The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins Book Review

The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins 

Genre – Thriller, Mystery 

Publishing Date – January 13, 2015

Page count – 325 pages

Source – Owned Copy

Format – Hardcover

Standalone/Series – Standalone

Rating - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

       Hello and welcome to my blog of wonders. Here you can find book reviews of books of all origin and genres. I will always be honest when it comes to reviewing any book. I try and keep my blog up to date and filled with truthful and fun reviews. So let's get started shall we?

      I know I'm pretty late both with reading this book and writing the review. I saw this on my Instagram but didn't pay much attention to it. I didn't even know what the book was about. It was until I saw a trailer for the book adaptation that sparked my interest. For anyone who knows me, they know that I don't like spoilers and if there is a movie I want to see and I know it is based off a book then I will read the book first and then watch the movie.

      The best part of reading this book was that I wasn't reading it alone. My friend and I both read it together and discussed it with one another. It was my first time ever reading a book with a friend or buddy reading. So it is pretty fun to read along with a friend and then be able to discuss it with them. I had a few "OMG" and "I can't stand you" moments. 

      If you're reading this review you probably already know what this book is about but what the hell I'll still include the Goodreads synopsis for those who don't know anything about the book or movie. 

"The debut psychological thriller that will forever change the way you look at other people's lives.

EVERY DAY THE SAME
Rachel takes the same community train every morning and night. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. Jess and Jason, she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost.

UNTIL TODAY
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel goes to the police. But is she really as unreliable as they say? Soon she is deeply entangled not only in the investigation but in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good? " 

      I know it doesn't sound that amazing (in my opinion) BUT it is definitely worth the read. I actually really enjoyed the change point of use between Rachel, Anna, Tom, "Jess" & "Jason". There were many moments where I would be left in shock and my jaw dropped open. This book definitely had a fair share of twists and turns. The character and plot developments were very well thought out in my opinion. 

      This book will definitely be on my 2017 favorites list. I have a recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It did start off slow but I promise you it does get better. Now it's time to actually watch the movie.
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Book Review - "Hell is Empty all the Demons are Here" - Mark Rounds

I am a huge fan of free books, I mean who isn't right? So I received this beauty from full of books. If you guys do not know about them, please visit them on Twitter @Full ofBookss. Not only was I excited to be a part of a book blog and community, I also got free books in the process. I mean it's more than just free book that made me happy, I was to do something that I love, blogging and reading. I started book blog over a year ago depending on when this actually post. Blogging has helped me tremendously and it makes me look forward to things and keep positive thoughts in my head.

I was given a list to choose from and this was the only book that sounded a tad bit interesting. So from the start I already knew that this book wouldn't get a good review. There is my negative thinking kicked in. I know I shouldn't judge a book by its cover but, look wise it doesn't look appealing to me. It was very hard not to judge it even though I know I shouldn't have.

I opened up the first page and I made sure to clear my head and keep only positive vibes flowing. I don't know if it was me or if I was getting into another reading slump again. I set the book down for a few hours and then I gave it another chance and I got two chapters in. I don't know how I feel about this book honestly. I hate writing bad reviews but I was determined to finish it and like it but I couldn't. I felt like it was a drag for me.

So I put the book down for quite a long time and I forgot about it actually. I was actually hoping to revisit it and maybe get into it more than I was before. But days turn into weeks and I still haven't picked it back up. I know I have been slacking but it's not on purpose I promise. I was really determined to start over and complete this task. So I started all over again I truly wanted to get lost inside the story. I read a few pages and pages kept turning interning. It was a very easy read and was very fast pace. 

The pros of this book were it's a very beautiful hunk a book. Two, it's a very fast pace book. The third pro was the characters, they develop very quickly and you learn about each character as they come. The final pro was that it started off with a bang and it sparked an interest for me. But with every pro there is a con.

The cons of the book were as followed. The first thing for me was that it was very intimidating, both size and the genre of the book. I'm very picky when it comes to reading. I like reading books in genres I know I will like or love. The next con was that some parts are very dragging and I felt like some of the characters were just pushed onto me. I actually got lost reading it because I was so confused with who was who and what was going on. 

Book Review - Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

Hello and welcome to my blog! I have finished yet another book and I'm ready to write this review. I'm pretty sure people love free things, free food, free clothes you name it and people will gladly take interest. I happen to love free books. Books can be very expensive and to get them for free can be life changing. So I'm thankful for friends, family, authors, websites, and publishers who make my day by giving me free books.

My aunt "let me borrow" [we know I won't be giving it back] Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and I was in no rush to read it since it wasn't on the top of my tbr (to be read) shelf. I have a huge shelf of unread books that I need to get started on. A good friend of mine recommended I read Gone Girl and I kept putting it off. Every time I saw her, she would bring up the book until finally I finally gave in and decided to read it next. She was super excited and she highly recommended this book. She also notified me that there was a movie based off the book. So my goal after reading Gone Girl was to watch the movie.

I started this book on my train ride to Connecticut and I couldn't put it down. This book had me on my toes for more than half of the book. It was everything my friend said it was. It made me of thinking about how crazy people really are. I have yet to watch the movie but my parents said the movie was really good, can't wait to see.

Now for the rating, on Goodreads I gave this book a 4 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend it to a friend or anyone asking for book recommendations. Thank you guys again for reading my blog and come back soon.

Book Review # 6 - Stephen King - "The Shining"

"Who reads nowadays?" I've heard this countless times and from many different people. I'm proud to say that I LOVE TO READ! Growing up I was always to book worm and the girl who loved going to class (not really in middle school or high school but, in college lol). But within this past year I went through times where I wouldn't read at all to reading whenever I had the chance to. I enjoy going to the library or Barnes & Noble and just being around books. I truly am happy around new books, old books, and used books. Anyways, let's get back on track.

This was the first book from Stephen King that I was able to sit down and actually finish. Years ago I attempted to read Cujo and that did not end well. I found it too boring and it couldn't sit through it. Years later I decided to give Stephen King another chance and I picked up The Shining. I heard very good reviews of this book as well as the movie. I never saw the movie but I want to, but first I need to read the book. 

I became addicted to this book from the first chapter I read. I literally read the book whenever I had the chance to, which was on the train heading to and from work. I finished this book in no time. I became drawn to Jack Torence's character and watching him evolve from a family man to a crazed psychopath. I have to admit that in the beginning I was skeptical about the whole "shine" idea. Either way this did not stop me from reading and completing this book. 

The plot is basically about the family that moves into a hotel due to the fact Jack Torrance, the husband and father to Wendy and Danny Torrance, lost his job as a teacher and was in desperate need of a job. This was their last shot at finding something, so what any other family would do would be to move and start as soon as they can. Daniel, the only child with special powers, he knew from the start that something was not right with the hotel. He didn't say anything because he knew his dad wanted this job and it was the only source of income for the family.

As you get further into the book you begin to slowly see the change within each character. This was one of the reasons why I continued to read this. Stephen King did not fail to keep my attention and he even made me want to read his other books. I almost forgot to add that at the end of the book I found out that there is another book that follows up on Danny.

I would have to rate this book a 4 out of 5. I seriously did enjoy this book and I do plan on reading Doctor Sleep.