[Review] The Woman in the Window - A. J. Finn

Summary: Anna Fox lives alone—a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times . . . and spying on her neighbors.

Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, mother, their teenaged son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, 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 diabolically gripping thriller, no one—and nothing—is what it seems. (Pub Date: Jan 2, 2018)

3.5.

It's exciting but I'm too tired of books following The Girls on the Train premise. Unreliable narrator is the big witness of a crime and not even the readers believe her? Well, for one thing, after GotT, the character I trust the most is my unreliable narrator.

But let's see. Anna is now living alone, even though she can still communicate with her daughter and ex-husband. But she can't go out, she simply can't take a single step from her house. That's how she starts noticing every detail she can see from her window. New neighbors would be the same as Christmas for her. But the Russells are weird. Their son is quiet, the father seems like a control-freak. One day she watches something take place right before her eyes, and yet even she starts wondering if that scene really happened.

For a change in this genre, I liked Anna. She did drink too much, she did act too irresponsibly, but I understood why she felt that need—and the story development proves she really needed it. There was this or that I didn't like in her attitudes but overall she was a character I found relatable. I didn't know a tenth of her story but it was easy to even take pity on her.

I think A.J. Finn must be really good in creating good characters. We don't see many but I even liked those I just met for a scene. Also his writing is easy and involving. It was a pleasure reading the book.

I also appreciated the conclusion. To be honest, it was one I wasn't expecting. I don't know if it was because I've been so busy so I couldn't think much about it all, but I was caught by surprise. And Finn held that twist until very near the end. This was well-planned and well-executed. If only it didn't echo about 80% of the psychological thrillers released in the last two or three years...

Nonetheless, this is a thriller I would recommend to my friends. Even if it wasn't the best thing I've ever seen, this is a promising author with a nice story. We don't see many of those around.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Edelweiss. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Rating: 4 out of 5.