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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: We’re Booked—The Best Literature Podcasts for Every Bibliophile


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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

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Mixed experience

Would you try another book from Gillian Flynn and/or Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne ?

Probably not another book by Gillian Flynn as Gone Girl was too uneven; would get a book narrated by either Julia Whelan or Kirby Heyborne.

Would you be willing to try another book from Gillian Flynn? Why or why not?

No- too uneven

What does Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

They were both good at ecoming their ccharacters

Was Gone Girl worth the listening time?

overall, no

Any additional comments?

She started the book out as rather boring; the middle part was fascinating; the ending was strange and disappointing; the denouement non-existent

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

Glad I didn't miss this,

What was one of the most memorable moments of Gone Girl?

Pretty incredible the way she tied all those clues together, and planned ahead. The weakest subplot was the cabin/harbor time, she would NEVER have given away her identity like than, so sloppily, and would have sought revenge on the robbers. Strange to see that one sub plot not woven very well into her personality/planning/meticulous evilness.

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

Both were just fine

Any additional comments?

The only reason I found this audiobook is because I noticed a movie of the same name. Sure glad I didn't miss it. All around great read, great character development, very hard to predict what was coming next. Gone Girl and Dark Places are very different but on the same level of excellence. I'd pass on Sharp Objects ......of the 3 books, Sharp Objects (the debut) does not reach the same level, full of cliches, cartoonish caricatures. Can't wait for her next work, though, which I hope continues in the excellent vein of the last titles.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Blew me away

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

I loved the voices of the two narrators going back and forth as the book was written. This kept the story lively and more "real." Great story line that kept me hooked the entire time. So many twists and turns to the plot. I absolutely loved it.Lots of late nights listening!

What about Julia Whelan and Kirby Heyborne ’s performance did you like?

They added life to the pages. There was already a lot of substance to the story, but they brought out the characters even more.

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

Yes!

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dark funny excellent

If you could sum up Gone Girl in three words, what would they be?

dark, funny, twisted

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

Yes definitely, I can't stop listening to it. Really well read!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not the ending I had hoped for...

I absolutely loved this book... until the ending. Not the worst ending I’ve ever read (think “the horse whisperer “ or “message in a bottle” but... disappointing all the same. I guess I’m just a little old fashioned in wanting the bad guys to “get it good” in the end, and when that doesn’t happen it takes a lot away from the overall enjoyment of the story in my opinion. Great readers though so 5 stars for them; just wasn’t thrilled about the blah and mediocre ending.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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not bad; hated the main characters

it was good. I did enjoy the narrators. so many twists & turns throughout the book.

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I love this book!

listening to it killed time so quickly. I drive for work so I have a lot of time to listen. I found myself angry at the characters as I drove down the road. it keeps you interested and wanting to hear more.

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Great book.. you dont know "who did it"

Great, Great book. I usually figure out what will happen with each character upon their early introduction. Not with this book, it took me a while. Great twist!

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Delicious, demented, couldn't put it down!

I couldn't help but wonder what transformed a beautiful, intelligent girl into such a monstrous psychopath. Narcissism at its worst.




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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Hmm, believe the hype. This is a good trashy story

Where does Gone Girl rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Among the top 25 of mysteries and thrillers. This story is not for the "faint of heart".

What other book might you compare Gone Girl to and why?

This book is in a class all of its own among the books that I have read.

Which scene was your favorite?

I could not get enough and it was difficult to stop listening to the story. I had to back track and re-listen if I drifted off and missed a part of the story. There was not one favorite scene--all were equally interesting. The language is rich and can be very graphic at times.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Disgust is my reaction to the book. It is possible that we know people similar to the characters in this story. It was a good story but nothing "good" was happening to the characters if it makes sense to say that. This was a hard story to put down because it held my interest and my need to know what will happen next. There really was not one character, with the exception of Mo, that I cared about. Mo was the only normal person-character. She did not have some sinister intent or participate in immoral behavior. Without committing a serious story spoiler--Mo is truly the only good person in the story. I could not stand Amy's voice or words. She sounded like one of those "valley girls" all grown up. Her voice in the beginning of the story was irritiating, shrill and immature. As the story progressed, it was toned down a bit. Perhaps it was the intent of the narrator who did a great job. Nick's voice was more calm and easier to listen to. Also, the last few chapters seemed to drag to the end. The end was unsatisfying to me. Tragic. I needed more to feel good at the end.

Any additional comments?

I agree with most posts that the writing was spectacular. Great twists and turns in the plot. The ability to be "inside the heads" of the two main characters and to learn of the other characters through the perceptions of the main characters was great. I have to comment that all of the charcters have flaws and are unlikeable for one reason or more. However, I did not like the way the story ended. This would be an excellent book to discuss with a group.

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