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Available
Genres
Description
"It isn't paranoia if it's really happening ... Anna Fox lives alone -- a recluse in her New York City home, drinking too much wine, watching old movies ... and spying on her neighbors. Then the Russells move next door: a father, a mother, their teenaged son. The perfect family. But when Anna sees something she shouldn't, her world begins to crumble -- and its shocking secrets are laid bare. What is real? What is imagined? Who is in danger? Who is in control? In this gripping Hitchcockian thriller, no one and nothing are what they seem."--
User reviews
LibraryThing member satxreader
Oh look! Yet one more in the long (and getting longer) line of "thrillers" about a pathetic, helpless woman. Apparently this is the new fad -- maybe written for all the snowflakes nowadays who don't think they should be expected to accept any responsibility for themselves. Hey ladies! You got feet?
I'm taking away two stars because of the insipid, pathetic, slovenly, suicidal main character. (and may I note that she had plenty personal flaws BEFORE the event that traumatized her, so...) Except for the painful hour-by-hour slog through her miserable life, it was actually a pretty darn good mystery that kept me going to the end. Could have done with a few hundred fewer movie references, but you can't have everything.
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Then stand up on them and quit curling up in a fetal position and whining! Ugh. What a waste--but then I said the same thing about Girl on the Train, so I realize I'm not in the majority here. Thank goodness for the library--I'd hate it if I had spent my actual money on this.I'm taking away two stars because of the insipid, pathetic, slovenly, suicidal main character. (and may I note that she had plenty personal flaws BEFORE the event that traumatized her, so...) Except for the painful hour-by-hour slog through her miserable life, it was actually a pretty darn good mystery that kept me going to the end. Could have done with a few hundred fewer movie references, but you can't have everything.
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LibraryThing member words_reviews
I picked up The Woman in the Window mostly on a whim. My local library has a program titled “My Lucky Day,” which features new and/or trending titles. They’re given placement right in the center of attention — at the checkout desk so you can’t miss them. The catch? You only get them for 2
Reading this book will immediately bring to mind Alfred Hitchcock’s classic film Rear Window. I suspect the these similarities are, in part, intentional. Throughout the book, I felt like I was reading a book that borrowed slivers from the most successful in the classic suspense genre. And it works in setting a tone in which you know better than to accept everything at face value.
Anna Fox lives a largely solitary life. A psychologist suffering from agoraphobia, she spends much of her time essentially spying on her neighbors in her upscale New York neighborhood. The monotony is broken by the conversations with her husband and daughter, and occasional visits from the tenant who rents her basement, her physical therapist, and later, the teen-aged boy who just moved in across the street. There is little excitement in Anna’s own life; instead, she gets her drama fix from waiting to see the infidelity of her neighbors discovered.
That changes, however, when she sees the murder of a new neighbor. The book then follows as she struggles with how to bring justice and find out the truth while also battling her own demons. The challenge that comes with this is that Anna is hard to trust. I never felt confident about what was actually happening. Was Anna drunk? Was she losing it? Was she making things up where they weren’t there?
The Woman in the Window kept me questioning everything. It was so easy to make snap judgments and assumptions early on, only to have to backtrack them later. The author gives breadcrumbs that matter, and of course more than a few that are misleading. The result is a book that kept me paying such close attention that I was rereading passages making sure I wasn’t losing my mind like the main character was … I think.
This book has a lot of attention, largely due to it already being slated for film adaption. While I recommend it as an interesting read, I do so with caveats. First, it’s a long book, perhaps longer than it needed to be since you don’t really gain anything from it being so long. I also felt the resolution was rushed and not particularly realistic. My suspension of disbelief was certainly put to the test.
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weeks, no renewals, and a $1 a day fine. It’s a brilliant program, and I’ve experienced some pretty good reads through their selections.Reading this book will immediately bring to mind Alfred Hitchcock’s classic film Rear Window. I suspect the these similarities are, in part, intentional. Throughout the book, I felt like I was reading a book that borrowed slivers from the most successful in the classic suspense genre. And it works in setting a tone in which you know better than to accept everything at face value.
Anna Fox lives a largely solitary life. A psychologist suffering from agoraphobia, she spends much of her time essentially spying on her neighbors in her upscale New York neighborhood. The monotony is broken by the conversations with her husband and daughter, and occasional visits from the tenant who rents her basement, her physical therapist, and later, the teen-aged boy who just moved in across the street. There is little excitement in Anna’s own life; instead, she gets her drama fix from waiting to see the infidelity of her neighbors discovered.
That changes, however, when she sees the murder of a new neighbor. The book then follows as she struggles with how to bring justice and find out the truth while also battling her own demons. The challenge that comes with this is that Anna is hard to trust. I never felt confident about what was actually happening. Was Anna drunk? Was she losing it? Was she making things up where they weren’t there?
The Woman in the Window kept me questioning everything. It was so easy to make snap judgments and assumptions early on, only to have to backtrack them later. The author gives breadcrumbs that matter, and of course more than a few that are misleading. The result is a book that kept me paying such close attention that I was rereading passages making sure I wasn’t losing my mind like the main character was … I think.
This book has a lot of attention, largely due to it already being slated for film adaption. While I recommend it as an interesting read, I do so with caveats. First, it’s a long book, perhaps longer than it needed to be since you don’t really gain anything from it being so long. I also felt the resolution was rushed and not particularly realistic. My suspension of disbelief was certainly put to the test.
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LibraryThing member MM_Jones
If you want a quick paced thriller/mystery this is a good selection. If you want something new or different, not so much. I found it unnecessarily derivative of other recent best sellers, yet another unreliable narrator (Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train, The Woman in Cabin Ten, etc.) Crazy,
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drugged, drunk does not a good mystery make. Unique with its massive inclusion of old movie anecdotes. Give it a few hours of your time or wait for the movie. Show Less
LibraryThing member write-review
This Psychological Thriller Delivers
If you’re looking for a psychological thriller that is a real page turner, look no further than this international bestseller pending release as a feature film, The Woman in the Window. It will keep most readers guessing until the end, and those that figure out
Anna Fox is a psychologist who has survived a traumatic experience. Now she suffers from agoraphobia and can’t being herself to leave the confines of her New York City brownstone. She spends her days watching the world unfold from the windows of her home, while she medicates herself with a variety of prescribed psychotropic drugs and vast quantities of wine. She has a tenant who lives in her basement who helps out with repairs from time to time. A yoga instructor visits her regularly to help her improve her physical condition. She also dabbles in her profession by corresponding with people suffering from various mental conditions online. Then one day a woman visits her, says she is Jane Russell, and Anna assumes she is the wife of the man and teenage boy who live across the park from her, a family she has observed from her window. They share wine, talk, and the woman leaves for the house across the park. Afterwards, Anna observes the woman engaged in an argument with her husband. It turns violent and she sees that the woman has been stabbed. She calls the police. And, naturally, given her condition, they don’t believe her and the husband and teen boy deny any thing happened. Disbelief is compounded when Jane Russell appears to confirm nothing happened, and it’s a woman Anna doesn’t recognize. During the course of the novel, Anna establishes a relationship with the teen (who speciality was child psychology), whom she fears is in danger, and tries to unravel the mystery of Jane Russell.
Now, Anna occupies herself in several ways, besides popping pills and drinking wine, one of which is watching old movies from the golden days of Hollywood. These are noir classics and within these movies, which she pretty much knows by heart, readers will find clues to exactly what is happening. Astute readers will certainly beat Anna to a solution, especially later in the novel when the movies direct attention to the answer. Of course, there is one movie Finn steers clear of because it would be a dead giveaway. Again, though, readers who know their films will think of it if not while reading the book, certainly after finishing it. No mention of it here, but how about a clue? PM. If you know what it is, make a comment, and definitely pick up a copy of The Woman in the Window for quite a thrill ride.
If you’re looking for a psychological thriller that is a real page turner, look no further than this international bestseller pending release as a feature film, The Woman in the Window. It will keep most readers guessing until the end, and those that figure out
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what is happening and who killed Jane Russell, if in fact she was killed, will enjoy how well-crafted it is and how the author reveals what has happened at the end.Anna Fox is a psychologist who has survived a traumatic experience. Now she suffers from agoraphobia and can’t being herself to leave the confines of her New York City brownstone. She spends her days watching the world unfold from the windows of her home, while she medicates herself with a variety of prescribed psychotropic drugs and vast quantities of wine. She has a tenant who lives in her basement who helps out with repairs from time to time. A yoga instructor visits her regularly to help her improve her physical condition. She also dabbles in her profession by corresponding with people suffering from various mental conditions online. Then one day a woman visits her, says she is Jane Russell, and Anna assumes she is the wife of the man and teenage boy who live across the park from her, a family she has observed from her window. They share wine, talk, and the woman leaves for the house across the park. Afterwards, Anna observes the woman engaged in an argument with her husband. It turns violent and she sees that the woman has been stabbed. She calls the police. And, naturally, given her condition, they don’t believe her and the husband and teen boy deny any thing happened. Disbelief is compounded when Jane Russell appears to confirm nothing happened, and it’s a woman Anna doesn’t recognize. During the course of the novel, Anna establishes a relationship with the teen (who speciality was child psychology), whom she fears is in danger, and tries to unravel the mystery of Jane Russell.
Now, Anna occupies herself in several ways, besides popping pills and drinking wine, one of which is watching old movies from the golden days of Hollywood. These are noir classics and within these movies, which she pretty much knows by heart, readers will find clues to exactly what is happening. Astute readers will certainly beat Anna to a solution, especially later in the novel when the movies direct attention to the answer. Of course, there is one movie Finn steers clear of because it would be a dead giveaway. Again, though, readers who know their films will think of it if not while reading the book, certainly after finishing it. No mention of it here, but how about a clue? PM. If you know what it is, make a comment, and definitely pick up a copy of The Woman in the Window for quite a thrill ride.
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LibraryThing member librarygeek33
How bad can a book be? 4 stars? Really? Drunken boredom in 4 walls, minutely described. Yikes!
LibraryThing member wdwilson3
I dislike books in which the supposedly intelligent, well educated protagonist does virtually everything a dumb person could do. This is one of those books. I quit after listening to 4 disks.
LibraryThing member Amy_Webb
Meh. The entire book was just meh, the last 40 pages were the most exciting part of the whole book. The crazy, delusional, female character is SO over done. I had SPOILER! the first part that her family was dead figured out in the first chapter. CLEARLY this author likes to brag about her black and
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white movie knowledge, I skimmed those pages when she went on a tangent about movie trivia that had NOTHING to do with the book. I mean I guess it gave me something to do for two days. Show Less
LibraryThing member Jynell
I could not get into this and ended up DNF.
LibraryThing member jfe16
Severe agoraphobia keeps traumatized Anna Fox imprisoned in her home where she watches old movies, plays chess, and visits chatrooms where she believes she is helping other agoraphobics. Afraid to leave the safety of the confines of her home, she’s living life rather voyeuristically as she
Readers are likely to find it difficult to relate to unreliable narrator Anna who spends most of her time drinking wine by the case and popping so many pills she has no idea what she’s downed with her umpteenth glass of wine. It’s no wonder the woman is paranoid.
Overall, the serpentine plot is mostly predictable; readers are likely to figure out most of the twists and unexpected reveals before they occur in the story. Readers will feel Anna’s fear-fed agoraphobia, but the continual repetition ultimately wears thin.
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watches her neighbors through her camera lens. But when what she sees is a horrific deed, will she be able to convince anyone of the truth?Readers are likely to find it difficult to relate to unreliable narrator Anna who spends most of her time drinking wine by the case and popping so many pills she has no idea what she’s downed with her umpteenth glass of wine. It’s no wonder the woman is paranoid.
Overall, the serpentine plot is mostly predictable; readers are likely to figure out most of the twists and unexpected reveals before they occur in the story. Readers will feel Anna’s fear-fed agoraphobia, but the continual repetition ultimately wears thin.
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LibraryThing member MinDea
I read this book rather quickly. I found that after 20 or 30 chapters in I had it figured out, so for me pretty predictable. Some twists were glaringly obvious and others took a little bit to figure out. I also found some of the writing to be very annoying and frustrating. I totally understand what
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the author was trying to convey in some scenes but found them to be obnoxious and not necessary. I definitely feel this book could have been cut by at least 100 pages or so too. Overall, decent. Not awful but not great. Show Less
LibraryThing member maggie1961
Anna Fox lives alone and watches her neighbours. I mean, really watches her neighbours. Due to a trauma, Anna is agoraphobic and hasn’t gone outside in almost a year.
She used to be a child psychologist but now every day consists of her watching her neighbours, watching old thriller movies, going
You think you’ve heard this one before? You haven’t!! That is just the tip of the iceberg.
This was a brilliant thriller full of suspense and surprises that I devoured almost all in one day. It’s face paced and you will be whipping those pages so fast. You will feel for Anna, who just wants her life back but is unable to make it happen. So many of these kind of thrillers have come out in the last few years; this is one of the best and one that shouldn’t be missed.
I did read at the end of the book that it’s been picked up for a movie. Definitely one I will be waiting for.
She used to be a child psychologist but now every day consists of her watching her neighbours, watching old thriller movies, going
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on support websites, drinking copious amounts of wine and taking lots of pills. Most days are the same until the night she sees a new neighbour, Jane Russell, across the park being murdered in her house. But no one will believe her. Not the police, not her friend/trainer, not her tenant downstairs, not her psychiatrist. Everyone just thinks she’s a drunk that hallucinated on her pills. But she proof! That was quickly shot down; she must have done it herself. Jane’s husband Allistair tells everyone Anna is crazy; for here is Jane and the woman Anna is talking about doesn’t exist. But Jane was in Anna’s house; they had wine and talked. And their son Ethan brought over a candle from his mom but Ethan denied that. Is she crazy? Surely she couldn’t have hallucinated it all! Is she in danger or just a danger to everyone else?You think you’ve heard this one before? You haven’t!! That is just the tip of the iceberg.
This was a brilliant thriller full of suspense and surprises that I devoured almost all in one day. It’s face paced and you will be whipping those pages so fast. You will feel for Anna, who just wants her life back but is unable to make it happen. So many of these kind of thrillers have come out in the last few years; this is one of the best and one that shouldn’t be missed.
I did read at the end of the book that it’s been picked up for a movie. Definitely one I will be waiting for.
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LibraryThing member SilversReviews
Separated from her husband and daughter, agoraphobic, psychiatrist, neighbor watcher, photo taker.
Anna Fox was all of those, but mostly agoraphobic. Anna hadn’t left her home for ten months and even rented her basement to a young man who could do errands for her so she wouldn't have to leave the
To pass the time, Anna would sleep, drink wine, take her meds that were not to be taken with alcohol, spy on the neighbors, wonder what they did, and pray that no one ever saw her looking at them through her camera lens. You do have to feel sorry for her because agoraphobia is a crippling disease.
Anna saw things she shouldn’t see and heard things she shouldn’t hear, but she said it isn’t any of my business so she left it. One night, though, she saw something she shouldn’t have seen and reported it to the police anyway.
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW dragged on talking about Anna’s days and her chats with people on the computer about their shared disease.
The dragging immediately ceased and the tension immediately mounted when Anna saw her neighbor get stabbed, when she called 911, when no one believed her, when she started to investigate, and when she became more paranoid when out-of-the-ordinary things started happening to her.
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW kept my interest, but it wasn’t edge-of-your-seat or gripping until the last half of the book. The ending had enough gripping action to make up for the slow start.
I think the oddity of Anna and her situation kept things going in the first half of the book along with the wondering about the reason for the separation from her family.
All in all, if you can get past the beginning, you are in for a marvelous psychological thriller and lots of surprises. 4/5
This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher and Edelweiss in return for an honest review.
Anna Fox was all of those, but mostly agoraphobic. Anna hadn’t left her home for ten months and even rented her basement to a young man who could do errands for her so she wouldn't have to leave the
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house.To pass the time, Anna would sleep, drink wine, take her meds that were not to be taken with alcohol, spy on the neighbors, wonder what they did, and pray that no one ever saw her looking at them through her camera lens. You do have to feel sorry for her because agoraphobia is a crippling disease.
Anna saw things she shouldn’t see and heard things she shouldn’t hear, but she said it isn’t any of my business so she left it. One night, though, she saw something she shouldn’t have seen and reported it to the police anyway.
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW dragged on talking about Anna’s days and her chats with people on the computer about their shared disease.
The dragging immediately ceased and the tension immediately mounted when Anna saw her neighbor get stabbed, when she called 911, when no one believed her, when she started to investigate, and when she became more paranoid when out-of-the-ordinary things started happening to her.
THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW kept my interest, but it wasn’t edge-of-your-seat or gripping until the last half of the book. The ending had enough gripping action to make up for the slow start.
I think the oddity of Anna and her situation kept things going in the first half of the book along with the wondering about the reason for the separation from her family.
All in all, if you can get past the beginning, you are in for a marvelous psychological thriller and lots of surprises. 4/5
This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher and Edelweiss in return for an honest review.
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LibraryThing member bookchickdi
In A.J. Finn's spine-tingling debut psychological thriller The Women in The Window, Anna Fox sits in the window of her Harlem townhouse watching her neighbors. We learn that she is an agoraphobic and hasn't left her home in ten months. Her husband Ed and eight-year-old daughter Olivia no longer
She rents out the basement of her home to David, a young man who helps around the house in exchange for reduced rent, and Anna gets her groceries delivered by Fresh Direct, and her many medications delivered by the pharmacy. As long as they keep bringing her meds and cases of Merlot, Anna can make it through the day (usually drunk).
She plays chess online (and usually wins) and dispenses advice on an agoraphobic message board. For entertainment, Anna watches old black and white movies, heavy on the Hitchcock thrillers.
Anna has little physical contact with the outside world until the day a new family moves into the neighborhood- a husband, wife and teenage son. Anna can see inside their home and becomes fascinated by them, even more so when the son and mother stop by separately to see her.
Like Jimmy Stewart in Hitchcock's "Rear Window", Anna witnesses something amiss at the new neighbors and is drawn into a situation she is unequipped to handle.
The Woman in the Window is a pulse-pounding, heart-stopper of a book. Like blockbusters Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train, our protagonist is unreliable. Anna is drunk much of the time, and so what she tells the reader cannot be trusted. The addition of her agoraphobia heightens the tension of the story, and Finn does such a great job making the reader feel the anxiety of her illness.
Finn also unspools important information about Anna a little bit at a time, so that reading The Woman in the Window is like putting together pieces of a puzzle. We learn how Anna got to be where she is, and although the reader may guess a few of the mysteries, the last few chapters of this fast-paced story surprised me, and at one point I actually gasped aloud.
The Woman in the Window is sure to be a bestseller, and fans of both Alfred Hitchcock movies and Agatha Christie novels will be love it. I liked it better than Gone Girl and The Girl On The Train. I heard all about this book last spring at the Book Expo, and you'll be hearing a lot about it in 2018. It definitely lives up to the hype, and I read it in one sitting, unwilling to put it down.
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live with her after an incident that has been hinted at, but Anna remains in contact with them.She rents out the basement of her home to David, a young man who helps around the house in exchange for reduced rent, and Anna gets her groceries delivered by Fresh Direct, and her many medications delivered by the pharmacy. As long as they keep bringing her meds and cases of Merlot, Anna can make it through the day (usually drunk).
She plays chess online (and usually wins) and dispenses advice on an agoraphobic message board. For entertainment, Anna watches old black and white movies, heavy on the Hitchcock thrillers.
Anna has little physical contact with the outside world until the day a new family moves into the neighborhood- a husband, wife and teenage son. Anna can see inside their home and becomes fascinated by them, even more so when the son and mother stop by separately to see her.
Like Jimmy Stewart in Hitchcock's "Rear Window", Anna witnesses something amiss at the new neighbors and is drawn into a situation she is unequipped to handle.
The Woman in the Window is a pulse-pounding, heart-stopper of a book. Like blockbusters Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train, our protagonist is unreliable. Anna is drunk much of the time, and so what she tells the reader cannot be trusted. The addition of her agoraphobia heightens the tension of the story, and Finn does such a great job making the reader feel the anxiety of her illness.
Finn also unspools important information about Anna a little bit at a time, so that reading The Woman in the Window is like putting together pieces of a puzzle. We learn how Anna got to be where she is, and although the reader may guess a few of the mysteries, the last few chapters of this fast-paced story surprised me, and at one point I actually gasped aloud.
The Woman in the Window is sure to be a bestseller, and fans of both Alfred Hitchcock movies and Agatha Christie novels will be love it. I liked it better than Gone Girl and The Girl On The Train. I heard all about this book last spring at the Book Expo, and you'll be hearing a lot about it in 2018. It definitely lives up to the hype, and I read it in one sitting, unwilling to put it down.
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LibraryThing member Twink
Okay, this is one of the best twisty, turny psychological thrillers I've read in a long, long time. You have got to read The Woman in the Window, the debut novel from A.J. Finn.
Anna Fox is agoraphobic, unable to leave her home. She mixes alcohol with her medication and spends her days looking out
Finn has created a fantastically unreliable narrator in Anna. Can we believe what she is seeing? Saying? Her reasoning is flawed and her take on things is skewed. Or is it? The supporting cast is just as unreliable. It seems everyone has their own agenda, secrets and lies. Finn deliciously unspools his story, letting us see a little more with each new chapter.
Anna has a fondness for old black and white films, especially those by Alfred Hitchcock. Those familiar with his work (and especially Rear Window) will appreciate the references and the homage.
I am being deliberately obtuse. I don't want to reveal too much - this is a tale you need to experience. To wonder how and why, to 'ah hahing' at each new reveal and revelation, to trying to puzzle out the final whodunit. Which will be impossible as Finn has written a labyrinth of a novel. And one that is very, very hard to put down. I absolutely loved it!
Anna Fox is agoraphobic, unable to leave her home. She mixes alcohol with her medication and spends her days looking out
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her windows at her neighbourhood. Well, no that's not quite right......she spies on them, taking pictures with her camera. A new family moves in and Anna starts watching them as well. And then she sees something she shouldn't have. Or did she?Finn has created a fantastically unreliable narrator in Anna. Can we believe what she is seeing? Saying? Her reasoning is flawed and her take on things is skewed. Or is it? The supporting cast is just as unreliable. It seems everyone has their own agenda, secrets and lies. Finn deliciously unspools his story, letting us see a little more with each new chapter.
Anna has a fondness for old black and white films, especially those by Alfred Hitchcock. Those familiar with his work (and especially Rear Window) will appreciate the references and the homage.
I am being deliberately obtuse. I don't want to reveal too much - this is a tale you need to experience. To wonder how and why, to 'ah hahing' at each new reveal and revelation, to trying to puzzle out the final whodunit. Which will be impossible as Finn has written a labyrinth of a novel. And one that is very, very hard to put down. I absolutely loved it!
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LibraryThing member ewhatley
My reading is 90% in the thriller/suspense genre. There are always so many good books in this genre it makes it a little tough to review one book since I tend to compare each one to any 5 star books recently read. I'm not a full-fledged four star on this one but more than three stars. If you are a
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movie fan, this one is already contracted. Well written, strong character development and the suspense you would expect from a psychological thriller. While I don't agree with the hype, I would recommend the book, especially for those who seldom read in this genre, as their expectations may not be as high. Show Less
LibraryThing member ecataldi
For thrills and plot twists 5 out of 5, I docked it one star overall because I disliked the unreliable narrator (although she did keep things interesting). This book was definitely worthy of the hype surrounding it. I hate comparing it to Gone Girl and The Girl in the Train but...... I have to!! We
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have an unreliable female narrator who drinks too much, plot twists out the ass, and some dark hidden bits about her past. All intriguing! Basically a 38 year old woman who is "separated" from her husband has shut herself in her large New York City house for the past 10 months. After some mysterious traumatic experience (which the reader is dying to know all about!) she became a hardcore agoraphobic and can't leave the house without having a full fledged panic attack. She passes time watching classic noir movies, playing virtual chess and spying on her neighbors. When a new family moves in something seems off but then when she witnesses a crime in their house, no one believes. She's not making it up... or is she? Definitely unique and worth a read. I sped read this in one day. Show Less
LibraryThing member clamato
Outstanding writing. Interesting and story is engaging. Guessed at one part of it but did not see the ending at all. Would definitely recommend and read other works.
LibraryThing member c.archer
This is a crazy good psychological thriller. It took me a little time to get into the story and get a few things straight in my own mind. It was well worth sticking with!
Sometimes the action is a bit slow, but a building sense of urgency keeps the pages flying. I just knew there was something
Sometimes the action is a bit slow, but a building sense of urgency keeps the pages flying. I just knew there was something
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really surprising waiting at the end, and I wasn't disappointed. Show Less
LibraryThing member KateVane
The opening of The Woman in the Window has a pleasing dissonance. The narrator is watching her neighbours through a camera lens, describing them in a cool ironic voice. The set-up is reminiscent of a classic movie but you gradually realise the references are sharply contemporary.
Anna is an
She becomes particularly fixated on the neighbours who move in across the road. On first impression they seem a happy family. Then she believes she witnesses a crime in their home. Her condition, her medication, the alcohol she is not supposed to drink, all mean that no one, including Anna herself, is sure that her account can be believed.
This is very stylish, clever and intriguing book. What I liked about it most was that distinctive narrative voice. There are a number of satisfying twists. Some of them I saw coming (that’s not necessarily a bad thing as it allows me to feel smug) but others were genuinely shocking.
I was fascinated by Anna and by her story and although I’m not a big movie fan I did pick up many of the cinematic references. (Some of them are spelt out in the narration – I think devotees of the genre might feel cheated of their opportunity to feel smug.)
My only reservation is that it is a very long book. Those Hollywood classics are very spare and fast-paced, and I think the book should have mirrored that structure. If it were a hundred pages shorter I would have loved it even more.
*
I received a copy of The Woman in the Window from the publisher via Netgalley.
A longer version of this review first appeared on my blog katevane.com/blog
Anna is an
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agoraphobic, living alone in her affluent New York home. When she isn’t observing her neighbours or engaging in various online forums she is watching her favourite black-and-white films.She becomes particularly fixated on the neighbours who move in across the road. On first impression they seem a happy family. Then she believes she witnesses a crime in their home. Her condition, her medication, the alcohol she is not supposed to drink, all mean that no one, including Anna herself, is sure that her account can be believed.
This is very stylish, clever and intriguing book. What I liked about it most was that distinctive narrative voice. There are a number of satisfying twists. Some of them I saw coming (that’s not necessarily a bad thing as it allows me to feel smug) but others were genuinely shocking.
I was fascinated by Anna and by her story and although I’m not a big movie fan I did pick up many of the cinematic references. (Some of them are spelt out in the narration – I think devotees of the genre might feel cheated of their opportunity to feel smug.)
My only reservation is that it is a very long book. Those Hollywood classics are very spare and fast-paced, and I think the book should have mirrored that structure. If it were a hundred pages shorter I would have loved it even more.
*
I received a copy of The Woman in the Window from the publisher via Netgalley.
A longer version of this review first appeared on my blog katevane.com/blog
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LibraryThing member indygo88
Anna Fox is a psychologist, but is also an agoraphobe, afraid to leave her house following a traumatic event. She also spies on her neighbors through her camera lens. And she also drinks -- probably too much. Then she witnesses what she believes is a murder through the window of a neighbor's house.
I had this book on my radar after hearing some pre-publication hype. Then I was lucky to receive an audio copy prior to its release. I wasn't able to get to it right away, but I was excited to get my hands on a copy.
The book description makes it sound very similar to The Girl on the Train. And yes, there are some similarities. I raced through that book because it was compulsively gripping and very readable. This one was too, although I think this one was more multi-layered and better written. As a reader, I was constantly second guessing myself. Anna is an unreliable narrator, and I couldn't decide if I liked her or not, or whether or not I could believe her. There were lots of twists and turns in this one, and I liked the way they gradually unfolded. This was exceptional on audio -- I'd recommend that format if available. The only criticism I really had and what kept me from rating this a 5-star was that the ending was a little over the top and unbelievable, but I've learned that most thrillers are like that -- it's the nature of the beast and I suppose it makes for good movie drama, if there ends up being a movie adaptation.
I was impressed with the writing of this psychological thriller, especially as a debut novel for this author. I'm excited for his next one, which he is in the process of writing now, with a San Francisco setting. Bring it on!
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But who will believe her? And did she really see what she thought she saw, or did the alcohol and prescription drugs affect her perception and grip on reality? I had this book on my radar after hearing some pre-publication hype. Then I was lucky to receive an audio copy prior to its release. I wasn't able to get to it right away, but I was excited to get my hands on a copy.
The book description makes it sound very similar to The Girl on the Train. And yes, there are some similarities. I raced through that book because it was compulsively gripping and very readable. This one was too, although I think this one was more multi-layered and better written. As a reader, I was constantly second guessing myself. Anna is an unreliable narrator, and I couldn't decide if I liked her or not, or whether or not I could believe her. There were lots of twists and turns in this one, and I liked the way they gradually unfolded. This was exceptional on audio -- I'd recommend that format if available. The only criticism I really had and what kept me from rating this a 5-star was that the ending was a little over the top and unbelievable, but I've learned that most thrillers are like that -- it's the nature of the beast and I suppose it makes for good movie drama, if there ends up being a movie adaptation.
I was impressed with the writing of this psychological thriller, especially as a debut novel for this author. I'm excited for his next one, which he is in the process of writing now, with a San Francisco setting. Bring it on!
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LibraryThing member Stardust_Fiddle
I’m a sucker for psychological thrillers, so I was elated to win a copy of “The Woman in the Window” from Goodreads. However, there has been so much hype about this book that I was actually wary and skeptical about reading it because I wondered if it could really be that first-rate,
On par with “Before I Go to Sleep” by S.J. Watson, “Sometimes I Lie” by Alice Feeney, and the works of B.A. Paris, “The Woman in the Window” blurs the line between reality and fantasy and leaves the reader to wonder where paranoia begins. Finn utilizes the unreliable, first-person narrator with Dr. Anna Fox, who suffers from PTSD and has become a pill-popping alcoholic with severe agoraphobia. The entire story takes place over a period of three weeks, and the short, succinct chapters serve as vignettes that enhance the fast pace of the novel. There are classic movie references throughout, paralleling the plot at times and adding an extra layer of depth and meaning. This is an addictive read, with enough intrigue to keep readers turning pages into the night.
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especially as a debut novel. This genre is full of clichés and it’s very difficult to do something new and different. With that said, I did figure out one of the major twists in the story right out of the gate, and the rest I put together before the ending was revealed. A few of the details were surprising, however, and I still enjoyed the story and didn’t want to put it down. On par with “Before I Go to Sleep” by S.J. Watson, “Sometimes I Lie” by Alice Feeney, and the works of B.A. Paris, “The Woman in the Window” blurs the line between reality and fantasy and leaves the reader to wonder where paranoia begins. Finn utilizes the unreliable, first-person narrator with Dr. Anna Fox, who suffers from PTSD and has become a pill-popping alcoholic with severe agoraphobia. The entire story takes place over a period of three weeks, and the short, succinct chapters serve as vignettes that enhance the fast pace of the novel. There are classic movie references throughout, paralleling the plot at times and adding an extra layer of depth and meaning. This is an addictive read, with enough intrigue to keep readers turning pages into the night.
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LibraryThing member jmoncton
If you're looking for the newest and best in psychological thrillers, This. Is. It. Wow! Unlike some other books in this genre, the narrator is not the typical unreliable witness. She is a former psychologist, very observant and very smart. But, she is also an agoraphobic, so all of her
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observations come from what she sees through her windows. Oh, and she's also an alcoholic, so that adds another element of whether or not we can really trust her. But the twists and turns in this book are perfectly paced and will keep you flipping those pages. Definitely worth a lost night of sleep! Show Less
LibraryThing member gail616
Best book I’ve read in quite awhile. Definitely would be on the highly recommended.
LibraryThing member Beamis12
3.5 Anna Fox, now living alone in her three story brownstone, well alone that is except for Daniel, her basement tenant. Her husband and daughter, are elsewhere, though she talks to them daily. A trauma in her near past, has left her an agrophobic, subsisting on items from the internet that can be
The suspense and the wanting to know is a prevalent factor here. One just keeps turning the pages, it was rather engrossing, but.....the execution could have been better. There were things that bothered me, didn't make sense within the context of the novels. Some large plot points that just withered away after being so prominent, leaving me unsatisfied. Disrupted the flow of the story, and made everything that happened unbelievable. Did love the ode to the old movies though, and as I said it did draw me in, there were just a few things I could not overlook.
ARC from Netgalley.
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delivered. Her main activities were watching Black and White movies from old, and peering into the lives of her neighbors. It is while peering through one of these windows, that she believes she is witnessing a dangerous incident. An updated take on the movie, Rear Window, perhaps. But is she, and why will no one believe her?The suspense and the wanting to know is a prevalent factor here. One just keeps turning the pages, it was rather engrossing, but.....the execution could have been better. There were things that bothered me, didn't make sense within the context of the novels. Some large plot points that just withered away after being so prominent, leaving me unsatisfied. Disrupted the flow of the story, and made everything that happened unbelievable. Did love the ode to the old movies though, and as I said it did draw me in, there were just a few things I could not overlook.
ARC from Netgalley.
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LibraryThing member cwhisenant11
If you like psychological thrillers, this one is not to be missed!
Awards
Irish Book Award (Nominee — 2018)
Lefty Award (Nominee — 2019)
The British Book Industry Awards (Shortlist — 2019)
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Adults (Selection — 2018)