Gone Girl (edition 2012)

I am conflicted about this book.

On the one hand, the characters are brilliantly drawn, deeply complex, and fascinating the whole way through. The narrative (especially in the first part of the book) is compulsively readable (literally... I spent most of the weekend ignoring my husband so I could keep reading). The twists and turns through Part One and into the first bits of Part Two were gasp-worthy and handled expertly to toy with the reader in just the right way. The crafting in this novel is amazing. The voices of the characters are spot-on.

I also really enjoyed the first part of the novel as a glimpse into how a man handles the disappearance of his wife, how the police handle it, and how the public handles it. It was fascinating to see the change (in the police, the public, and even in myself) from believing Nick must be innocent to seeing no other possibility than his guilt. I loved that.

But as Part Two carried on, I found myself getting bored. A little too much procedural at that point, perhaps, too much of no one getting what they want. Amy's cleverness was impressive to watch at first, fascinating to try and understand the way her mind worked and see how she thought of every little thing, but then her actions at the cabin confused me somewhat - how incautious she was with her neighbors. I found myself rooting for Desi when he was keeping her captive, hoping he'd go all Norman Bates on her and just put her out of the picture. Oh well.

Part Three was also a bit clunky and ultimately disappointing for me. Knowing what he did, I was surprised that Nick confronted Amy. I would have expected him to continue playing the loving husband while plotting his revenge, instead of showing his hand and giving Amy all the time and leverage she needed to screw him one last time. But in the end? Even that final "precaution" of hers felt lacking to me. There would have been records at the sperm bank about her withdrawal. If he'd kept up the investigation quietly, he could have gotten her to jail some day, right? Even if it wasn't until the kid was five? I wanted Nick to win, because I'm that kind of girl, but in the end he just rolled over.

I would have been happy with some other final surprise too - some revelation that I never saw coming (the way Part One ended, for instance) - (or something to do with Nick's father. I was sure something bigger was going to come out of that situation. Rats.). I suspect that as I ponder the story a bit more, I'll see that this ending was perfect and maybe even a little brilliant, but for the moment, I am dissatisfied.

3.5 stars, I think. ( )

Gillian Flynn has managed to simultaneously capture and hyperbolize the common flaws in modern relationships, and therefore, in society as a whole. When I first read about this book's release, I dismissed as another whiny, housewife-goes-missing story, where I'm supposed to feel bad for a rich brat with nothing to do. Instead, I was drawn, warp-speed, into a vortex of puzzles, masks, and lies upon lies. Flynn vividly illustrates what happens when communication seriously breaks down in a relationship, and then takes it to the next psychotic level. ( )

Totally engrossing story. Quite disturbing in the end. ( )

So scary, so thrilling, so unputdownable. Interesting meta-angle--the whole story is about people lying and making up stories. One of the storytelling fabricators is Amy, who inspired a beloved childhood book series. Is anyone ever really him or herself? Or are we always just made-up characters playing who we think we should be in our life, our narrative?

Misogyny and the relationship between men and women are well explored too. Amy--the surprising female sociopath--is strong, brilliant, and independent. Despite this show of female power (in the sense that women also be evil nutcases, yay for equality), her one weakness is a man. It seems to suggest that no matter how empowered women are, they are always reliant upon men, whether it is for their love or for their recognition of women's achievements. ( )

Kept me interested in the beginning.
Last half or so was frustrating.
Ultimately, disappointing ending. ( )