Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (thoughts)

There are some books that hit the book blogging world by storm and it seems that almost everyone has read them.  I'm usually one of the last ones but that doesn't really bother me.  Because I have a tendency to shy away when a book is getting "too much" buzz.  I'm weird like that.  But I am so glad that I finally read this one because it was OH SO DELICIOUSLY good! 

This book is about a man (Nick) and his wife (Amy).  But that's all I'm telling you.  Because either a) you've already read this book, b) you've already read enough reviews to know what this book is about (and whether you want to read it or not), or c) your planning on reading it in which case you should go in knowing as little as possible in my opinion.  Or you could be like me and pick this book up solely because the author is Gillian Flynn and you had such a good reading experience with another of her books (for me that was Sharp Objects which I also highly recommend).

This book surpassed all of my reading expectations (and I had high ones thanks to Sharp Objects)!  Although I had a hard time at the beginning connecting to the story, before long I was completely and utterly hooked.  I can see why reviewers either love or hate this book.  This is such a dark book at times and it isn't always easy to read.  Ms. Flynn, I bow down to your expertise as a writer that knows how to make the reader squirm.  None of this bothered me in the slightest because I love a good dark read.  The author gives the reader the opportunity to really get to know the main characters in such a way that they almost feel like real people.  Love them or hate them but don't ever accuse Flynn of not fleshing out her characters.  I was so wrapped up in the story that I would think about it when I was doing other simple things like the dishes.  I was completely absorbed by the end...even after finishing the book I thought about it days later.  I could never guess what was going to happen next with this book, and the ending just blew me away because I didn't see it coming.  Tricky, tricky!  Even now just talking about the book makes me want to reread it and experience it from the very beginning.  I will now officially read anything/everything that this author writes which is high enough praise!

Do I even need to wrap up my thoughts on this book for all of you???  I enjoyed every moment that I spent in the dark, twisted world that this author created.  I found myself endlessly fascinated with the characters that she created in this book for many different reasons.  And I basically want Flynn to write as many books as humanely possible just so I can enjoy more books like this.  If you want a book where you should always expect the unexpected than I would highly recommend this one!  As for me, I plan on reading Dark Places when I'm ready and in the mood for another dark thriller.  My expectations will be set ridiculously high from this point on.  Enough said :)

Bottom Line:  This book will be on my top reads for 2013 this year...I can guarantee it!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book from NetGalley thanks to the publisher.  It also fits in with my personal goal to read as many Edgar Prize nominees as possible.  I couldn't be more pleased with the results of this personal challenge!