Book Review: The Girl On The Train

Have you ever read a book which left you empty after you finished it? Left you missing it's characters... Left you rueing why you finished it so quickly... Why it came to an end. Well, The Girl On The Train left me with similar feelings. You will gorge this Paula Hawkins' book from page one, refuse to put it down and regret finishing it so fast!

When I started reading it, I seldom had to go back to check the facts and dates (you will know what am talking about when you pick it up) and though it was a bit irritating initially, I actually realised that the author had did on purpose: To keep her readers hooked.

The story though is a simple one of a troubled alcoholic woman who thinks she witnessed a murder, it's the narrative which wins over the readers. Hawkins doesn't take much trouble to twist the details of the mystery, or make it like a Holmes suspense, she simply writes... Generating a style of herself and that's all to keep the narrative interesting.

She has not only described the environment and places very well, but also makes us familiar with an alcoholic's psyche. The way the protagonist longs for her former life and tries to find it in that 'perfect couple' she sees everyday while passing their house sitting in a train makes the reader empathise with her. Her heart break over reality of the 'perfect' love too tugs at your heart. Her struggle and will power -- and sometimes the lack of it – adds to the story. Hawkins has proved her mettle as a writer in her first thriller book, not to mention that her book will definitely be called one of the best of the year.