Here we are 3 years after the release of Gone Girl- and every twisty turny page turning novel is STILL being compared. THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN is no 4.5
Here we are 3 years after the release of Gone Girl- and every twisty turny page turning novel is STILL being compared. THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN is no exception...but that was not what caught my attention. What persuaded me??? Train...Witness to murder...Hitchcock...Rear Window. Those words will get me almost every time...
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Rachel is depressed, angry, and bitter. Gin and tonic- is her drink of choice- Wine comes in at a close second. Every day she takes the slow train from Asbury to Euston...and everyday it slows to a stop and she sees "Jason and Jess". The "perfect couple". A couple who just by watching them every day- gives her hope that happiness exists...
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Rachel is stuck clinging to the days she had with her ex-husband Tom- who left because of her drinking...who left her for a younger woman. A younger version of her- drama free...and a woman who now has Tom's baby. A baby that Rachel could never give him.
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...The only relief from her dreary, pointless, life is "Jess and Jason"...(not their real names of course)...but very real for her all the same.
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Then one day Rachel witnesses something that doesn't seem right...something that involves a woman named Megan- the woman who she thought of as "Jess". And now Jess/Megan is missing...
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So far this is my favorite book from this year- YES, it has a lot of hype surrounding it- but don't let that get in the way of picking it up. :D...more
Maybe my expectations were too high after seeing all the four and five star ratings...but I have to say WATCHING OVER YOU didn't do it for me. It wasn Maybe my expectations were too high after seeing all the four and five star ratings...but I have to say WATCHING OVER YOU didn't do it for me. It wasn't bad- there just wasn't anything that made it stand out from other "crazy woman stalker" books.
Take a little bit of...
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A dash of...
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A sprinkle of...
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A WHOLE lot of...
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x them by 10...
...And what do you get? Ella Patrick- the nymphomaniac, alcoholic, psycho stalker landlady- and Charley Belington's worst nightmare...
After the tragic loss of her husband and unborn child -Charley Belington feels it is time to move on and move out of the house they once shared. She is not quite ready to jump right into buying another home just yet- so when she spots the perfect flat for rent- she decides to scoop it up.
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At first Ella Patrick- seems like the ideal landlady, downstairs neighbor, and friend- but it becomes clear, quite early on, that Ella wants more from their friendship than Charley is willing to give- and when Charley dares to start a serious relationship with a man from work- it pushes Ella over the edge.
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WATCHING OVER YOU is one of those books that IS hard to put down once you start it. I think where it failed for me- is there were so many similarities to SWF Seeks Same by John Lutz- that I couldn't help but compare them, and I am afraid I liked his much better.
Anyone who has seen my book recommendation request list would know I am a big fan of novels that have the main character witnessing a crime/murder 3.5
Anyone who has seen my book recommendation request list would know I am a big fan of novels that have the main character witnessing a crime/murder through a window. One of my favorite books from my early teens was "The Undertaker's Gone Bananas" by Paul Zindel, and as I got older, Cornell Woolrich's short story "It had to be Murder" (Rear Window) was added to my favorites list- Rear Window is also in my top ten movies list-Hitchcock one of my favorite directors...So when I saw reviews of TRUST YOUR EYES and spotted comparisons to Rear Window, and Hitchcock's name thrown out there, I knew this was a book I had to read.
Ray Kilbride- comes home for his father's funeral, and gets more than he bargained for. He knew it wasn't going to be a quick visit, because Ray's brother, Thomas needs someone to look after him now that their dad is gone.
Thomas Kilbride- has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and he is a bit of an Agoraphobe. When he is not sleeping or eating breakfast lunch and dinner, he is in front of his computer memorizing everything he sees. The computer program Whirl360 lets him travel from city to city never having to leave the house. It is on this program that Thomas spots something rather strange-it looks like a person with a plastic bag over their head. When he finally shows his brother the image, Ray doesn't know what to think, but he travels to New York City anyways to check out the address, and opens a can of Whoop-Ass into both their lives. [image][image]
I enjoyed TRUST YOUR EYES for the most part. I especially loved the relationship between Thomas and Ray (I was reminded of Rain Man quite a few times with their bickering back and forth). There were a couple of teeny weeny little problems I had- One being a few too many side plots going on, and the other was in the very last paragraph. The ending took this from being a solid four star rating-to a 3.5 for me, but I am sure it won't be an issue for most readers.
Much to my father's dismay I was always drawn to murder mysteries. Although I had many girly interests like Barbies, puppies and kitties, and dreams oMuch to my father's dismay I was always drawn to murder mysteries. Although I had many girly interests like Barbies, puppies and kitties, and dreams of being a Princess...I also had a morbid side at a young age -nothing scary for the average parent but as a psychiatrists daughter I was always under a microscope. Is it normal for a girl of 12 to discuss that the perfect murder weapon would be an icicle?... or appropriate that as a young teen I brought up that the ideal time to kill someone would be right after a natural disaster? Probably not, but I always found such things fascinating. After reading THE UNDERTAKER'S GONE BANANAS I added...Wouldn't being an undertaker be a wonderful job for a murderer? It would be veeeeeeeery easy to get rid of the body.
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Bobby Perkins lives in the Century Towers on the 24th floor with his parents. His best friend Laurie is waaaaaaay down on the 3rd. Being a fairly new building there are a lot of vacancies and not much to amuse the teens on their summer break. When the Hulka's move into 24G- Bobby is quite excited, but excitement turns to fear when one morning, while his parents are on vacation, Bobbie thinks he may have just witnessed Mr Hulka killing his wife. What is even more frightening is that he can't seem to convince anyone but Laurie that he did.
THE UNDERTAKER'S GONE BANANAS is my favorite book from my early teens. I have read it numerous times, and always go back to it even as an adult. Luckily for me, my family, and those around me, I never turned to the dark side...but I still always enjoy reading about those who have....more
THE DEAD ZONE was my very first Stephen King book, and I would like to thank David Cronenberg, Christopher Walken, and one of my high school best frieTHE DEAD ZONE was my very first Stephen King book, and I would like to thank David Cronenberg, Christopher Walken, and one of my high school best friends- Natalie Kowalski- for introducing me to the world of John Smith, and in turn the world of Stephen King.
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After watching and falling for the character John Smith- in the 1983 movie THE DEAD ZONE, I decided to search out the book that it was based on. I had never heard of Stephen King- I had read a lot of mysteries, but had never read a horror novel. To me this was the perfect start into the genre. It is suspenseful and gripping without being gory.
Johnny Smith- is a well liked small-town schoolteacher. After dropping off his first love -Sarah- at her house , he gets into a horrible car accident, which puts him into a coma for five...long...years. When he finally wakes up, everything has changed. Sarah has moved on, his mother is even mooooooore unstable, his father is having a hard time coping with his marriage and hospital bills, and a man called Greg Stillson has entered into the world of politics. Something else is different too- while John has always had an uncanny ability to find lost things or predict small future events, now this "gift" has turned into something much more powerful.
This will always be one of my favorite Stephen King novels- partly because it was my first, and also because of John Smith and his story- he is certainly a character I have never wanted to let go of. This is my second reading of the book, I watch the movie at least once a year, and I also loved the cheesy -TV USA Network starring Anthony Michael Hall- version of it as well.
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