Gone Girl

The last time a book really pulled me into its world and had me wanting to turn each and every page as quickly as possible was "Looking For Alaska" by John Green which I read in 2012. Before that, "Drood" by Dan Simmons which I read in 2009. It's not very often that a book does that. I can be entertained by reading without having to be completely immersed in the world the author has created and in love with every character. In fact, the most recent book that did this, doesn't even have likable characters, let alone lovable ones.

"Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn is the story of Nick and Amy Dunne, a married couple who have hit a rough patch in not only their marriage but life as well. Nick and Amy are about to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary when Amy goes missing. As per usual, Nick is considered the prime suspect even though he didn't do anything but the fact that he's a less than perfect husband begins catching up with him.

It's honestly really hard to talk about this book without giving any of it away but after Amy vanishes, the reader quickly learns what actually happened. What really bothered me about the book is with the exception of a couple people, all the blame is placed on Nick which makes sense up to a point but one would think that after awhile the police would realize that Nick isn't really acting like someone who just disposed of his wife and they would start looking for new leads. But the lead investigators are from the small town of fictional North Carthage, Missouri along the Mississippi (not to be confused with the real Carthage, Missouri near Joplin) so their investigative skills are more than likely very lacking.

The best part is that Amy is treated just as badly as Nick sooner or later but there's no happy ending for this story. If anything, the story of these two people just wind up getting sadder. It's a wonderful, perverse look into the lives of two psychopaths. As much as you want to hate it, you can't help but getting sucked in.

I also recommend reading "Gone Girl" before the movie comes out. The movie, starring Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike and Neil Patrick Harris, will be out October 2014 and was recently showcased in a creepily-cool Entertainment Weekly cover.

Until next time, I remain...

~Brian