This is my second attempt at audio books and I’m happy to say that I did enjoy this experience a lot more. Now the book is finished I find myself missing the times I would put it on whilst cooking the dinner, loading the dishwasher etc.

Title – The Girl on the Train

Author – Paula Hawkins

Book Type – Audio

Genre – Psychological thriller

Length – 11 hours

Narrated by Clare Corbett, India Fisher, Louise Brealey.

Blurb

Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough.
Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar.
Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…

First Thoughts

At first it felt to me as if the story was told in diary form and I wasn’t sure I would get into it. However, I soon found the first person narrative compelled me to keep listening.

Characters

The three narrators voices were well suited to the characters and brought them to life. I soon began to understand that each of the characters were unreliable. They’ve all done things that make they hard to like, yet I still found myself enjoying the story and wanting to unravel the mess these women had gotten into.

Style

It is told in first person from the three different characters points of view. It also switches back in time to a year before this book starts – but the timeline and character VP are always explained at the start of each new section so you don’t feel lost at any point. Switching VP’s made for a compelling read / listen.

Final Thoughts

I had not listened to the hype around this book, nor did I know what it was about when I started listening to it. I did guess the outcome quite early on, but there were plenty of red herrings to keep me wondering if I had made the right guess. I was glad to be proved right and I didn’t feel cheated by the conclusion.

I really miss listening to the story – I think I have the audio book bug!

Recommend to those who enjoy psychological thrillers.

My rating – 4 stars

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What do you think of the book and all the hype?

Are you looking forward to the film coming out later this year? I am. I think Emily Blunt will make the perfect Rachel Watson. I don’t know why it had to be relocated to America though.