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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: Audible Essentials—The Top 100 Screen Adaptations of All Time


As the category of great page-to-screen storytelling continues to grow, we scoured our libraries, grilled audiophiles and cinephiles, and vetted the entire Audible catalog for the 100 greatest screen adaptations for watchers and listeners alike. These are the stories that inspired some of the greatest on-screen stories of all time, from Academy Award winners and cult classics to must-see TV. They're well worth the price of admission.

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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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    34,603
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  • 3 Stars
    5,266
  • 2 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
    4,957
  • 2 Stars
    1,874
  • 1 Stars
    1,580

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    5 out of 5 stars

Wow just wow..

Very entertaining story! Wonderful narration! Listening to the narration of this book while driving in traffic was great. Thanks audible

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

loved the book! Not the ending

Great narration! Wonderful story. Fitting ending but I found it upsetting. Its a great read.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

I recommend it, but didn't actually like it...

What can I say about Gone Girl? Am I glad I read it? Yes. Do I recommend it? Yes. Would I read it again? HELL NO. I must admit, I truly was captivated until the end, but once it was over, I was sooooo glad it was over. I could deal with the fact that both characters were pretty unlikeable... It is hard for me to give a review without spoilers, so I will pretty much leave it at that.

It is well written, and it really does hold your interest. I hesitate to even rate this book, because of my mixed feelings. This book left me feeling so conflicted. I hated it, but yet I'm glad I read it.. and I actually recommend it.

I think overall I'm amazed by how such a sh*t story was so well crafted, and such a 'page turner', it still intrigues me as I sit here and write this review...

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

high energy, well done will keep you rioted lookin

loved it strange ending in book and movie can't figure if she did or didnt

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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  • em
  • 01-07-19

Gone Girl

I considered this a good page turner...up until a point where the story was ending and no one did anything with the information that would have taken Amy down!!! I m not expounding on that, but, I’m quite sure I am not the only one that caught it!!!!
Proofreading isn’t just about spelling and grammar!!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

great first audible book!

I got hooked quickly. Every moment I had available to listen, I did. I will be looking for the next audible book to spend my drive time with very soon.

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  • 08-03-13

page turner...

but I was really disappointed by the ending. The story was smartly written, with several shocking twists but it REALLY needs a sequel to fix the ending. :- }

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    5 out of 5 stars

Great novel, totally twisted and full of surprises

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, it was acted out very well and a great story.

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

They are both great actors.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Twisted!!

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Loved it..

Loved it. Didn't want it to end. No need to see the movie. I'm sure the book is better.

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Great story...worst ending EVER

I almost quit on this after the first third of the story. So glad I stuck with it. Sick and twisted and dark isn't what I care for but I tried it after reading all the hype. I get the hype. Great story keeps you engaged, once you see what's going on, but of all possible endings, this was the worst one. Can't take away a star for that though.

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