Book Review: The Girl on the Train, Paula Higgins

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The Girl on the Train, Paula Higgins, Doubleday, 2015



Rachel gets the same train to work every day, and as many do on their commute, sees the perfect couple out of the window of the train at their home.  She has even made up names for them, Jess and Jason.  A few houses down, she can barely bare to look, as this was the house where she used to live with her ex-husband Tom.  He now lives there with his new wife and their baby.  Jess and Jason seem to live the perfect life, while Rachel’s – it soon emerges – is falling apart.

It quickly becomes apparent that Rachel has a drinking problem, and we realise that this has led to the loss of her job.  She actually has no need to get the train every day due to this but can’t seem to keep away from watching Jess and Jason, as well as drunken phone calls to her ex.  But when she sees Jess out of the train window with another man, her idea of the perfect relationship is shattered.

One night after a particularly bad drinking binge she wakes up with blood on her, and post-alcohol amnesia.  Soon after she discovers ‘Jess’ has gone missing.  Rachel becomes obsessed with finding out what has happened, and how her ‘lost night’ which she keeps getting flashbacks from is connected.  We discover Jess’s real name is Megan and later on in the book we hear from her perspective and also from Anna’s narrative.

Although what has happened to Megan/Jess is not a huge surprise by the end, the format using the date, and the fast paced writing means The Girl on the Train is quite addictive to read as you find yourself saying ‘just one more chapter’ desperate to know what happens next.  The book really makes you think about how people can view others with rose tinted glasses, yet only those involved know what goes on in their lives, and nobody is perfect.  I would love to read more by Paula Higgins, highly recommended.

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