The Grownup by Gillian Flynn | Rating: ★★★☆☆

"People want passion. People want a sense of purpose. And when they get those things, then they come back to you because you predicted their future, and it was good."

It took me a long time to read this novella. I picked it up several times in the last couple of years, only to put it aside. Something I never expected, considering Gillian Flynn is one of my favourite authors. The Grownup wasn't a bad story, per se, it just was let down by its story length. In the moments it was good, it was the exact formula you'd expect from any Flynn story: chilling, thoughtful and brilliant. While it could have benefited further from being a full length novel, there was still a deeply engrossing quality to the short story that will leave fans satisfied with their twisty Flynn afterglow.

The truth is, I'm biased and of two minds in that frame of mind. I'm biased because I practically worship Gillian Flynn's prior releases ("Sharp Objects" is my favourite standalone novel of all-time) but I'm also not a fan of most novellas. So, there was a bit of a struggle for me to complete this.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn | Rating: ★★★★☆

"There’s something disturbing about recalling a warm memory and feeling utterly cold.”

You've heard all the buzz, haven't you? If you haven't, you're clearly just not listening. Gone Girl is one of the books in recent years that everyone is talking about. It's dishy. It's twisted. It's over the top. It's creepy. It's crazy. It's a blast that will leave you scratching your head in wonder. Gillian has cemented her place in pop culture references by penning a novel that has spawned the phrase: "I'm going to Gone Girl myself!" and has delighted readers in a frightening-soap-opera-chills sort of way.

It leaves you cringing as it takes you into the mind of a dull-incredibly-jerky husband and his out of her mind, yet completely clever, wife. Although it may drag at times, although you won't necessarily like the characters a good chunk of the time, it's a still an entertaining and oddly disturbing read. Gillian Flynn writes in a manner that can be, at times, too much but still is quite the ride. It'll throw you flat on your ass several times only to draw you right back into the plot without much of a chance to breathe.

For a lot of people, myself included, it was impossible to put down. Some of the narration had my eyes rolling to the maximum and other parts left me with chills. It's not always frightening in the horror sort of way, but it does leave you reeling psychologically -- especially when you step into the mind of Amy Dunne. Amy is one terrifying, excellent, intelligent villain and it's refreshing for me to see such a character.