Book Cover

I have never understood how people can blithely disregard the damage they do by following their hearts.

# Review

Rachel is a raging alcoholic who takes the train to downtown London daily. She enjoyed watching a seemingly idyllic couple whose backyard backs onto the train tracks. One day, the woman from the house goes missing and Rachel tries to solve the mystery.

I remember picking this up at my old co-working space's library while waiting for someone and reading through the opening chapters. The premise is actually an excellent hook and reminds me of Hitchcock's voyeuristic Rear Window. I recently powered through the entire book and unfortunately, the rest of the book never lives up to the premise.

The story is told from three different perspectives with Rachel's being the primary. The plot starts strong but quickly descends into a messy emotional melodrama about domestic abuse, gaslighting, and addiction. The crime thriller serves as a backdrop to explore the various characters' backgrounds and personal lives, especially that of Rachel's.

While the unreliability of the main narrator is an effective technique, Rachel's character is deeply unlikeable because she's needy, selfish, and has consistently makes very poor judgements that not only harms herself but also those around her. While this choice is likely intentional, it was still frustrating reading a book where the supposed "hero" is quite repulsive and not someone the reader wants to invest in or root for.

# Conclusion

Never lived up to the Hitchcockian mystery premise.

# Overall rating: 7.3

What does the rating mean?