Discussing ‘Gone Girl’ by Gillian Flynn [CC Book Club]

July 28, 2012 12:00 pm     Posted in Entertainment, Homepage Exclusive  Alex K. g+ page


By Alex K.

Thanks for joining me in July’s CC Book Club! I hope you enjoyed curling up with your copy of ‘Gone Girl’ (whether bound or electronic), as much as I did. Gillian Flynn is a master of modern suspense novels and she didn’t let us down with ‘Gone Girl’, which is why it’s one of Amazon’s Best Books of the Year So Far.

‘Gone Girl’ is the story of Nick and Amy Dunne, a couple in their 30s who move from New York to Nick’s hometown in Missouri when he loses his job. Amy is a trust-fund princess, due to her parents’ popular children’s book series “Amazing Amy”. Amy has felt the pressure of this fictional daughter all her life and it has greatly contributed to her Type-A personality. On their fifth wedding anniversary, Amy disappears from their “McMansion” and, of course, Nick becomes suspect number one. There are lots of other people who could have committed the crime, but as the story goes on, Nick seems better and better for the crime. He maintains his innocence, but who knows; could he have killed her?

The story jumps back and forth between what’s happening in modern-day and Amy’s diary entries, which is really great for character development. You get to trace their relationship back to its roots and see what truly went wrong. They start out so deeply in love, as I think most newlyweds do, but time and hardships slowly chip away at their marriage. It’s a sobering thought to see where two people who were so committed to each other can get in five years, once reality settles in.

The book didn’t grip me right away, but it slowly got a hold on me. I found the back and forth confusing for the first 20% or so, but then I realized that was all part of Flynn’s game. After that, I was reading this into the wee hours of the morning and found it un-put-down-able. What did you think of ‘Gone Girl’? Were you as enthralled as I was? What’s your favorite suspense novel?

For August, we’re going to be reading The Meryl Streep Movie Club by Mia March. It’s fairly new and I hope you’ll join in for one last book of summer!

7 Comments on "Discussing ‘Gone Girl’ by Gillian Flynn [CC Book Club]"

  1. Tammy says:
    Sat, 28th Jul 20126:05 pm 

    Holy cow… I couldn’t put this one down! Every hour or so, I would gasp and have to tell my bf what happened… At first, I thought Nick was crazy, then I found out Amy was crazy! They are both crazy and belong together…

  2. Sam - Emory University says:
    Sun, 29th Jul 20128:43 pm 

    THIS BOOK MADE ME SO ANGRY, in a great way…. I thought it was pretty crazy and very hard to explain to those who haven't read it but definitely definitely good!

  3. Lauren Smith says:
    Mon, 30th Jul 201212:53 am 

    I'm going to read this book next! The review and comments are great. I think I will be moving this up to the top of my summer reading list. Another wonderful book worth mentioning is called, "The Masada Protocol" by author Lee Broad. This a fiction thriller novel based in Israel in which a former black ops officer has taken on an intelligence assignment that takes him into a Middle East conspiracy that he must solve along with the help of a beautiful under cover agent from the Mossad. http://www.leebroad.com/

  4. Robin says:
    Wed, 1st Aug 20124:54 pm 

    I loved the book but the ending was confusing. Or was it supposed to be? Did she just go on as "normal", did she kill him, did she kill herself?

  5. Valerie says:
    Mon, 6th Aug 201210:52 pm 

    I just finished Gone Girl… Amazing book? Does she kill Nick? I am crazed! It sounds like she wanted to final word and did him in?

  6. Cille Alisa P. says:
    Sat, 1st Sep 20129:19 am 

    Just turned the last page this morning.
    I have been reading this book in the last four days – and really READING – intensively, until dawn, kind of reading.
    And now? Done. I feel a little anticlimaxed. Like laying in a wetspot after amazing foreplay but a way to abrupt ending. Maybe I just need some time to digest the story, and maybe that's what's great about it? It makes me wonder. It stays in my head. It doesn't make it easy for me to forget. But even so…
    I kinda feel like I walked up a staircase, and there's no door…
    I loved Sharp Objects by the way. More than Gone Girl. It was really clever, bursting with new ideas from a debutant and thought trough personality traits.

    Cille

Tell us what you're thinking...