Gone Girl: A Novel

Gillian Flynn

Jun 2012 · Sold by Ballantine Books

About this ebook

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The “mercilessly entertaining” (Vanity Fair) instant classic “about the nature of identity and the terrible secrets that can survive and thrive in even the most intimate relationships” (Lev Grossman, Time)—now featuring never-before-published deleted scenes
 
NAMED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY CNN AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY TIME AND ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Janet Maslin, The New York Times • People • Entertainment Weekly • O: The Oprah Magazine • Slate • Kansas City Star • USA Today • Christian Science Monitor

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer? 

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY San Francisco Chronicle • St. Louis Post-Dispatch • The Chicago Tribune • HuffPost • Newsday

Ratings and reviews

This novel is about the life of a husband and wife, Nick and Amy Dunne and what happens when wife goes missing and people suspect Nick had something to do with it. It's told from Nick's point of view during the search and entries from Amy's diary and is split into 3 parts. I'd say my favorite part was the second where Flynn's story got to its most interesting and funnily enjoyable. What makes me give this 4 stars would have to be the ending which will give different impressions for each reader.

Would have been 5 stars if not for the ending...she's a fabulous writer, incredible imagination and you think it's going to have an explosive and surprising end, a real finale because that's what she's trained you to expect. Instead of the big boom though, the big explosion after the build up, she just walks away and leaves you completely unsatisfied, to have to gradually deflate your expectations and say "well wtf."

Honestly, if I'd gotten it from the library I would've quit reading it that's how hard it was for me to get into this book. However, I had already spent the money to buy it so I forced myself to keep reading it. The first half was so hard to get into, the second half though - totally saved the book for me. Glad I finished it, I hear there's a movie in the works. Will be interesting to see this book played out on the big screen.

About the author

Gillian Flynn is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Gone Girl, for which she wrote the Golden Globe–nominated screenplay; the New York Times bestsellers Dark Places and Sharp Objects; and a novella, The Grownup. A former critic for Entertainment Weekly, she lives in Chicago with her husband and children.