I read The Girl on the Train because there was a lot of hype around it. Amazon recommended it. It was supposed to be like Gone Girl but much better. I am not sure why that convinced me since I hated Gone Girl so much.
But I picked it up anyway. I read it really fast. I liked it better than Gone Girl. Partly because the ending wasn’t such a twist ending for me. But I still don’t think it was a good book. I am so done with books where all the characters are unlikeable. What’s the point? What does it teach me about life?
Meh.
Not recommended.
After I read this book, I wrote on Goodreads: “I read this book in two days. It’s definitely not a four or five star book in my opinion, but after a pretty slow start I never considered not finishing it, so that garners it three stars. None of the characters was particularly likable and most of them weren’t very bright either.”
I too really hated Gone Girl, for many reasons. A book to avoid, with regard to unreliable narrators and unlikable characters, is The Dinner by Herman Koch. Awful people, awful situations, and you’re not 100% certain what really happened. Thumbs down all the way.
Yes I felt that way with The Dinner too!! I understand others might like these books and I am not judging but as I grow older, I’m learning that I want to use my time more towards books that make me feel better and help me grow, change my perspective, etc. not just books with super-unlikeable characters that don’t even teach me anything.
I was really hoping that you would read this book and provide us with a review. Selfishly, I wanted your take on it. I really wanted to like this book. However, so far I am a bit disappointed. I keep picking it up and putting it down with good intentions but can’t seem to finish it. I really want to finish it so I can go on the next book.
i know the feeling, and i really get frustrated when I get stuck with a book like that. how about purposefully putting it down for a few weeks and moving on to something else. and if at the end of those few weeks, you still want to finish it, you can.
Thank you, thank you. I have a gift card and had intended to buy this book this coming weekend. Buying yet another book I abhor is not going to make me happy. I didn’t like Gone Girl but did struggle through it. The Dinner, I decided to put away after chapter three. From now on, if I can’t sail through it, I’m putting it in the Take A Book thingie. Let someone else try. My frustration level is simply too high to continue reading horrible books.