Book Review: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Every now and then I browse through IMDB and look at the recently released trailers. Gone Girl was one of the first that popped up. Directed by David Fincher and staring Ben Affleck (who has spectacularly revived his career) I didn't hesitate to watch it. As soon as it was over I knew I HAD to read this book. A quick hunt through the Kindle Store and I purchased it for 99p.
When I saw the cover I realised I had picked it up in shops a few times, always intrigued but never going so far as to actually purchasing it.
As soon as I began reading I was hooked. The chapters alternate between Amy Elliot/Dunne's diary entries and narrative of Nick Dunne on the day that Amy disappears. The 'two sides to every story' idea intrigued me and I enjoyed reading each perspective. I've read books similar to this in that two or more narratives run alongside each other and normally I've preferred one over others but I looked forward to reading both of them.
Both Nick and Amy are immediately likeable, characters that you can relate to with flaws and feelings. They have believable family situations and the economy crash even plays a part in their story.
When Amy suddenly disappears, tonnes of questions are raised. The audience is kept in the dark for so long, but as a reader I couldn't wait to read the next chapter, find out what was going on, what had happened to Amy. Immediately, as her husband Nick is shrouded in suspicion and I found myself questioning his innocence as many of the characters do.
What elevates this novel from a run of the mill thriller to a full on character driven piece is Gillian Flynn. The touch of the treasure hunt, which Amy organises every anniversary, puts everything in a spin spreading clues far and wide, and is just a touch of genius.
As a single person I think I may take this book differently to someone who's married. Essentially this book is about marriage, and it analyses Nick and Amy's relationship at every turn.
It's so hard to review this book without giving anything away. I want to recommend it to everybody, so they have that same feeling of angst and excitement as the plot unravels and every piece is put into place. This book not only entertained me, it made me think, it made me look at people differently, and myself too. The only reason I gave it four stars is that it ended too quickly. I would have liked a prologue, or something that rounded the novel out, I found it too abrupt.
I would love to read more Gillian Flynn in the future and look forward to the film adaptation in October.

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