I thought it was a great summer beach read; a total page-turner yet well written enough that you aren't too ashamed of yourself afterwards. it did not make me re-examine my marriage, but I suppose it did make me think about how your persona shifts slightly depending on who you are with. as with any much-hyped book, I think a backlash is inevitable. I'll have to check out sharp objects.

I was just about to say I liked sharp objects better. Anyone have any recommendations of any similar type books?

I really liked her first book, Sharp Objects.

As I was reading it, yes it caused me to think about those things. About halfway or more into the book. Then it just became a less realistic yet fun to read thriller. I did love her assessment of girls pretending to be the cool girl and that whole theme. And I suppose I did find it thought provoking (and a little familiar) how two people spend so much initial energy trying to be who they think the other wants them to be and when they let themselves be themselves they don't like each other all that much. I did like the book a lot. Moreso at the beginning and decreasingly so until the very disappointing ending. I also read Dark Places and loved it.

Nope-didn't have me analyzing anything. The only way I could relate is if I were, or were married to, a sociopath. Which is not the case. But, I did find it an interesting, compelling book that kept me up way too late. Not exactly fluff but not literary genius either. More like a page turner the way a John Grisham book is. But, when I was done, I was done.

Nope, I kind of had the same reaction. But you had to admire her dedication to the take down.

One thing it did make me think about is the need some people have to be special. That was a theme in their relationship and a huge issue they both had -- they needed to be special, and were competitive in that regard even with one another -- her proving that she was smarter, more thoughtful, quirky, with those stupid scavenger hunts, and always having to be one step ahead of him. That is why, I think, he could not leave her in the end -- he craved excitement and the life outside of the suburbs, outside of the box of even normal socirty, that she offered -- he couldn't bear to be just a bar owner, he had to be something more, and she gave him that. That was why he realized he could never be happy with just some pretty girl that loved him, he needed Amy because she was his puzzle to solve, and she needed him to try to solve her. Kind of cheesy, but I think that's what people were getting from it.

Aspects of their relationship reminded me of the Mix Grill couple in The Corrections -- Franzen really captured passive agression at its finest in a marriage there.

Agree with PP. I enjoyed it but I didn't think it was THAT good.

I actually thought it was really predictable and not believable at all. But I know I am in the minority as it is a very popular book.

Were you blown away like everyone I know and all of the reviewers? I must admit I'm a bit frustrated because while I really enjoyed the book and was up late several nights reading in suspense, I can't count how many people told me the book caused them to re-examine their own relationships, that at its core it was an examination of marriage and what human beings are capable of, blah, blah, blah...that they thought about it long after the they turned the last page and it haunted their thoughts, etc.
Well. I turned the last page and that was that - I can't say it resonated with me on any deeper level, perhaps because the main character (*and here is the spoiler*) is a sociopath. Period. It was a fascinating look into a sociopath's brain, but I can't say it has me looking at the world any differently than I did before. So now I'm wondering if I'm just missing something. I hate when that happens!