THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW
by A. J. Finn
Psychological thriller is not a genre I gravitate toward with any regularity. So when my Bates Boston Alumna book club selected The Woman in the Windowas one of our reads, I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy it. Well, it is a page-turner and a book that you will have a very hard time putting down until you’ve figured out all the story’s twists and turns.
The novel follows Anna Fox, an agoraphobic, retired child psychologist living alone in her fabulous New York City home. Anna drinks a lot of wine and watches a lot of black and white movies and spends her days making up stories about her neighbors, whose lives she tracks and photographs with her camera. We learn early on that her struggles with daily life were precipitated by some traumatic event. Deep into the book, when that event is revealed, you will be chilled to the bone.
When a new family moves in across the park from her house, Anna finds herself involved in their lives in a much more immediate way. First the mother/wife spends an afternoon with Anna. Then the teenage son pays Anna a few visits. Before we know it, Anna has witnessed a murder at the family’s house, and then she gets involved – in some extremely intense scenes – with the father/husband, as well.
The entire time I was reading The Woman in the Window, I thought about “Rear Window,” the classic black and white Alfred Hitchcock movie. I’m sure Finn had the movie in mind as well when he was writing. I predict The Woman in the Window will be made into a movie. Before then, though, if you want a fast-paced, well written, cinematic novel, read the book! (Liz)
