The Girl on the Train

The way this book opened up, I started to become very depressed for the characters. It seemed every setback, illness, or hardship one could go through in a lifetime was the reality of their lives. Divorce, depression, alcoholism, etc. The "girl" in question, Rachel Watson, rides the local train past her old house where her ex-husband and his new wife and former mistress reside. She names people as she peers into passing homes and imagines what their lives are like. She does all of this while intoxicated to the point of blackout. She is an alcoholic.

One of Rachel's imaginary friends, through her observations on the train goes missing. From one blackout to the next, she tries to piece together what happened. Fumbling through vivid dreams and reality, she realizes the truth. And it isn't pretty, let me tell you! It took me some time to get through this book because it seemed like nothing good was ever going to happen and in my opinion, nothing did. Interesting read, but I wouldn't say I absolutely loved it. I suppose I just wasn't really surprised by anything. I didn't get that "Wow" factor.