The Girl On The Train By Paula Hawkins

[amazon_link id=”0857522310″ target=”_blank” ][/amazon_link] ‘The Girl On The Train’ is Paula Harkins’ first book.

Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…

Another thriller that was been built up by all the attention is ‘The Girl On The Train’ and I have to admit, this book definitely makes for dark and absorbing reading as I started it one Saturday evening and finished it on Sunday afternoon. The only times, the book was out of my hands was when I was sleeping, eating and having a shower.

The female protagonists of the story are the reason it’s such a good book, three troubled souls unaware of what is in front of them.

The story is primarily seen from Rachel, an extremely unhappy woman who has never recovered from her divorce after finding out her husband was having an affair. Heartbroken, she finds solace in alcohol, much to the dismay of Cathy, her flat mate and only friend. But on her daily commute, she finds herself obsessed with a row of houses on the train line and a particular house where a couple that she calls Jess and Jason live. Rachel has a harmless fantasy about the couple and the lives they lead, perfect and very much in love, until one day Rachel sees something on her daily commute and suddenly Jess who is actually called Megan disappears.

Rachel then become obsessed with the disappearance and finds herself creating her own investigation as she tries to solve the mystery of Megan’s vanishing, getting close to people and interfering in the case.

The story is also seen from the perspective of Anna, who is the woman that Rachel’s husband left her for. She is an interesting character. A strong woman who is getting tired of Rachel’s behaviour, constantly there in the background. Rachel creates havoc and puts a strain on their relationship. And finally there is Megan, as we get an insight into her life leading up to her disappearance.

As a debut, this book is stupendous and was a story that I found quite impossible to put down. The characters are all extremely unlikeable, so much so that I almost feel an empathy towards them. Rachel is a lonely, weak, self pitying character, who is stuck in the past, dwelling over a ruined relationship and consumed with a deep jealousy and hatred towards Anna. But we see her develop and become stronger as she obsesses with the disappearance, convinced that Jess and Jason had the perfect relationship and there is no reason for her to go away. Megan is self-obsessed and unhappy with her life and Anna is tired of living in her husband’s ex wife’s shadow and feeling that her life and her daughter life is in jeopardy.

This book is a deeply dark and intense story that pulls the reader in. Gripping from the beginning, it beautifully tells the story of obsession, jealousy and resentment through the narrative of the characters. An unstoppable and unpredictable story that moves faster than a speeding train, ‘The Girl On The Train’, is a fascinating story and is most certainly worthy of all its excitement.

You can buy [amazon_link id=”0857522310″ target=”_blank” ]The Girl on the Train from Amazon [/amazon_link] and is available to buy from good bookshops.