A.J. Finn

So far I am two for two on my gift card purchases! I used my second gift card from my students to buy this book as soon as it came out, and I am so glad I did-this is up there with The Chalk Man as favorite reads of 2018-a title I suspect they will hold on to all the way through to December 31st.

In The Woman in the Window, Anna Fox hasn't left her home in ten months, too afraid of the memories in her head and the world outside her door. She watches old movies and the neighbors she can see show more through her window, until one night her world expands for the worst as she witnesses something horrifying. When no one believes her--and she's not even sure she can believe her own mind--Anna sets out to figure out the truth.

This book is amazing. The suspense is tangible, building slowly into a crescendo. Twists and turns keep coming, and while I suspected one, I never guessed the magnitude of it. And the end twist! It made my jaw drop. Like The Chalk Man, those last few pages left me reeling, but made perfect sense looking back.

The Woman in the Window may have a lot of pages, but it flies by. I definitely recommend getting a copy of this book as soon as possible. show less

A modern re making of Rear Window by Alfred Hitchcock. A murder is witnessed. The witness cannot leave the house due to severe PTSD manifesting in Agoraphobia. It doesn’t help that she self medicates with Merlot and is very lax with her medication, which should not be taken with alcohol.

The Rear Window link is further emphasized by her obsession with old black and white movies, particularly those of Hitchcock.

Told solely from the main characters POV, each chapter is headed with that days show more date, starting with Sunday, October 24. The reasons for the Agoraphobia, which started 10 months ago, are slowly revealed. Her illness and how she reacts to it, prove to be a barrier to being believed. They also hinder her handling of the various suspects that evolve.

Our view of Ann changes over time as we learn more of her past and how she got to where she is now. Our sympathies are tested. Our snap judgments over her behaviour are manipulated. It is skilfully done. The tension is quietly ratcheted up until the dramatic last reveal. show less

I read in this in March 2018 and for some reason my review didn’t post (it took me a while to figure out how to post reviews). This was possibly the best book I'd read at the time and it definitely lived up to the hype. The writing is beautiful, the plot intriguing, and there is much subtle and not so subtle allusion to other literary and film masterpieces. Although the author must have quoted or noted every known film noir classic, it took until the middle of the book to mention Rear show more Window and by that time I had long since stopped screaming for it since this plot is far superior than the story or the film (forgive me Mr. Hitchcock and Cornell Woolrich, I mean no disrespect). Even as I write this, so long after reading the book, I still savor the prose, hanker for a Merlot (alas, none to be found in this scotch drinking household), and search relentlessly for another frantic page-turner mystery thriller to consume me - one that will not fall short and disappoint by comparison. Kudos. A J Finn show less

I’m a sucker for psychological thrillers, so I was elated to win a copy of “The Woman in the Window” from Goodreads. However, there has been so much hype about this book that I was actually wary and skeptical about reading it because I wondered if it could really be that first-rate, especially as a debut novel. This genre is full of clichés and it’s very difficult to do something new and different. With that said, I did figure out one of the major twists in the story right out of show more the gate, and the rest I put together before the ending was revealed. A few of the details were surprising, however, and I still enjoyed the story and didn’t want to put it down.

On par with “Before I Go to Sleep” by S.J. Watson, “Sometimes I Lie” by Alice Feeney, and the works of B.A. Paris, “The Woman in the Window” blurs the line between reality and fantasy and leaves the reader to wonder where paranoia begins. Finn utilizes the unreliable, first-person narrator with Dr. Anna Fox, who suffers from PTSD and has become a pill-popping alcoholic with severe agoraphobia. The entire story takes place over a period of three weeks, and the short, succinct chapters serve as vignettes that enhance the fast pace of the novel. There are classic movie references throughout, paralleling the plot at times and adding an extra layer of depth and meaning. This is an addictive read, with enough intrigue to keep readers turning pages into the night. show less