#TheGirlontheTrain – Rosepoint Publishing

Rosepoint Reviews – October Recap – All the News That’s Fit to Print

Rosepoint Reviews October Recap

I mentioned last recap that I moved my water garden critters inside as the weather took a cool turn and these can’t tolerate cold water. Inside, I have no lid, no light, no heater. So far, they’ve done well, but I had read that cool water (between 64-68 degrees) will keep the female snails from laying eggs. Nope. Now I have a clutch of eggs despite the temp. I’m wondering what colors they will produce, however, as I have both orange and ivory and don’t know which female laid the eggs. Always something!

In order to attend the local library American Mahjong games (they also have Chinese games), I’ve been studying any free apps I can find. Most have introductory games then a monthly fee. The games are several hours long and held weekly—no way I can do that—but was hoping to learn enough not to embarrass myself. Do you play?

Also, last recap I mentioned that Punkin the Pom would have her birthday in October, and she did, but it was her eighth, not the seventh. She continues to stretch her boundaries with us, finally getting comfortable enough with us to do so and continues to be a picky eater.

As usual a very busy month in which I take on far more than capable of accomplishing, but do it anyway, so, yes, my reviews have suffered. In the middle of trying to get a review to post during the month, discovered I could no longer use the Classic Editor without upgrading. The “happiness engineers” were pretty thrilled, I wasn’t. I paid for the basic and still getting used to it. The biggest problem for me is opening but not being kept in the dashboard. Despite the trauma and much gnashing of teeth, the CE and I read and reviewed four ebooks and six audiobooks in October.

I’m woefully behind reviewing audiobooks, with five read and sitting out there waiting for much needed attention. If I can get those caught up, it’ll go a long way towards my Goodreads goal for the year.

#RosepointPublishing - October Recap

EBooks

Secrets of the Artis Zoo by Paulette Mahurin (CE review)
Lady Reid’s Legacy by Jean Grainer
The Seagull by Wes Snowden (CE review)
Conspiracy by Colleen Coble

Audiobooks

Forget You Saw Her by Noelle W Ihli
Too Old for This by Samantha Downing
The Music Shop by Rachel Joyce ( book club selection)
He Started It by Samantha Downing
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Favorite Book of the Month

I liked both Too Old for This and Lady Reid’s Legacy but have to give the nod to Too Old for This because it was unique, shocking, and fast-paced. Never a dull moment there!

Favorite for October – Too Old for This

My Reading Challenges page…Once again, just too much going on with aquatic critters, cleaning up the yard, and trying to learn Mah Jong. Goodreads now at 107 books of a 125 book challenge, putting me at 86%. Also wrestling with my Amazon Vine goal and it’s looking like it’s going to be a squeaker.

To my readers and fellow bloggers: I appreciate every view and like and thank you so much for taking the time to check out my posts and leave your comments. You still remain the reason I keep posting and now own a two-year subscription.

Halloween books

The Girl on the Train: A Novel by Paula Hawkins #AudiobookReview #ThrowbackThursday #psychologicalthriller

Best Books of the Year 2015

Book Blurb:

The #1 New York Times bestseller, USA Today Book of the Year and now a major motion picture starring Emily Blunt.

Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning and night. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple having breakfast on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. Jess and Jason, she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.

And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel goes to the police. But is she really as unreliable as they say? Soon she is deeply entangled not only in the investigation but in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?

My Review:

Sorry, not sorry, that I did not find Rachel sympathetic.

This is a novel I sucked into because it was a book of the year. Not the first time I’ve wondered if I read the same book alluded to in the raves. It wasn’t until I actually started this review that I discovered it also became a successful movie starring Emily Blunt. Well…Emily Blunt. Now I’ll have to go and look for the flick, but it won’t be involved in my review of the novel.

The Girl on the Train - US cover — The Girl on the Train – US cover

There are actually three main characters but Rachel Watson has the predominant POV. Also included in short chapter bursts are Anna and Megan. They all share the storytelling, but it’s Rachel who is the most dominant and unreliable narrator. Excuse me, but did they all have to be so nasty? There’s no one here to invest in.

It’s Megan who goes missing. It’s Anna who is the sweetie who stole Rachel’s hubby (the rat) and became pregnant just to spite Rachel. Anna obviously knew Rachel couldn’t conceive, thank heaven, as with the amount of booze Rachel consumed, the poor thing would come out in the shape of a bottle.

Never mind all that. Rachel manages the money to continue to commute to the city every morning where she was fired for drinking and being totally obnoxious on the job. One morning on the way in though, she believes she witnesses what has to be a crime and she attempts to report it.

HA! No one takes her seriously. Would you? So she decides to find out what happened herself. Does this sound familiar at all?

The Girl on the Train - UK cover — The Girl on the Train – UK cover

The narrative manages a timeline shift as well as POV shifts, some stretching disbelief, some little more than a repeat, but therein lies a heavy philosophical study in the mind of three disparate women. There are twists galore, because…who do you trust to tell this tale?

The denouement, when it comes, may not be one of the answers you’d thought of, but is rather a let down anyway and my summation: meh.

Many thanks to my local library for providing me with the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. The thoughts expressed here are my own.

Rosepoint Publishing: Three Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Psychological Thrillers, Women’s Fiction, Literary Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Narrators: Clare Corbett, Louise Brealey, India Fisher
Release Date: January 13, 2015

Title Links:

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: PAULA HAWKINS worked as a journalist for fifteen years before writing her first novel. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989. Her first thriller, The Girl on the Train, has sold more than 23 million copies worldwide. Published in over fifty languages, it has been a Number 1 bestseller around the world and was a box office hit film starring Emily Blunt.

Paula’s thrillers, Into the Water and A Slow Fire Burning, were also instant Number 1 bestsellers.