Well, Renee Knight's "Disclaimer" certainly had a lot of hype didn't it? Hailed as "the next Girl On The Train" or " this season's Gone Girl". It was supposed to be a thrilling, psychological, page turner. I honestly liked The Girl On The Train. I can't say much for Gone Girl because I never finished it despite trying to get through it 3 times. "Disclaimer" was just an okay read.
I wouldn't describe it as thrilling. The only reason it was a page-turner for me is because the pace was so slow that I skimmed most parts of a chapter because I was so bored. I kept thinking that the next chapter would lead the way to more excitement. Something, anything, that would make the time I was spending reading a "thriller" worth it.
For as slow as 90% of the book was, the ending came so fast! If you blink, you miss it! Let me back up...
This story is told between alternating perspectives and alternating time periods. 40 something year old Catherine starts reading a book and realizes it's about her. A deep, horribly dark secret she has been hiding from everyone. She is shaken to the core wondering who the author is.
Stephen is a retired teacher who's wife passed away. Come to find out he is the one who wrote the book. Switching back and forth between these two characters, we very slowly find out what the book is about and how these two became "obsessed" with each other.
I liked Stephen and his story much more. He seemed more relatable than Catherine. Throughout most of the book I was just willing Catherine to talk to someone about it all. She was very annoying. Most of her chapters were inner monologue of being scared and confused which got repetitive and boring.
Getting through this book was a struggle. Way too slow for my liking. I am probably going to be the minority with my 3 star rating. It seemed like people loved Gone Girl and this book was just a step above for me. I think I gave The Girl On The Train 4 stars if I remember correctly.
I won't give away the ending (what kind of a book blogger would I be if I did!). Although it was rushed and a bit "too perfect", it was very satisfying. I wasn't let wondering. I didn't feel like I wasted time reading the book. The author has a great writing style and the book was (at times) entertaining. This book just didn't suck me in. After a few chapters I felt it was more of a chore to finish the book and wasn't really all that excited to dive back into the story.
I expect that this will be on most people's list for summer reading. I also expect that everyone will love it. I am interested to hear from friends and fellow book bloggers what they thought about the book as a whole.
Happy Reading!
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