Gone Girl Book Review

Rosamund+Pike+stars+as+Amy+Dunne+in+Gone+Girl+%282014%29

Rosamund Pike stars as Amy Dunne in Gone Girl (2014)

Sahar Sebghati, Reviews Editor

Being one to give in to the mainstream media, there was no denying I would be hopping on the Gone Girl bandwagon. As if Ben Affleck starring in the movie didn’t already seal the deal, who can resist a murder mystery? Definitely not me.

 

Before giving into the movie, I had to read the book first. Being a fan of the author, Gillian Flynn, I already knew what I was expecting. Suspense, thrills, nail biting at midnight when I should be sleeping, and her notable literary mark: a plot twist so momentous you’ll throw the book at the wall once you’ve finished.

 

I went into Gone Girl with the premeditated hope that it would indeed be the satisfying read that everyone else had said it was. After a few chapters I was hooked. I found myself skipping my lunch period, even neglecting my responsibilities, to continue reading: Why did Amy buy a gun? I have to know why. I NEED to know. Math can wait till tomorrow.

 

So on that Thursday night when I found myself lingering on the last few pages of the novel, I  prepared myself to handle Flynn’s last minute plot twist. Except there wasn’t one. Kind of.

 

Yes, 3/4th of the way into the book there was a shocking and deviant twist as expected. However, to readers like me, ones ready to embrace the most ruthless and goriest of conclusions, the plot twist was as cardinal as the end of any modern day Horror movie. You know, the ones where the character decides to “check out’ the strange noise, and you know they’re going to get killed next.

 

The ending of Gone Girl felt like it was something I could conceive myself. Especially after all the buzz. Not a day went by where I didn’t see a tweet or walk past a conversation talking about how Gone Girl had “totally messed them up.” Sadly, Gone Girl left me rather bored.

 

However, the read was still enjoyable. The book featured an impeccable story arc. Flynn always left me wanting more and more, which is why I could never put the book down. Her characters were flawless. The build up of Nick and Amy, the couple who the story is centered around, felt so real and vivid it felt like people I knew in real life. I even loved how it took place in the boring Midwest. It made everything scarier.

 

The only problem for me was that the ending just didn’t deserve the immense hype. Is such a uncomplicated ending deserving of all that hysteria? Maybe it’s that other people don’t expect as much from a book as I do.

 

Though your jaw may not drop at Gone Girl, it still makes for a fulfilling read all in all.