About The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn: It isn't paranoia if it's really happening . . . Anna Fox lives alone--a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her days drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbors. Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, a mother, their teenage son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, sees something she shouldn't, her world begins to crumble--and its shocking secrets are laid bare. What is real? What is imagined? Who is in danger? Who is in control? In this diabolically gripping thriller, no one--and nothing--is what it seems. Twisty and powerful, ingenious and moving, The Woman in the Window is a smart, sophisticated novel of psychological suspense that recalls the best of Hitchcock--an unforgettable thriller that Gillian Flynn calls "amazing."
My two cents
Sidenote: It’s been a long time (unbelievably over a year, almost two!) since I last posted a book review, so getting back into my blog has me wondering how I’ll fare this time around. I’ve pared the reading ao much that I’ve been down to about 20 books a year, with quite a few being rereads.I got a hold of this particular novel because my colleague and I were discussing just how mindf*ckingly brilliant Gillian Flynn is! As this one is in the same genre as Flynn, and Flynn herself recommended it, I needed to see if her glowing review of “amazing” was true. Here’s why I enjoyed it:
It’s a slow burn. This starts off with the simple introduction of Dr. Anna Fox, a well known child psychologist and now recluse. As the pages turn, Anna’s story and circumstances become more and more apparent. She suffers from agoraphobia because of a yet-unknown-reason to the reader. She hasn’t stepped out of the house in close to a year.
She passes her days watching black and white films, drinking her favourite wine, and popping her plethora of drugs (note: note to be taken with alcohol), and logging online and giving advice to other recluses. Oh, and people watching.
Anna takes a particular interest her new neighbours across the park. One day, she believes she witnesses a murder. But no one believes her.
It’s a pyschological thriller that left me second guessing myself. After the murder, I was wholly on Anna’s side. The many, many pages before had made me “friends” with Anna. I knew her. I knew her family. I knew she wasn’t the type to imagine things. I was certain she was sane; she was just sad and traumatized. Wasn’t she?
As more layers were peeled back and revelations made, I hemmed and hawed. I seesawed from believing her, to writing her off as a drunk, overly drugged, and watching too much film noir. She was becoming paranoid, delusional, and was hallucinating.
Would you be like me, so easily gullible to Anna’s charms? Or will you be objective and see all the red herrings? Did the murder happen or not? You’ll have to find out!
Love the film noir twist.Throughout there are references to Anna’s favourite black and white films. It’s obvious that the author is a film noir aficionado. The references were quite lost on me but they lent interesting backdrops to Anna’s story. When I Googled the book, I was’t surprised to see that there was an old film with the same title. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_in_the_Window
It’s dark yet relatable. If you’re wondering, this is not as dark, graphic or disturbing as Gillian Flynn’s work. Everything is purely psychological which makes Anna’s story much more relatable to the everyday Joe. There is no violence or sexual perversions that seems to be hallmarks of Flynn’s work.
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