By Gillian Flynn

The Short Take:

This black comedy is awash in surprising plot twists. It certainly wasn’t at all what I expected. And that was a good thing. Unique and entertaining, Flynn delivered mind-blowing novel that stands head and shoulders above the average murder thriller.

Why?

When people started talking about this book, I resisted. I wanted no part of a book about a husband that may or may not have murdered his wife. There’s enough in the news on that topic, thank you.

Thankfully, I finally read this vastly entertaining book that is part character (or lack there of) study, part commentary on the media, and a solid murder mystery. It keeps you delightfully off balance with a stream of surprising revelations that continually shake up all your preconceptions.

The two central characters are both, well, complicated and quite possibly the best or worst matched couple in the world. It all depends on your point of view — and what page you happen to be reading at the time. It’s all thoroughly wicked, excitingly clever fun.

A Little Plot:

On Amy and Nick’s fifth wedding anniversary, she disappears. Nick looks guilty of her murder, though he insists he is innocent. No corpse is found, but the evidence builds.

As the story unfolds, old loyalties are shaken, the press alternately condemns and praises, and you, the reader, realize that this book offers up one well-crafted toxic mix of lies within lies and psychopathic behavior. All with a wicked lick of comedy underneath.

For more about Glynn and her books, click here. I know I’m going to be looking up her earlier efforts.