👶👶 The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins

My opinion about this novel is clearly in the minority, yet I feel compelled to share my thoughts. It always amazes me how novels with lewd and ridiculously obtuse characters, so easily top the best seller lists. It makes no difference whether or not they have depth, or even a smattering of wisdom; just throw in some smut and immorality, and it’ll likely sell. I’ll step off my soapbox now, and review the actual writing.

Honestly, the plot was nothing new for this genre, so I figured out the mystery half-way through the book. Of course, I had to finish the abysmal story simply to confirm my suspicion. The three female narrators were not only utterly frustrating and unlikable, but they had such a similar tone, that I had a difficult time differentiating them. Quite honestly, nothing frustrates me more than a character who NEVER learns from her mistakes, especially when such mistakes are the result of self-destructive behavior. Therefore, because the novel was full of such vexations, it was nearly enough to send me over the edge.

Finally, I feel as though this novel could have been much shorter. There seemed to be a lot of unnecessary fluff, and it would have benefitted from truncation.

Read 5/21/16