What did she see?
It’s been ten long months since Anna Fox last left her home. Ten months during which she has haunted the rooms of her old New York house like a ghost, lost in her memories, too terrified to step outside.
Anna’s lifeline to the real world is her window, where she sits day after day, watching her neighbours. When the Russells move in, Anna is instantly drawn to them. A picture-perfect family of three, they are an echo of the life that was once hers.
But one evening, a frenzied scream rips across the silence, and Anna witnesses something no one was supposed to see. Now she must do everything she can to uncover the truth about what really happened. But even if she does, will anyone believe her? And can she even trust herself?
My Review: So this book is being hyped as one of the hottest anticipated books of 2018 and it’s been sitting on my bedside table for 2 months as I didn’t want to read it before publication date as I know how annoying it is to read about a brilliant book and then realise you can’t actually read it for ages – but the good news is that this is available to buy on 25th January 2018.
I read so many psychological thrillers that it does become difficult to find an original story or plot line that I haven’t already read and being such a compulsive reader it’s getting harder for me to not work out the twist early on and unfortunately The Woman in The Window didn’t quite live up to all the hype in my opinion.
With similarities to The Girl on a Train with an alcoholic, unreliable narrator and Rear Window as she witnesses a crime that no-one believes I can see why this book has been optioned for a Hollywood movie.
It is a very claustrophobic and atmospheric story told through the main character Dr Anna Fox, a self medicating alcoholic suffering from severe agoraphobia who is estranged from her family and isolated in her house for the past 10 months. Her days are spent playing online chess and spying on her neighbours when she sees something happen but is unable to convince anyone else.
Yes, there are some great twists (sorry I did spot them early on), yes it’s well written, gripping and a real page turner. The constant referrals to the black and white movies did start to grate on my nerves a little but overall I did enjoy it and would definitely go see the film when it’s released. A solid 4 stars.
About the Author: A. J. Finn has written for numerous publications, including the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, and the Times Literary Supplement (UK). A native of New York, Finn lived in England for ten years before returning to New York City.
