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Gone Girl  By  cover art

Gone Girl

By: Gillian Flynn
Narrated by: Julia Whelan, Kirby Heyborne
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Editorial review


By Mysia Haight, Audible Editor

PSYCH OUT—THE JAW-DROPPING GENIUS OF GONE GIRL

Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl is among the all-time best crafted stories told by unreliable narrators—two of them, the perfect couple—and a gripping thriller filled with jaw-dropping twists. This dark mystery novel also shines a critical light on the media-fueled public rush to judge people suspected of crimes who, regardless of the evidence, simply look guilty—an unsettling trend that has only escalated in the decade since the book’s release. Along with its critique of media exploitation, the novel has been widely embraced—and hotly debated—as a manifesto of modern feminism.

Ten years ago, I was approaching that dreaded life stage—middle age. After years of doing my best to be a good wife, mother, aunt, sister, daughter, and friend; a good worker, mentor, and role model; and a good listener, problem solver, and crisis manager, I was feeling taken for granted and restless. What if I did something unexpected, something out of character—something bad?

Happily, I satisfied my yearnings by becoming immersed in the brilliant mind and devious machinations of Amy Elliott Dunne, the hero (or, depending on your perspective, villain) of Gone Girl. When it was published in 2012, Gillian Flynn’s ingenious novel about a missing wife and the husband increasingly implicated in her ominous disappearance stirred up a lot of buzz. As an avid fan of psychological thrillers, unreliable narrators, and contemporary fiction driven by strong, complicated women, I couldn’t wait to read it. And I was blown away! In spite of her questionable (to put it extremely mildly) actions, I found Amy, an amazing woman who was taken for granted—first by her parents and then by her husband—relatable and, yes, sympathetic. I kept rooting for her to get the life she wanted, even when I was appalled by what she did and who she hurt to make that happen.

Has Gone Girl changed my life? Well, it didn’t motivate me to change for the badder—old good habits die hard. Yet, thanks in part to Amy and other remarkable women characters like her, I’ve gradually become better at speaking up for myself and getting heard.

Years after first reading Gone Girl, I haven't forgotten Amy. I love the way Rosamund Pike brought her to life in the 2014 film adaptation, which I've watched in its entirety three times with three different women—my sister, my niece, and my daughter. So when I discovered that one of my favorite narrators, the remarkable Julia Whelan, voices Amy in the audiobook, I just had to go back and listen. Her performance is brilliant—so believable, it's chilling—and even though I know every twist in her twisted story, Amy continues to amaze me!

Continue reading Mysia's review >

Publisher's summary

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The “mercilessly entertaining” (Vanity Fair) instant classic “about the nature of identity and the terrible secrets that can survive and thrive in even the most intimate relationships” (Lev Grossman, Time)—now featuring never-before-published deleted scenes

NAMED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY CNN AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY TIME AND ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Janet Maslin, The New York TimesPeopleEntertainment WeeklyO: The Oprah MagazineSlateKansas City StarUSA TodayChristian Science Monitor

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY San Francisco ChronicleSt. Louis Post-DispatchThe Chicago TribuneHuffPostNewsday

©2012 Gillian Flynn (P)2012 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Absorbing . . . In masterly fashion, Flynn depicts the unraveling of a marriage—and of a recession-hit Midwest—by interweaving the wife’s diary entries with the husband’s first-person account.”The New Yorker

“Ms. Flynn writes dark suspense novels that anatomize violence without splashing barrels of blood around the pages . . . Ms. Flynn has much more up her sleeve than a simple missing-person case. As Nick and Amy alternately tell their stories, marriage has never looked so menacing, narrators so unreliable.”The Wall Street Journal

“The story unfolds in precise and riveting prose . . . even while you know you’re being manipulated, searching for the missing pieces is half the thrill of this wickedly absorbing tale.”O: The Oprah Magazine

Featured Article: The Audible Essentials Top 100


The spirited (but friendly) debate over these titles could have gone on indefinitely. With years of listening, countless customer reviews, and a catalog of seemingly infinite great listens, 100 suddenly felt like a very small number. What we know for sure—each title that made it to this collection is elevated and made special in some way by audio, whether by a layered performance from a single narrator, a brilliantly cohesive full cast, original music, or immersive sound effects. Discover an audio experience for the ages.

Editor's Pick: Best of the Decade

Get to the gone
"I’m a sucker for great story structure, and Gone Girl uses every inch of its narrative to subvert expectations in ways that shock and amuse. The perfectly utilized diary entries fold into a legendary mid-book reveal. The face-turn-heel of a seemingly perfect victim who revels in the way they’ve expertly managed your expectations. The unreliable narrators who reveal so much about themselves by what they don’t say—or how they shape emotional states into origami. And it all feels fair; while most twist-filled stories tend to seem rather flimsy under a microscope, the closer you look at Gillian Flynn’s masterpiece, the more you notice the sheer togetherness of it all, each part working in concert with another, coalescing to form a story that has one finger firmly on the pulse of popular culture, and one on the carotid of a serial killer."—Sean T., Audible Editor

What listeners say about Gone Girl

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    34,616
  • 4 Stars
    15,987
  • 3 Stars
    5,268
  • 2 Stars
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    3,416
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Story
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    30,682
  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
    4,957
  • 2 Stars
    1,874
  • 1 Stars
    1,580

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EXCELLENT

Any additional comments?

COULDN'T PUT THIS BOOK DOWN. IT WAS AWESOME. THE ENDING WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A LET DOWN...BUT I STILL REALLY LIKED IT.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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AWESOME!!!

What made the experience of listening to Gone Girl the most enjoyable?

The fact it was told by two (2) separate narrators (male & female) to distinguish each character's personality.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Definitely! You begin to think you know one of the main characters and how they may react and then you're thrown a curve ball.

Which character – as performed by Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne – was your favorite?

Amy's character. However, both performers were great and did an excellent job portraying each of the character's personalities.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When I found out Nick was having an affair!

Any additional comments?

This is a great book to listen to. I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much actually reading it due to all the intricate details provided in the story. Great story and the performers were amazing!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Loved the first half...downhill from there

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

This book started out great, good characters, moved along well, had a few unexpected turns. Half way through the entire tone of the book and characters changed, buy the end of the book I disliked the characters and HATED the ending. The last third of the book seems almost to be written quickly and not well thought out...just kind of thrown together.

What a shame since I was enjoying the first half of this book so much!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Riveting!

I couldn't stop listening to this story! It is a true suspense, with many twists. Even when it ended, I thought that there was going to be more. I was a bit disappointed at the ending.

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  • K
  • 08-06-15

Great Listen

Incredible book and it was incredibly delivered
This is one of my new favorite books

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Wow... Crazy.

This is a great listen. It was so good I couldn't wait and I had to go and watch the movie. The book is so much better. The movie is really good, but the book is always so much better.

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Wow Twisted For Sure

What made the experience of listening to Gone Girl the most enjoyable?

The voices of the readers

Who was your favorite character and why?

Amy, she is sooooo demented.

Have you listened to any of Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, but no at the same time. I did not want it to end

Any additional comments?

A must have. Took me places I never thought it would go. Get it and start listening now.

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Excellent overall

The story and characters were very good. A lot of twists and turns with edge of your seat chapters. I didn't want to going to work as I wanted to finish listening to the current storyline. Believable characters and setting with well conceived overall plot.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Over hyped

This was a decent book. Similar to how Girl on the Train is written and has a separate reader for each narrator which is great. Got slow and kind of ridiculous in the end.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Cat and mouse game that nobody wins.

Any additional comments?

Excellent performance by the two narrators. Very engaging, made the characters feel trully alive. I agree with some of the other reviews. You will be desappointed at the end of this book. Even though the story itself it's good and well developed. You will scream and cry and want your money back. But you won't do anything. Because you know you loved the book; you bought the story whole, sinker, line and bait. You'll find yourself switching sides every other chapter. And most disturbing of all, you will find your own personal traits are uncomfortably too similar to those of the characters. It may be cliche but this book is definitely haunting.Good luck looking at your spouse the same way.

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