books at the time. But that ending... it just killed my love for this story. That incredible, carefully thought out story just unraveled and we were left with pieces that made no sense and offered no satisfaction or justice/revenge.

I don't even know how to rate this book because with a better ending, I would have given it 5 stars. How to I rate it when it's a great book, but the ending is total shit? I have no idea, so I kind of picked 3.5 stars at random.

[mbtc]

One of the first audio books in awhile that kept me wanting to keep listening in my car after reaching my destination. I thought the first two sections were brilliantly written and performed (on the audio book) but the third section (ending) was just disappointing and anticlimactic.

[kimbacaffeinate]

Gone Girl was in my reading pile for ages, but when you are a compulsive book buyer and blogger, well, things often get shuffled around. When Lauren @ Northern Plunder mentioned she picked up Gone Girl I immediately suggested we read it together. Our exchange of texts made me giggle as Flynn took us on one heck of a ride. Three word review: twisted, captivating, a nail-biting page turner.

The tale begins on the morning of Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth year anniversary in the sleepy town of North Carthage, Missouri. Told in dual perspectives we are quickly immersed into their lives. When Nick receives a phone call that his front door is wide up he rushes home to discovers the iron on, the tea kettle boiling, chairs overturned and that his wife is missing. Nick soon finds himself suspect number one in his wife’s disappearance. Gadzooks the journey Flynn takes us on was nail-biting, and had me questioning everything!

Nick and Amy Dunne are two of the most interesting characters I have come across in fiction. Flynn does an unbelievable job of fleshing them out, and making you questions.She takes you through a gamut of emotions from hatred to pity. Nick is shallow, self-absorbed, and is the kind of man who needs validation. He is a writer, who doesn’t write and dreams of the old days before the internet took off. Amy is complex, and wears many faces as she strives to find happiness. Her perspective was told in journal form and gave us insight. She is incredibly fleshed out and is a character you will long remember after you close the book. Side characters and Nick’s sister Go, helped to further the plot and reveal information about the protagonists.

Ladies and Gentleman please fasten your seat belts before embarking on Gone Girl! Flynn is a master storyteller and the tale that unfolds is filled with twists and cliffs that had me completely engrossed. Just when I thought I had things figured out - BAM! The author completely flipped things upside down and had my opinions changing faster than my daughter deciding what to wear for her Saturday night date. The tale is clever, and Flynn is in complete control of this ride. I loved it! She has incredible insight into the human psyche giving the tale a believability that was downright chilling. While I didn’t particularly care for either character, I felt for them on so many levels. I could see them in my mind’s eye from their quirks to their expressions and I adore when an author is able to do that. The pacing was well done with tight twists and nail-biting last sentence in each chapter that had you singing the mantra, “just one more chapter” The ending left me with my mouth hanging open and quite breathless. It is open-ended but worked and didn’t feel rushed or unfinished. Gone Girl is the type of book you will think about for years to come as the details stay fresh in your mind.

[Mercy]

Me dejo looooooca :O

Reseña: http://thebooksaremylife.blogspot.com/2013/07/resena-perdida-gillian-flynn.html

[lisacee]

I really enjoyed the twists in this book, but the ending just left me ... eh. The characters and their personality "quirks" (to not give too much away) were fascinating. I just wanted better for them in the end.

[pamela]

This book is the entire reason i avoid reading the books others are reading on trains, because it turns out most of the world are idiots. Gone Girl was an interesting read, but an ultimate portrayal of weak-willed destruction which served mostly to annoy by the end. Not a terrible book, but also certainly not worth the praise that's been heaped on it. It's hard to really enjoy a novel where literally every character is unlikeable. The author placed so many plot hints in which could have led the narrative another, more clever way, but I really felt that she just gave up and couldn't be bothered developing the plot by the end. A sad disappointment for a book with such narrative potential.

[ibeforem]

This book was nuts. I’m going to do my best to discuss it without spoilers.

Amy didn’t care to know my family, didn’t want to know my birthplace, and yet for some reason, I thought moving home would be a good idea.

This was the point at which I knew things were amiss. What sort of spouse doesn’t want to know about your family, your background? All was obviously not how it seemed in Nick and Amy’s marriage. But who, if anyone, was telling the truth?

The book is very well constructed, so much so that you can completely buy into the improbable circumstances. Because I was late to this particular party, I knew there was a giant twist. So when it came, I wasn’t surprised by its existence, but neither was I surprised by its content. I didn’t guess it, exactly, but it made sense to me. It almost had to be that way, in order for the story to continue.

Don’t expect to be able to root for either Nick or Amy. One’s evil, the other’s a weak whiner, and they’re probably both sociopaths. And that’s perfectly alright with me.

There are actions and reactions in the final act of the book that didn’t make a lot of sense to me, and were actually somewhat disappointing. That’s why I have to dock it a star. But if you like dark psychological thrillers, with characters you can’t quite like, then Gillian Flynn is definitely your girl.

Wow. Just finished. This book is so different from anything I've read. It had so many twists and turns that I couldn't put it down, even though it was dark and at times disturbing. I have to hand it to the author for writing such a smart book. Not sure I like the ending but the more I think about it, it seems to fit.

[Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews]

My family has gone away for Christmas every year since I was little, and each year there seems to be one book that is floating around the airport. Last year while waiting for connections everyone was reading Stephen King's 11/22/63 (including myself) this year, it was Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl. Gone Girl seemed to appear on every top ten best books of 2012 list ever created. I loved her debut, Sharp Objects therefore I had to read this one, and became one of the lemmings floating around the airport.

On their fifth anniversary, the year of wood, Nick Dunne comes home to discover his wife Amy is gone. It is immediately investigated as murder with Nick as their prime suspect. Who would want to hurt Amy? She seemed so perfect and was the inspiration for the popular Amazing Amy children's book; well Amazing Amy soon becomes Awful Amy, her true colors turn during the nationwide search, but her true bitchiness is only exposed to Nick...

I kind of guessed what had become of Amy but it was the way Gillian Flynn laid out her treasure hunt that still had me thinking "no fucking way." Amy is a sociopath, using her Amazing Amy persona to her advantage. Elmo, didn't exactly act the way he was portrayed on Sesame Street so why should Amazing Amy?

Gone Girl is fantastic, the writing is superb, the pacing perfect, Gillian Flynn constantly adding another piece to the puzzle. This thriller is excellent from beginning to end, leaving me with a chill down my spine.

[Stephanie]

Really a 3.5.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn is one of those books that left me unsure of how I felt about it when all was said and done. It is also one of those books that I can’t really discuss without spoiling a) the plot line and b) the ending.

I can very easily see where this book got all of it’s hype. It is riveting, it is engrossing, it is a fantastic suspense novel. My rating is entirely for personal reasons. The ending turned my stomach and has stayed with me. Some people would measure this as success and that would be true if it were in a “Wow. I still can’t believe how that ended.” said in an awestruck whisper. For me it was more like “Wow. I still can’t believe how that ended.” said in a horror struck whisper with nervous darting eyes.

The alternating point of view every other chapter kept the suspense pumping. Flynn showed us what was going on in the present through Nick and glimpses into the past through Amy’s journal entries. I also loved the characters in Gone Girl; particularly Detective Rhonda Boney.

I will say this, if you want to read a thought provoking suspense novel that will leave your head spinning, do not miss Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.
Audiobook Review:

After seeing April of Good Books and Good Wine suggest people listen to the audiobook version of Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, I didn’t hesitate to plunk down one of my Audible credits. This girl knows her audiobooks. The performance of the audio book is quite possibly what saved this book from being a total wash for me. Nick and Amy were voiced by two different people; one man and one woman. I think hearing the story in their voices helped to bond me closer to the characters than I would have reading it on my own. I also plunked down the $12.99 for the Kindle version so I could continue the story when listening wasn’t appropriate. This was before Amazon’s amazing Whispersync between Audible and Kindle books.

In the end, if I had to make a recommendation, I would say do yourself a favor and listen to the audiobook if it’s available to you at a decent price. If all you can get is the written version, I don’t think it will affect how you feel about the story. The audio just embellishes it.