Brilliant performances, moving story

The reading performances of the three major characters were outstanding. Nettleton as Eve, was perfect, with the flattened English accent of someone who has lived in the US for 20+ years. I loved the mix of Englishisms and Americanisms that we (yes, I am one) accumulate. Also, her gradual, but subtle, decline was compelling and the attraction to the cop-as-savior was moving.

I didn't want to listen to the Thatcher character, the brute, but, of course, that was the point. The motivation of the character only slowly emerges because his is a story that is revealed over time, and the author had the courage to let it evolve at the right pace.

I loved the gruff cop. I admit it took a while to get through the hoarseness, but, gradually, the character and reader won me over.

The story only gets 4 stars because there are two conclusions (I hesitate to say "endings"). The first is the inevitable outcome that the author leads you towards through both the structure and the content of the story. Presumably, this was all intended to set up the epilog, which I won't give away here. While cleverly done, I thought it was not particularly well motivated within the story.

This is a book about the gradual change in people under the stress of a terrible situation. (This is not an adventure story!) Motives emerge and characters change subtly revealing their true nature. In some way, each character becomes the opposite of what you thought they were.

161 people found this helpful

Cheap Trick

This book has been compared to Gone Girl, and in the way that it is told (moving fluidly around a timeline from different character's perspectives) as well as the inclusion of seriously narcissistic characters, it is akin. And in the same way as Gone Girl, this book ended leaving me annoyed.

In Gone Girl, I was annoyed at the lack of redeeming characters; in The Good Girl, it's more the author that I'm miffed at. And it's not because all doesn't end happily ever after--I like an unexpected twist, an incompletely resolved ending, a modern tragedy, what have you--but this was not that.

What we find out in the end could have been a perfectly good ending, however, the author wrote the book in such a way that that very last piece is not truly congruent with the rest of the book. There is little foreshadowing and its abruptness leaves the reader feeling like the author decided at the last minute to change the ending into something more controversial.

Three paragraphs of complaining aside, the book as a whole was a compelling read. I did want to learn how the characters got to the end (which was easy to predict, minus the very last character perspective) and there was a decent amount of suspense building up to it. The author used a writing technique that could have been confusing, but her writing is clear and she develops most of the characters quite well (two characters are fairly flat).

The performance, like Gone Girl, was excellent and I really enjoyed the multiple narrators; it enhanced the book's enjoyment.

102 people found this helpful

Great Narration, Not So Great Story

Any additional comments?

Sad day.. My first audiobook that I regret using one of my treasured credits for! This book has mistakenly been compared to Gone Girl. Which, yes, we have a missing person situation with a couple of twists at the end. But those are the only things that make the book even remotely similar. I was expecting the same mood and deep sense of suspense as Gone Girl. Unfortunately, this book just was not as sophisticated. I guessed at the very beginning who was behind the kidnapping and hoped that I would be pleasantly surprised with an intriguing twist... Didn't happen! Anyways, there's my rant for the day!

On a positive note I thought the narrators were fabulous until they had to do an impression of the other characters which was strangely awkward.

98 people found this helpful

Nice surprise.. you won't be disappointed!

Would you listen to The Good Girl again? Why?

I would listen to The Good Girl again just to make sure that I didn't miss anything. There were a lot of different twists and turns leading up to the very end.

What other book might you compare The Good Girl to and why?

I would compare The Good Girl to Gone Girl for the many plot twists but also to Harlen Coben books. It was very well written. Great from beginning to end.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

I love a book that has different narrator's for different characters. Each narrator seemed to really grasp their character's personality.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I don't want to spoil anything but the relationship between mother and daughter was moving and the ending was the best part.

Any additional comments?

I hope everyone will give this book a shot. It is a well written suspense that will keep you engrossed until the last word. I can't wait for the author to write her next novel!

80 people found this helpful

Disappointing.

I love a good thriller, and some of my favorite audiobooks have casts of multiple voice actors, so I was looking forward to this book. However, this listen was far from thrilling. The so-called "twist" at the end was incredibly predictable; the author threw in plenty of heavy-handed "hints" throughout the story (not to mention the cover art on the book - it practically screams, "I have a secret! Look at the "R" in Girl! Guess what I am hiding!"). I was hoping that, because the twist seemed so apparent, the author MUST have something else in mind. Alas, she did not. I was also disappointed in the voice acting. Some of it was terrible (when a male read a female voice and vice versa; also, the actors lacked nuance so that it was sometimes difficult to tell if a character was thinking something or saying it aloud). I do not recommend this audiobook.

76 people found this helpful

Started slow

Was The Good Girl worth the listening time?

It took me a long time to get into the book, about half way through I was immersed into it. However, it was not enough to make me feel like it was worth my time.

44 people found this helpful

Hostage........?

3.5 for me. This was book was told from three of its characters points of view. The story slips back and forth in the time line and alternates characters every other chapter ....past, current past, current. It was not confusing but I just kept waiting for something to happen.

A young woman of a wealthy family goes missing and until a day later no one is even alarmed. When the police deem it a kidnapping her mother becomes genuinely concerned and is privately tormented by a long lasting guilt. The father, a prominent judge, acts distressed in the beginning but the act quickly dwindles corresponding to the attention of the camera crews.

Mia, the abducted, is an art teacher who barley gets by and on top of that is a total disappointment to her father for not attending law school like her sister. One evening in a near empty bar she meets Colin, a stranger, and after far too many drinks leaves with him. Things change drastically when he now has her at gun point in his apartment and informs her that he has been paid to deliver her to a notorious criminal. When they are on their way to the designated exchange, Colin has an attack of conscience and can't bring himself to let her be taken, he instead takes her to his long forgotten family property.

For months Mia is held in a wilderness log cabin without adequate food or warmth. One of the comforts she does have is the "love" of a stray cat.

Mia's mother and the detective assigned to the case, are in contact almost every day for months as the abduction trail gets colder. As the holidays approach there is a lead in the case and hopes are high to possibly having Mia home for Christmas.

The narration was better at times than others, the fluidity and timing seemed a bit off. A jumping timeline and the different states of mind of each character made it a little bumpy but done fairly well by the author. The ending fell short because, IMHO, could have been exceptional if the twist was brought to us by the thoughts of one of the three original narrative characters....looking in. All in all, a good concept and a great debut.

38 people found this helpful

Just say it alreay!!!!!!!!!!

OH MY GOSH! This book was really good, but I figured out very quickly just what was happening. From then on I was on pins and needles just waiting for the truth to come out. There were a handful of twists that I didn't see coming, but welcomed them. Overall the book was great, I just really wonder what would have happened had the truth come out way sooner than it did.

37 people found this helpful

Leaves you thinking

What did you love best about The Good Girl?

The Narrators. The detective's voice through me off a bit.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

I liked Eve

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The extreme reaction I had or should I say I'm still having is one of "Oh wow". It really isn't until the end of the book that you realize the story you just read and the depths of what happened. I just finished it today on my way into work and I'm still thinking about it and everything that happened. It's funny how you read a story and it's not until the last line that you get it, you just totally get it.

33 people found this helpful

Tedious...

I had high hopes for this book... But with 4 hours remaining, I found myself skipping chapters hoping for the end.

The book just didn't hook me - the story line was tedious and drug on and on. I found myself wondering just where was this plot going? No momentum... just a circle of before/after.

I didn't finish the novel. I have a large library - I've only stopped listening to a few books. This, sadly, is one of them.

33 people found this helpful