The Woman in the Window - A.J. Finn

photo courtesy:amazon.in

A creepy thriller that is reminiscent of Hitchcock

I was surprised to see this book compared to Rear Window. Having read the book now I can see why. The hype around a book is a sureshot way of heading for disappointment, I believe. However, this is a new writer and sounded very promising from his interviews .

Gist:
Anna is holed up in her house - she is agoraphoic. She loves looking out of her windows into her neighbours - and one day she ends up seeing something bad happen to one of them.
She is on medication, alcoholic and cannot step out of her house.
Will anyone believe her?

What works:

• The writer is writing for today's audience. Crisp sentences, narrative that completely pulls you in are its hallmark traits.

• Anna, the flawed heroine is so reminiscent of today's heroines whether it was Girl on the Train or Before I go to Sleep. It is perfect in line with a characterisation where the protagonist is grappling with her own issues before she can go out there and stop the perpetrator.

• The writing is so tight that it doesn't let you off the hook at all. I found myself tied to it. A great way of smashing that reader's block that I was struggling with.

• Full of action, I can already visualise it as a movie.

What doesn't:

• Although the ride was good, once the suspense is over you feel like you are done with it all. I do not think I will go back to it for a re-read.