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The Commuter: 'Couldn't stop reading. Emma Curtis is a genius!' Andrea Mara
I killed him...
Rachel Gordon wakes up from an induced coma following a car accident to the news that her much older husband, Anthony, has died at their home, and her immediate reaction is guilt.
The police also seem convinced she must have been involved. But Rachel can't actually remember any of the past month.
She has flashes of a man she met on her regular commute to work by tube. But there's no other evidence he exists. Did they have an affair? Could he have been responsible for Anthony's death? Or is Rachel guilty of something else altogether? And will she discover the truth in time to save herself?
Rachel Gordon wakes up from an induced coma following a car accident to the news that her much older husband, Anthony, has died at their home, and her immediate reaction is guilt.
The police also seem convinced she must have been involved. But Rachel can't actually remember any of the past month.
She has flashes of a man she met on her regular commute to work by tube. But there's no other evidence he exists. Did they have an affair? Could he have been responsible for Anthony's death? Or is Rachel guilty of something else altogether? And will she discover the truth in time to save herself?
416 pages, Paperback
First published October 10, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 157 reviews
March 8, 2025
A fast paced, twisty and engaging read. The last third is not as strong as it jumps about in time and perspective but still a darned good read.
February 5, 2025
"The Commuter" is your ticket to an engaging, pacey, twisty, and compelling read.
A female car accident victim wakes up from an induced coma and confesses to her physician that she killed her husband.
Was this true?
Did the man the wife conversed with on the commuter train have anything to do with her husband's death?
Unfolding from the two POVs of the murdered husband's second wife and his daughter, this intricately plotted thriller is replete with red herrings and unreliable narrators.
WHY NOT 5 STARS?
1) The book's multiple timelines/POVs were sometimes difficult to follow.
2) The end-of-the-book plot twists lacked the authenticity and believability I was seeking.
I listened to the audiobook read by Emma Powell.
Although Emma Powell did a superb job with the narration, the book would have benefited from two narrators.
This is my fourth Emma Curtis book and I am a fan!
August 16, 2024
This was going to be a solid 4 stars until about 70% in.
Up until that point, this was a thrilling novel about Rachel, a woman accused of murdering her older, wealthy husband, potentially with the help of her lover. However, having been involved in a car crash on the night of the murder, Rachel is unsure of the role she (or anyone else) played in the murder but is adamant she done nothing wrong.
Told largely from her perspective for the majority of the novel, around 70% in the book starts jumping between characters each chapter and time periods making it really difficult to follow what was happened and when.
I don't want to be too harsh as I do like Emma Curtis and many will enjoy this (much like I largely did) but just felt a bit robbed by how it ended.
Thanks to Netgalley and Atlantic books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
Up until that point, this was a thrilling novel about Rachel, a woman accused of murdering her older, wealthy husband, potentially with the help of her lover. However, having been involved in a car crash on the night of the murder, Rachel is unsure of the role she (or anyone else) played in the murder but is adamant she done nothing wrong.
Told largely from her perspective for the majority of the novel, around 70% in the book starts jumping between characters each chapter and time periods making it really difficult to follow what was happened and when.
I don't want to be too harsh as I do like Emma Curtis and many will enjoy this (much like I largely did) but just felt a bit robbed by how it ended.
Thanks to Netgalley and Atlantic books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
October 6, 2024
Emma Curtis can do no wrong for me as a devoted reader and she continues to write engaging and highly addictive books that I have to read in one session! The Commuter continues my love affair with her writing and I completely forgot about everything else around me while I read it. Full of red herrings and untrustworthy characters, I was held captive until the last page. Highly recommend!
December 31, 2024
I actually loved this book! It’s definitely gotten me out of my reading slump. It’s the first book that I have thoroughly enjoyed since reading ACOTAR. Loved the plot and the characters and it was very easy to read. Nothing bad to say about this book honestly. I didn’t give it 5 stars as it didn’t give me the shock factor that I have gotten from other books, but I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend❤️
September 13, 2024
Rating: 2.2/5
I was attracted by the premise of this novel and there are certainly elements that lived up to my hopes. However, ultimately, there are just too many aspects that either simply don't work, or at least, don't consistently work well enough.
The early stages of the book are quite engaging and intriguing, as the central character, Rachel, meets and develops a somewhat unusual relationship with a fellow commuter. Although there is an element of having to suspend disbelief, it doesn't require too much of a stretch and I enjoyed the "Brief Encounter" vibe that I was picking up. Less convincing in these earlier sections is the portrayal of the relationship between Rachel and her wealthy husband, Anthony. Pretty much from the word "go", I got the sense that it didn't ring true nor feel authentic. Instead, I felt that these may well just be required to serve the narrative and subsequent plot development. This is a trait that crops up throughout the novel. There are too many occasions when protagonists behave unconvincingly out of character, purely to allow the author to move the storyline in a particular direction. The effect is that it seems clumsy - and the same can be said of a number of overly convenient plot developments that take some swallowing. Sadly, in spite of its encouraging start, "The Commuter" becomes increasingly melodramatic and disappointing. In the final analysis, it is an okay read, but it had the potential to be considerably better.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.
I was attracted by the premise of this novel and there are certainly elements that lived up to my hopes. However, ultimately, there are just too many aspects that either simply don't work, or at least, don't consistently work well enough.
The early stages of the book are quite engaging and intriguing, as the central character, Rachel, meets and develops a somewhat unusual relationship with a fellow commuter. Although there is an element of having to suspend disbelief, it doesn't require too much of a stretch and I enjoyed the "Brief Encounter" vibe that I was picking up. Less convincing in these earlier sections is the portrayal of the relationship between Rachel and her wealthy husband, Anthony. Pretty much from the word "go", I got the sense that it didn't ring true nor feel authentic. Instead, I felt that these may well just be required to serve the narrative and subsequent plot development. This is a trait that crops up throughout the novel. There are too many occasions when protagonists behave unconvincingly out of character, purely to allow the author to move the storyline in a particular direction. The effect is that it seems clumsy - and the same can be said of a number of overly convenient plot developments that take some swallowing. Sadly, in spite of its encouraging start, "The Commuter" becomes increasingly melodramatic and disappointing. In the final analysis, it is an okay read, but it had the potential to be considerably better.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.
October 16, 2024
Rachel Gordon is married to Anthony, an older, very successful businessman. Whilst travelling to work on the tube, she meets a man who she connects with. She loves her husband but this man gives her journeys a frisson of excitement as she waits to see if he will board the same tube as her. When she has an accident and wakes up from a coma to find Anthony has been killed, she can't remember a thing about the past few months or the mysterious man she had been spending her commute with. The police believe she might have been involved with Anthony's death but surely she couldn't have been…..could she?
The Commuter is a book with as many layers as an onion. Even with just over 400 pages, I'm still amazed at how much was packed into the pages. Just when I thought I knew where the story was headed another curveball was thrown at me by Emma Curtis. Rachel is such a fascinating character and I wondered all the way through whether she was an unreliable narrator, whether what she thought she remembered was true or not, and generally whether she could be trusted. There's an uncomfortable and awkward stepmother/stepdaughter dynamic between her and Anthony's daughter, Caroline, with Rachel's status as the younger second wife adding an extra layer to the story.
I raced through this incredibly fast-paced and twisty book. The plot is cleverly executed and kept me guessing all the way through. Recommended for all psychological thriller fans. Just be careful who you make eye contact with on your commute!
The Commuter is a book with as many layers as an onion. Even with just over 400 pages, I'm still amazed at how much was packed into the pages. Just when I thought I knew where the story was headed another curveball was thrown at me by Emma Curtis. Rachel is such a fascinating character and I wondered all the way through whether she was an unreliable narrator, whether what she thought she remembered was true or not, and generally whether she could be trusted. There's an uncomfortable and awkward stepmother/stepdaughter dynamic between her and Anthony's daughter, Caroline, with Rachel's status as the younger second wife adding an extra layer to the story.
I raced through this incredibly fast-paced and twisty book. The plot is cleverly executed and kept me guessing all the way through. Recommended for all psychological thriller fans. Just be careful who you make eye contact with on your commute!
January 7, 2025
Picked this up in the train station when I’d forgotten my current book. A nice wee page turner to pass the time, started interesting but ended up a bit naff
May 28, 2025
I do not know what took me so long to read this book, but I finally finished it!
This book is about Rachel Gorden, who is accused of killing her husband, Anthony Gorden. However, she does not know why or how as she lost her memory due to a car accident. During the story, you will notice her slowly gaining her memories back.
The plot kept on getting thicker and every time I thought the puzzle was complete, pieces arised out of nowhere. The plot was complex, but I did not feel lost.
My only question was: why did everybody fall in love with Rachel?
This book is about Rachel Gorden, who is accused of killing her husband, Anthony Gorden. However, she does not know why or how as she lost her memory due to a car accident. During the story, you will notice her slowly gaining her memories back.
The plot kept on getting thicker and every time I thought the puzzle was complete, pieces arised out of nowhere. The plot was complex, but I did not feel lost.
My only question was: why did everybody fall in love with Rachel?
February 17, 2025
I could not put this down!
September 10, 2025
My rating: 0.5/5⭐️
My synopsis: Rachel age 38 and Anthony age 62 have been married for 12 years, and Anthony’s 25 year old daughter Caroline lives with them. Anthony and Caroline have a close relationship, but Rachel doesn’t trust Caroline. Anthony is physically abusive and controlling towards Rachel.
When Rachel is on her way to work on the tube, she meets a man called Sean. There’s instant attraction and chemistry between them, and they begin seeing each other.
Rachel gets in a car crash due to driving drunk. She suffers with a head trauma which causes memory loss. When she wakes up from her coma in hospital, she’s told her husband has died in an accident at home. The issue is Rachel can’t remember if she murdered her husband and has memory flashes of another man who isn’t her husband?
My review: I liked the premise of this book and was initially really intrigued. Unfortunately I found it really hard to follow and rather confusing due to the different timelines and characters. I don’t know how to explain it, but the book felt all over the place I was baffled at times? I’m not entirely convinced I understood Sean’s role still? Rachel I didn’t like as a FMC, as she was too naive for her age and consistently being set up but not learning from it. I expected the plot to be full of twists but I felt that not a lot happened until the end, but even then it was a bit all over the place. The narrative was quite repetitive and didn’t need to be 400~ pages. I really disliked Anthony as a character, he was manipulative and abusive which means his character must have been written well. I wasn’t particularly attached to any character, but found Caroline really annoying. The ending felt super random, and visiting her in prison made no sense to me. Overall I can’t recommend this as a psychological thriller.
Book instagram @sophiecookbooks
My synopsis: Rachel age 38 and Anthony age 62 have been married for 12 years, and Anthony’s 25 year old daughter Caroline lives with them. Anthony and Caroline have a close relationship, but Rachel doesn’t trust Caroline. Anthony is physically abusive and controlling towards Rachel.
When Rachel is on her way to work on the tube, she meets a man called Sean. There’s instant attraction and chemistry between them, and they begin seeing each other.
Rachel gets in a car crash due to driving drunk. She suffers with a head trauma which causes memory loss. When she wakes up from her coma in hospital, she’s told her husband has died in an accident at home. The issue is Rachel can’t remember if she murdered her husband and has memory flashes of another man who isn’t her husband?
My review: I liked the premise of this book and was initially really intrigued. Unfortunately I found it really hard to follow and rather confusing due to the different timelines and characters. I don’t know how to explain it, but the book felt all over the place I was baffled at times? I’m not entirely convinced I understood Sean’s role still? Rachel I didn’t like as a FMC, as she was too naive for her age and consistently being set up but not learning from it. I expected the plot to be full of twists but I felt that not a lot happened until the end, but even then it was a bit all over the place. The narrative was quite repetitive and didn’t need to be 400~ pages. I really disliked Anthony as a character, he was manipulative and abusive which means his character must have been written well. I wasn’t particularly attached to any character, but found Caroline really annoying. The ending felt super random, and visiting her in prison made no sense to me. Overall I can’t recommend this as a psychological thriller.
Book instagram @sophiecookbooks
September 23, 2025
didn’t find this amazing tbh, decent book with somewhat predictable twists whose characters I wasn’t a fan of. Didn’t find the crimes particularly shocking and the whole “he knows who you are” thing advertised on the book is something I felt didn’t come to fruition at all? fell flat in a good couple of ways for me.
October 26, 2024
This is a book of two only slightly different timelines: Rachel is the main character and is married to Anthony who is much older than she is, with an adult daughter, Caroline who he dotes upon. She basically coasts through life doing whatever she wants, with daddy's backing and protection. Everything is fine until Rachel starts to put her foot down and suggests that Caroline starts taking responsibility for her actions. The other side of the story finds Rachel in hospital following an incident which Rachel can't recall. Her memory of events during the days running up to waking up in her hospital bed very slowly return to her over a course of many months, the most shocking being the fact that Anthony died suddenly and that Rachel feels that she is somehow implicated.
In the earlier timeline we also have a mysterious gentleman who Rachel meets during a power failure on the underground during her commute. Who is this man? And why does it feel as if he can answer some of the many questions Rachel has about what happened during her lost days?
I did find the timelines a little confusing in this book, and really needed to concentrate on what was happening when. There was lots going on, and plenty to keep your attention focused on the different characters. I found Caroline to be rather obnoxious and spoiled, and really wanted Anthony to take his rose-tinted specs off and realise just how much damage he was doing with his responses to her actions. Where she was concerned I was totally on Rachel's side - but the background to the relationship between the two women is also understandable to a point, however Caroline is a bit old to be playing the wronged daughter card in my opinion.
If you want a fast paced, entertaining thriller this will tick all the boxes for you. The author has a very engaging writing style that will have you turning the pages and possibly missing your stop on your own commute as you get well and truly drawn in to the crazy world that Rachel finds herself in after what should have just been an ordinary tube journey.
In the earlier timeline we also have a mysterious gentleman who Rachel meets during a power failure on the underground during her commute. Who is this man? And why does it feel as if he can answer some of the many questions Rachel has about what happened during her lost days?
I did find the timelines a little confusing in this book, and really needed to concentrate on what was happening when. There was lots going on, and plenty to keep your attention focused on the different characters. I found Caroline to be rather obnoxious and spoiled, and really wanted Anthony to take his rose-tinted specs off and realise just how much damage he was doing with his responses to her actions. Where she was concerned I was totally on Rachel's side - but the background to the relationship between the two women is also understandable to a point, however Caroline is a bit old to be playing the wronged daughter card in my opinion.
If you want a fast paced, entertaining thriller this will tick all the boxes for you. The author has a very engaging writing style that will have you turning the pages and possibly missing your stop on your own commute as you get well and truly drawn in to the crazy world that Rachel finds herself in after what should have just been an ordinary tube journey.
November 21, 2024
Time I will never get back in my life
The most stupid,gullible sad,desperate woman I have ever come across in a book! She believes all their lies time and time again even though it is so obvious she has been set up and her suitors are not into her! As for her husband' s daughter, as if she would believe anything she said let alone get in a car with her near the end of the book after discovering she had set her up with Dominic then Sean! . So OBVIOUS it was a trap! But worst of all, after almost being murdered by her stepdaughter,she pays for her defence and visits her in jail! And gives her millions!lol ! She has not learned anything throughout the book! She even gives into her mum's unreasonable demands for money for bed and board when she went to university almost 20 years ago! The whole book should never have made it to the final draft! The main character was pathetic! No sympathy for her at all. Utter drivel!
The most stupid,gullible sad,desperate woman I have ever come across in a book! She believes all their lies time and time again even though it is so obvious she has been set up and her suitors are not into her! As for her husband' s daughter, as if she would believe anything she said let alone get in a car with her near the end of the book after discovering she had set her up with Dominic then Sean! . So OBVIOUS it was a trap! But worst of all, after almost being murdered by her stepdaughter,she pays for her defence and visits her in jail! And gives her millions!lol ! She has not learned anything throughout the book! She even gives into her mum's unreasonable demands for money for bed and board when she went to university almost 20 years ago! The whole book should never have made it to the final draft! The main character was pathetic! No sympathy for her at all. Utter drivel!
January 21, 2025
I enjoyed this book - though it was a bit odd.
It is well written and the characters are credible - at least for about the first three quarters of the novel. After that one of the key figures starts to act out of character and almost becomes a different person. Which caused me some problems with credibility.
I also struggled with the structure of the novel. The first half of the novel is told in the first person by one of the characters - Rachel. Then we suddenly change to seeing things from the point of view of Caroline [Rachel's stepdaughter] but this bit is told in the third person. After that we chop and change between viewpoints of four different characters - and we also drop in and out of flashback. It all seemed a bit disjointed.
But if you can cope with that rather peculiar plot structure you will enjoy this thriller. Edge of the seat stuff.
It is well written and the characters are credible - at least for about the first three quarters of the novel. After that one of the key figures starts to act out of character and almost becomes a different person. Which caused me some problems with credibility.
I also struggled with the structure of the novel. The first half of the novel is told in the first person by one of the characters - Rachel. Then we suddenly change to seeing things from the point of view of Caroline [Rachel's stepdaughter] but this bit is told in the third person. After that we chop and change between viewpoints of four different characters - and we also drop in and out of flashback. It all seemed a bit disjointed.
But if you can cope with that rather peculiar plot structure you will enjoy this thriller. Edge of the seat stuff.
November 12, 2024
Rachel wakes from a coma with amnesia where she discovers her husband has been killed and she's the prime suspect. The narrative moves back and forth and from various POV to tell the story of what really happened. Loved this! So many twists and red herrings. Such a gripping thriller that I read it in one day.
March 6, 2025
This book made absolutely no sense at all, whilst it started well with a twist it then was so hard to follow, would randomly introduce characters without explaining who they are and purpose and then the ‘twist’ was so hard to follow - couldn’t wait to finish to move onto the next book
January 3, 2025
Rachel lives with her husband Anthony and his daughter who sponges off her father and is 25+. Her husband is abusive towards her when Rachel questions the ongoing support of his unstable daughter who attacks a man with a knife. He paid him off. Her husband has started a charity Begin Again, helping ex convicts and they have a gala.
Rachel meets a stranger, Sean, on the tube and they have great chemistry and see each other a number of times starting to fall in love.
In the present Rachel wakes up from a coma, inflicted from a car crash where she was drink driving after a gathering at her friend Hazels. Her husband has been murdered. She doesn’t remember anything from the past 6 months. The will is read out and everything has been left to Rachel who was cut out due to being spoilt and him not wanting her life to go downhill from not working hard. He’d had cancer but not told anybody. Rachel is supported by her lawyers and her husbands friend, Tim. Caroline is still very aggressive towards her even at the funeral.
Rachel has a very dysfunctional relationship with her mum who always belittled her as a child and called her a liar to the police. Caroline takes pills to try and kill herself and Rachel meets a therapist, Dominic, who she becomes friends with and helps Caroline for Rachel. You can tell already there is something more than meets the eye. We then flash forward a year and they are together. We find out Dominic was the man Caroline was with before who she attacked with the knife! Caroline is still infatuated with Dominic and when Rachel plans to give all the money inherited from her husbands death to charity, Caroline tells Dominic he needs to kill Rachel before she does it. Rachel discovers Dominic and Caroline’s past due to watching a tv show that they appeared in together and realises they knew each other before Rachel met him - this bit was just silly.
We then flash back to 2023 where Rachel is seeing Sean from the train. He reveals that he knew Rachel before they met on the train and he was at the charity gala for Rachel’s husbands charity - he is Xan one of the service users, and he witnessed the young Kam stealing there. They were threatened by the company that all staff would be fired if someone didn’t come forward. Xan took the blame for it as Kam had stolen to feed his young half brother. We find out Caroline had paid Xan to try and sleep with Rachel but he actually built feelings for her. We see on the night of Anthony’s death that Rachel was again hit by Anthony due to Caroline showing him the photo of Rachel with Xan on the train and that Rachel arranged for Xan to meet up with Anthony under the name Sean to try and get career advice. Sean reveals everything about him and Rachel to Anthony and when Anthony lunged at Sean, Sean pushed him where he fell and died. Sean had called Caroline that night to tell her and then Caroline came back and found the body and called the police - meanwhile Rachel crashes on the way back from Hazels party trying to get home after Anthony left an angry voicemail before his death. We find out Rachel and Sean had met just before Sean went to the house, and that he’d seen the bruise Anthony had left on Rachel.
In the present, Rachel’s memory has returned and the police charge her thinking she is lying about everything she forgot. She bumps into Kam who reveals he heard Xan on the phone to Caroline and that he hasn’t seen him since Anthony’s death. Caroline confirms to Rachel everything about Dominic and Xan. She also reveals that Xan is the son of Dave (her mother’s husband) and that he is staying with them. Caroline offers to take Rachel to see him.
In a plot twist, Caroline doesn’t take Rachel to Xan, but rather to a trap with Dominic. We find out none of the story about Sean killing her dad was true and him being Dave’s father. Dominic had suffocated him. Hazel has also been killed by Caroline. Rachel is thrown into a water with weights on her where she sees Xan’s body there too, who was murdered by Caroline when he said he was going to go to the police about everything. Rachel manages to break free and survives and police find Caroline and Dominic who are both charged.
This book was honestly painfully slow to get through. And the plot just became so far-fetched and ridiculous, flashing back and forth constantly between different timelines. It felt way too long and like we were going in circles. Caroline was clearly written to be unlikeable but to the point where anything from her point of view or even when she was inside Rachel’s chapters were just so samey. Rachel wasn’t that likeable either.
Rachel meets a stranger, Sean, on the tube and they have great chemistry and see each other a number of times starting to fall in love.
In the present Rachel wakes up from a coma, inflicted from a car crash where she was drink driving after a gathering at her friend Hazels. Her husband has been murdered. She doesn’t remember anything from the past 6 months. The will is read out and everything has been left to Rachel who was cut out due to being spoilt and him not wanting her life to go downhill from not working hard. He’d had cancer but not told anybody. Rachel is supported by her lawyers and her husbands friend, Tim. Caroline is still very aggressive towards her even at the funeral.
Rachel has a very dysfunctional relationship with her mum who always belittled her as a child and called her a liar to the police. Caroline takes pills to try and kill herself and Rachel meets a therapist, Dominic, who she becomes friends with and helps Caroline for Rachel. You can tell already there is something more than meets the eye. We then flash forward a year and they are together. We find out Dominic was the man Caroline was with before who she attacked with the knife! Caroline is still infatuated with Dominic and when Rachel plans to give all the money inherited from her husbands death to charity, Caroline tells Dominic he needs to kill Rachel before she does it. Rachel discovers Dominic and Caroline’s past due to watching a tv show that they appeared in together and realises they knew each other before Rachel met him - this bit was just silly.
We then flash back to 2023 where Rachel is seeing Sean from the train. He reveals that he knew Rachel before they met on the train and he was at the charity gala for Rachel’s husbands charity - he is Xan one of the service users, and he witnessed the young Kam stealing there. They were threatened by the company that all staff would be fired if someone didn’t come forward. Xan took the blame for it as Kam had stolen to feed his young half brother. We find out Caroline had paid Xan to try and sleep with Rachel but he actually built feelings for her. We see on the night of Anthony’s death that Rachel was again hit by Anthony due to Caroline showing him the photo of Rachel with Xan on the train and that Rachel arranged for Xan to meet up with Anthony under the name Sean to try and get career advice. Sean reveals everything about him and Rachel to Anthony and when Anthony lunged at Sean, Sean pushed him where he fell and died. Sean had called Caroline that night to tell her and then Caroline came back and found the body and called the police - meanwhile Rachel crashes on the way back from Hazels party trying to get home after Anthony left an angry voicemail before his death. We find out Rachel and Sean had met just before Sean went to the house, and that he’d seen the bruise Anthony had left on Rachel.
In the present, Rachel’s memory has returned and the police charge her thinking she is lying about everything she forgot. She bumps into Kam who reveals he heard Xan on the phone to Caroline and that he hasn’t seen him since Anthony’s death. Caroline confirms to Rachel everything about Dominic and Xan. She also reveals that Xan is the son of Dave (her mother’s husband) and that he is staying with them. Caroline offers to take Rachel to see him.
In a plot twist, Caroline doesn’t take Rachel to Xan, but rather to a trap with Dominic. We find out none of the story about Sean killing her dad was true and him being Dave’s father. Dominic had suffocated him. Hazel has also been killed by Caroline. Rachel is thrown into a water with weights on her where she sees Xan’s body there too, who was murdered by Caroline when he said he was going to go to the police about everything. Rachel manages to break free and survives and police find Caroline and Dominic who are both charged.
This book was honestly painfully slow to get through. And the plot just became so far-fetched and ridiculous, flashing back and forth constantly between different timelines. It felt way too long and like we were going in circles. Caroline was clearly written to be unlikeable but to the point where anything from her point of view or even when she was inside Rachel’s chapters were just so samey. Rachel wasn’t that likeable either.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 17, 2025
this is my first author by this author. I must say that even though I did find very slow at times, it was not boring, but just a bit like okay come let get to the point especially in the first chunk of the book but as I got further in the book it picked up and got more into it so the book took a bit of time for me to warm up to it but once I did then I was fully in, with me finishing the book in 2 sections 200 pages each so the book has that going for it.
I must say once we got to the mystery and the investigation of this book, then that is when the book picked up for me and had me gripped because I must say I was very interesting on how this would turn out seeing that that I found it to be very gripping and intriguing. I feel the mystery and investigation was done very well for me because, you really didn't know til end juno so the anticipation was built til the very end which gave it that page turner quality so it kept me in it.
The reason why I thought the mystery worked also is because our main pov was very unreliable, juno seeing that she can't remember much so she not one that can be completely trusted with it reminding a little bit of the girl on the train which came a while back. Yes we know what happened at the start of this liason between our main characters, the interaction between our characters that does mean we are not missing chucks of memory like our main character so we are in the same boat as our main character.
I must say another factor that stood out to me, which was the romance between Sean and our character, with their romance not working out for me, seeing that I feel like it didn't have the depth that I think we were supposed to feel so I didn't believe their feelings for each other because I think it was all a bit of too much of insta love for me now do I think their was some feelings then the answer would be yes, but I think it was blown out of proportion and bigger.
I must say I liked all of the characters in the book, for them all standing out for me and all of them being interesting for me so I must say they all stood out for so the characters worked very well for me in the book and enhanced the book for me with all of them being interesting to read and interesting to get to know, which was an important when you take into account the changing of povs by the second chuck of the book which took my surprise but it was a good surprises that worked out for the book in my eyes.
The other factor that stood out for this book was also, that you really had to pay attention at times seeing that the timeline would switch at times, at random in no sense with no warning that the time line was going change but I must say I didn't mind with it not being too distracting but could be distracting for other readers Like myself
I must say once we got to the mystery and the investigation of this book, then that is when the book picked up for me and had me gripped because I must say I was very interesting on how this would turn out seeing that that I found it to be very gripping and intriguing. I feel the mystery and investigation was done very well for me because, you really didn't know til end juno so the anticipation was built til the very end which gave it that page turner quality so it kept me in it.
The reason why I thought the mystery worked also is because our main pov was very unreliable, juno seeing that she can't remember much so she not one that can be completely trusted with it reminding a little bit of the girl on the train which came a while back. Yes we know what happened at the start of this liason between our main characters, the interaction between our characters that does mean we are not missing chucks of memory like our main character so we are in the same boat as our main character.
I must say another factor that stood out to me, which was the romance between Sean and our character, with their romance not working out for me, seeing that I feel like it didn't have the depth that I think we were supposed to feel so I didn't believe their feelings for each other because I think it was all a bit of too much of insta love for me now do I think their was some feelings then the answer would be yes, but I think it was blown out of proportion and bigger.
I must say I liked all of the characters in the book, for them all standing out for me and all of them being interesting for me so I must say they all stood out for so the characters worked very well for me in the book and enhanced the book for me with all of them being interesting to read and interesting to get to know, which was an important when you take into account the changing of povs by the second chuck of the book which took my surprise but it was a good surprises that worked out for the book in my eyes.
The other factor that stood out for this book was also, that you really had to pay attention at times seeing that the timeline would switch at times, at random in no sense with no warning that the time line was going change but I must say I didn't mind with it not being too distracting but could be distracting for other readers Like myself
December 29, 2024
Mystery set around the District Line, LONDON
3.75*
YOUTUBE REVIEW: https://youtu.be/p0gCbAbi9AM
Rachel has married a wealthy man, Anthony Gordon, who is considerably older than herself. She has had to run the gauntlet of ‘gold digger’ from his daughter, Caroline and from the wider public. His ex-wife meekly leaves home and sets up with another man. Daughter Caroline continues to live in the marital home with Rachel and Anthony. It is not an easy dynamic.
The couple has an agreeable marriage until one day Rachel challenges her husband about Caroline’s errant and violent behaviour, suggesting in no uncertain terms that his indulgence is ruining the young woman.
Anthony’s response is to be violent with his new wife and the balance of the relationship is now permanently skewed. She then drinks too much at a party and runs off the road in her car and wakes from a coma to discover Anthony has been murdered. She is firmly in the frame as the perpetrator. She has no memory of the last few weeks, but we readers know that she has begun a journey of seduction on the District Line with someone called Sean, who, after only a few brief encounters, says “Rachel, if you want a baby, you can have a baby. We can make it happen“. That was the point to turn and run, I would have thought, but, no, of course she doesn’t and then her whole life implodes.
The cat is now firmly among the proverbial pigeons because, it transpires, Anthony has left pretty much everything to his new wife, Rachel, and has cut out his daughter Caroline.
Therapy is called for and Rachel alights upon Dominic, a clinical psychiatrist, having fortuitously found his card in her handbag. She has a single session, whereupon he drops all his carefully honed professional boundaries. It was at this point that I could feel my eyes rolling to the back of my head. How many times has an errant therapist been used as a plot device? It is an annoying and unbelievable trope (speaking professionally). Anyway, no more on that. I had been really invested in the novel until that point, and I still wanted to see how the story would pan out as it concluded its increasingly involved journey towards the climactic end.
I enjoyed this novel overall, the standard of writing throughout is great, the story up until the therapist appeared is exceedingly well told but then I felt it went slightly off the boil. The issues with the therapist won’t bother most people, I imagine.
3.75*
YOUTUBE REVIEW: https://youtu.be/p0gCbAbi9AM
Rachel has married a wealthy man, Anthony Gordon, who is considerably older than herself. She has had to run the gauntlet of ‘gold digger’ from his daughter, Caroline and from the wider public. His ex-wife meekly leaves home and sets up with another man. Daughter Caroline continues to live in the marital home with Rachel and Anthony. It is not an easy dynamic.
The couple has an agreeable marriage until one day Rachel challenges her husband about Caroline’s errant and violent behaviour, suggesting in no uncertain terms that his indulgence is ruining the young woman.
Anthony’s response is to be violent with his new wife and the balance of the relationship is now permanently skewed. She then drinks too much at a party and runs off the road in her car and wakes from a coma to discover Anthony has been murdered. She is firmly in the frame as the perpetrator. She has no memory of the last few weeks, but we readers know that she has begun a journey of seduction on the District Line with someone called Sean, who, after only a few brief encounters, says “Rachel, if you want a baby, you can have a baby. We can make it happen“. That was the point to turn and run, I would have thought, but, no, of course she doesn’t and then her whole life implodes.
The cat is now firmly among the proverbial pigeons because, it transpires, Anthony has left pretty much everything to his new wife, Rachel, and has cut out his daughter Caroline.
Therapy is called for and Rachel alights upon Dominic, a clinical psychiatrist, having fortuitously found his card in her handbag. She has a single session, whereupon he drops all his carefully honed professional boundaries. It was at this point that I could feel my eyes rolling to the back of my head. How many times has an errant therapist been used as a plot device? It is an annoying and unbelievable trope (speaking professionally). Anyway, no more on that. I had been really invested in the novel until that point, and I still wanted to see how the story would pan out as it concluded its increasingly involved journey towards the climactic end.
I enjoyed this novel overall, the standard of writing throughout is great, the story up until the therapist appeared is exceedingly well told but then I felt it went slightly off the boil. The issues with the therapist won’t bother most people, I imagine.
September 25, 2024
This book started as a 4 stars for me, it was compelling since the very beginning and as a plus it was a pleasant surprise to discover that it is set in the same area of London I live in!
It was cool to recognise places such as river walks and coffee shops that I myself go to. The Tube line itself is the one I take and I loved seeing how accurately the commute was described: from the backyards of the houses you pass through in Kew to the stretch of Thames you cross, to the old tall houses hovering close the train tracks when you approach Hammersmith.
This was a pretty long book and while the first two thirds were maybe slightly slow and I was expecting a little bit more of a thrill throughout, it was still interesting – unfortunately at about 70% everything drastically started to go downhill.
I spent the first part of the story intrigued and eagerly waiting for some development but half way the story seemed to start going in circles. It is narrated via two different time lines and multi PoV – this is manageable and interesting at the beginning, but towards the end other PoVs are introduced both in the present and in the past and it all becomes very confusing.
I didn't like Rachel and this did not help much, I found her extremely gullible and naive, and completely lacking spine when it come to stand for herself. While at the beginning it was something that made the character fairly realistic (considering her back story), the lack of development by the end of the book made her the complete opposite.
She's shepherded through events without really doing anything active; she stumbles into so many convenient plot devices and twist to make you roll your eyes every other page. I honestly called her stupid more than once.
The whole ending was a big sequence of conveniences (half my notes are like "convenient, isn't it?" or "of course."), full of plot holes and forgotten details (what about that rabbit garden statue? I honestly thought it was gonna have a purpose, if you know what I mean). I could go into more details but it is spoiler-zone so I will leave it.
By the end, the only character I can say I was always invested in was "you", and that's a shame because he's mainly absent. I would have loved him to be a bigger part of the story, but that would have been a different book, the one I was wishing for from the start.
Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for a honest review.
It was cool to recognise places such as river walks and coffee shops that I myself go to. The Tube line itself is the one I take and I loved seeing how accurately the commute was described: from the backyards of the houses you pass through in Kew to the stretch of Thames you cross, to the old tall houses hovering close the train tracks when you approach Hammersmith.
This was a pretty long book and while the first two thirds were maybe slightly slow and I was expecting a little bit more of a thrill throughout, it was still interesting – unfortunately at about 70% everything drastically started to go downhill.
I spent the first part of the story intrigued and eagerly waiting for some development but half way the story seemed to start going in circles. It is narrated via two different time lines and multi PoV – this is manageable and interesting at the beginning, but towards the end other PoVs are introduced both in the present and in the past and it all becomes very confusing.
I didn't like Rachel and this did not help much, I found her extremely gullible and naive, and completely lacking spine when it come to stand for herself. While at the beginning it was something that made the character fairly realistic (considering her back story), the lack of development by the end of the book made her the complete opposite.
She's shepherded through events without really doing anything active; she stumbles into so many convenient plot devices and twist to make you roll your eyes every other page. I honestly called her stupid more than once.
The whole ending was a big sequence of conveniences (half my notes are like "convenient, isn't it?" or "of course."), full of plot holes and forgotten details (what about that rabbit garden statue? I honestly thought it was gonna have a purpose, if you know what I mean). I could go into more details but it is spoiler-zone so I will leave it.
By the end, the only character I can say I was always invested in was "you", and that's a shame because he's mainly absent. I would have loved him to be a bigger part of the story, but that would have been a different book, the one I was wishing for from the start.
Thank you Net Galley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for a honest review.
December 30, 2024
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest, independent review.
The Commuter by Emma Curtis is a psychological thriller that grips you from the very first page and doesn’t let go. With a premise that is both compelling and chilling, Curtis delivers a rollercoaster ride of suspense, guilt, and twists that will leave you questioning everything you think you know.
The story follows Rachel Gordon, who wakes up from an induced coma after a serious car accident to learn that her much older husband, Anthony, is dead. Rachel cannot remember anything about the past month of her life, including the events surrounding her husband’s death. The police believe she’s involved, and soon, Rachel’s own memory becomes a haunting blur. She begins to piece together fragmented memories of a man she encountered regularly on her commute - a stranger who could be the key to unlocking the mystery of her husband’s death. But is Rachel’s memory trustworthy? Was it an affair, or was she involved in something far darker?
The plot is a masterclass in tension and unreliable narration. Curtis expertly weaves a story where fact and fiction are in a constant battle. Rachel’s search for answers is fraught with doubt and paranoia, making the reader question her innocence at every turn, and Curtis drops just enough clues to keep you hooked, but never enough to fully satisfy your theories until the final pages.
Rachel is a flawed character. Her vulnerability makes her both sympathetic and unreliable, and this keeps you constantly on edge. You want to believe her, but then again, you wonder if she’s hiding something even darker.
The pacing is excellent, with Curtis balancing character development and suspense in a way that keeps the reader eagerly turning pages. The twists come at just the right moments, and by the time you think you have the mystery figured out, Curtis pulls the rug out from under you.
The central mystery - who is the man Rachel met on her commute and what role, if any, does he play in the events leading to Anthony’s death - is both engaging and unsettling, keeping you hooked as you try to put the puzzle together.
The Commuter is a thrilling, page-turning ride that explores themes of guilt, memory, and the complexity of human relationships. Nothing is as it seems, and every revelation raises new questions. It’s a psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end.
The Commuter by Emma Curtis is a psychological thriller that grips you from the very first page and doesn’t let go. With a premise that is both compelling and chilling, Curtis delivers a rollercoaster ride of suspense, guilt, and twists that will leave you questioning everything you think you know.
The story follows Rachel Gordon, who wakes up from an induced coma after a serious car accident to learn that her much older husband, Anthony, is dead. Rachel cannot remember anything about the past month of her life, including the events surrounding her husband’s death. The police believe she’s involved, and soon, Rachel’s own memory becomes a haunting blur. She begins to piece together fragmented memories of a man she encountered regularly on her commute - a stranger who could be the key to unlocking the mystery of her husband’s death. But is Rachel’s memory trustworthy? Was it an affair, or was she involved in something far darker?
The plot is a masterclass in tension and unreliable narration. Curtis expertly weaves a story where fact and fiction are in a constant battle. Rachel’s search for answers is fraught with doubt and paranoia, making the reader question her innocence at every turn, and Curtis drops just enough clues to keep you hooked, but never enough to fully satisfy your theories until the final pages.
Rachel is a flawed character. Her vulnerability makes her both sympathetic and unreliable, and this keeps you constantly on edge. You want to believe her, but then again, you wonder if she’s hiding something even darker.
The pacing is excellent, with Curtis balancing character development and suspense in a way that keeps the reader eagerly turning pages. The twists come at just the right moments, and by the time you think you have the mystery figured out, Curtis pulls the rug out from under you.
The central mystery - who is the man Rachel met on her commute and what role, if any, does he play in the events leading to Anthony’s death - is both engaging and unsettling, keeping you hooked as you try to put the puzzle together.
The Commuter is a thrilling, page-turning ride that explores themes of guilt, memory, and the complexity of human relationships. Nothing is as it seems, and every revelation raises new questions. It’s a psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end.
January 20, 2025
This story is about Rachel and her husband Anthony. There’s a significant age gap to their relationship, with Anthony being 62 and Rachel only 38. They have been together for 13 years and Anthony has a daughter, Caroline.
The book opens with Rachel on a train which got stuck and she almost had a panic attack, when a fellow passenger helps her. Over a few weeks she speaks to this man and builds a friendship. It briefly shows us Rachels’ homelife with Anthony, Caroline still lives at home and she has the run of the house. Anthony is too soft on Caroline and this causes Rachel and Anthony to argue regularly.
After an accident, Rachel wakes up from a coma and the police tell her her husband is dead, and she has no memory. To make matters worse, she told the police she killed him. She knows in her heart this can’t be true and it must have been the drugs but the Police take more convincing. She has no memory of what happened, no memory of weeks beforehand. The police question her motives for her husband’s death, he’s a very wealthy man and she benefits from his death quite considerably. As she has no memory she has no idea who could even do this but one of the lines of questioning from the police is if she was having an affair. She doesn’t think so, but Caroline saw her and took photos of her on the train with this mystery man.
She finds a business card for a psychiatrist in her handbag and contacts him to discuss, as she needs to try to get her memory back.
I really enjoyed the twists and turns in this book. Who really was Dominic, and what was Caroline trying to do. After the will reading, when Anthony left everything to Rachel, and nothing to Caroline, tensions were even further heightened and made Caroline hate Rachel even more.
Very good fast paced thriller. What I disliked was the constant backwards and forwards as I find it confusing, it gives credit to the author for being able to write like that but as a reader it always gets easily confused so I tend to not enjoy those types as much.
The book opens with Rachel on a train which got stuck and she almost had a panic attack, when a fellow passenger helps her. Over a few weeks she speaks to this man and builds a friendship. It briefly shows us Rachels’ homelife with Anthony, Caroline still lives at home and she has the run of the house. Anthony is too soft on Caroline and this causes Rachel and Anthony to argue regularly.
After an accident, Rachel wakes up from a coma and the police tell her her husband is dead, and she has no memory. To make matters worse, she told the police she killed him. She knows in her heart this can’t be true and it must have been the drugs but the Police take more convincing. She has no memory of what happened, no memory of weeks beforehand. The police question her motives for her husband’s death, he’s a very wealthy man and she benefits from his death quite considerably. As she has no memory she has no idea who could even do this but one of the lines of questioning from the police is if she was having an affair. She doesn’t think so, but Caroline saw her and took photos of her on the train with this mystery man.
She finds a business card for a psychiatrist in her handbag and contacts him to discuss, as she needs to try to get her memory back.
I really enjoyed the twists and turns in this book. Who really was Dominic, and what was Caroline trying to do. After the will reading, when Anthony left everything to Rachel, and nothing to Caroline, tensions were even further heightened and made Caroline hate Rachel even more.
Very good fast paced thriller. What I disliked was the constant backwards and forwards as I find it confusing, it gives credit to the author for being able to write like that but as a reader it always gets easily confused so I tend to not enjoy those types as much.
January 20, 2025
I attended a book talk last year and The Commuter was suggested as a book to pick up and an author to watch, so I immediately put it on my TBR.
Rachel awakes from a coma to find out her husband is dead.. but she has no memory of the events that led up to that faithful day. She’s lucky to be alive but this is just the start of a spiral of events for Rachel as she unravels to truth!
We quickly learn that some instinctively don’t trust Rachel.. although she couldn’t have been there at the time her husband died… there’s gaps in her story that even Rachel can’t fill..
Things go from bad to worse when her husbands will is read and it’s not what everyone is expecting… if anything it raises more questions and causes more tension.
We start to learn more about Rachel and the what happened in the run up as bits of memories come back.. like a puzzle for Rachel to put together.
The quickly see her husband wasn’t exactly an innocent…his daughter is not very likeable and there was someone else in Rachel’s life.. but who.. and what does it mean.. is there a connection?
What unfolds is a very clever and complex plot that ultimately led to an untimely death.
I really enjoyed the flow as the story moves from current day, back to the past as Rachel’s memory returns.
The flow allowed for development of the characters at a natural pace, nothing felt forced or out of place.. the development just matches the flow perfectly in pace and made it a super engrossing read,
Character wise.. and the twists.. wow.. I don’t say it often but I really didn’t know what would happen next and I was hooked. I don’t want to spoil it but Rachel is really put through it!
When to bed each night I was excited for my own commute the next day just so I could pick up the book again!
What made this book such a gripping thriller was the main characters amnesia, as it allowed the author to take the story so many directions… and those twists were gob smacking!
This was more first foray into the authors work but it won’t be my last!.
Rachel awakes from a coma to find out her husband is dead.. but she has no memory of the events that led up to that faithful day. She’s lucky to be alive but this is just the start of a spiral of events for Rachel as she unravels to truth!
We quickly learn that some instinctively don’t trust Rachel.. although she couldn’t have been there at the time her husband died… there’s gaps in her story that even Rachel can’t fill..
Things go from bad to worse when her husbands will is read and it’s not what everyone is expecting… if anything it raises more questions and causes more tension.
We start to learn more about Rachel and the what happened in the run up as bits of memories come back.. like a puzzle for Rachel to put together.
The quickly see her husband wasn’t exactly an innocent…his daughter is not very likeable and there was someone else in Rachel’s life.. but who.. and what does it mean.. is there a connection?
What unfolds is a very clever and complex plot that ultimately led to an untimely death.
I really enjoyed the flow as the story moves from current day, back to the past as Rachel’s memory returns.
The flow allowed for development of the characters at a natural pace, nothing felt forced or out of place.. the development just matches the flow perfectly in pace and made it a super engrossing read,
Character wise.. and the twists.. wow.. I don’t say it often but I really didn’t know what would happen next and I was hooked. I don’t want to spoil it but Rachel is really put through it!
When to bed each night I was excited for my own commute the next day just so I could pick up the book again!
What made this book such a gripping thriller was the main characters amnesia, as it allowed the author to take the story so many directions… and those twists were gob smacking!
This was more first foray into the authors work but it won’t be my last!.
March 5, 2025
👜"The Commuter" by Emma Curtis
👜This tense, stupefying, and unputdownable deeply psychological domestic thriller won't let you go till the final pages.
👜The Plot: We follow Rachel, a woman in her late thirties who has recently come out of a coma with partial memory loss. She discovers that her husband is dead—and that she may have been involved in his death. Flashes of past events make the situation even more complicated. Rachel faces unanswered questions, buried family secrets, and looming danger.
👜The Writing Style: I first discovered Emma Curtis's books a long time ago, but I continue to admire them. Everything about her writing feels perfect to me—captivating and tense plots, a dynamic and engaging style, vivid and memorable characters, and brilliant, thought-provoking quotes. The Commuter is no exception. This genius, multifaceted, and multilayered psychological thriller is cleverly written, packed with twists and turns, and enriched with incredible flashbacks and flash-forwards. From the moment I opened the book, I was completely immersed in its deep, intense, and mind-blowing events.
👜The Characters: The number of characters is not large, but as I mentioned earlier, Emma Curtis is a master at creating true-to-life characters and portraying them brilliantly in every aspect. It's remarkable how the characters' inner drama seamlessly intertwines with the plot and the unfolding events. I felt a strong emotional connection with the characters from the very first pages and carried it through to the final chapters.
❤️Fave quote: "Life is too short to be angry at people you love."
📖Would I read other books by this author: Can't wait to pre-order the next one!
🫶🏼My humble rating is: 5/5
✍🏼P.S. Emma Curtis is an exceptional author for me.
A couple of years ago, during one of my family trips, we waited for the flight at the Albanian airport. As a passionate book lover, I visited one of the small bookstands there. "One Little Mistake" by Emma Curtis caught my eye at once. I knew nothing about the author then but loved the cover and synopsis.
Moreover, I enjoy discovering new authors. I had a gut feeling that Emma Curtis would be such an author. My intuition didn't fail me – Emma Curtis has been one of my auto-buy and favorite writers since then.
I do hope you'll enjoy reading the books by Emma Curtis as much as I did!
Anyway, thank you for dropping by and reading the post that I created with the deepest love and care!
Stay safe, take care, and happy reading!
👜This tense, stupefying, and unputdownable deeply psychological domestic thriller won't let you go till the final pages.
👜The Plot: We follow Rachel, a woman in her late thirties who has recently come out of a coma with partial memory loss. She discovers that her husband is dead—and that she may have been involved in his death. Flashes of past events make the situation even more complicated. Rachel faces unanswered questions, buried family secrets, and looming danger.
👜The Writing Style: I first discovered Emma Curtis's books a long time ago, but I continue to admire them. Everything about her writing feels perfect to me—captivating and tense plots, a dynamic and engaging style, vivid and memorable characters, and brilliant, thought-provoking quotes. The Commuter is no exception. This genius, multifaceted, and multilayered psychological thriller is cleverly written, packed with twists and turns, and enriched with incredible flashbacks and flash-forwards. From the moment I opened the book, I was completely immersed in its deep, intense, and mind-blowing events.
👜The Characters: The number of characters is not large, but as I mentioned earlier, Emma Curtis is a master at creating true-to-life characters and portraying them brilliantly in every aspect. It's remarkable how the characters' inner drama seamlessly intertwines with the plot and the unfolding events. I felt a strong emotional connection with the characters from the very first pages and carried it through to the final chapters.
❤️Fave quote: "Life is too short to be angry at people you love."
📖Would I read other books by this author: Can't wait to pre-order the next one!
🫶🏼My humble rating is: 5/5
✍🏼P.S. Emma Curtis is an exceptional author for me.
A couple of years ago, during one of my family trips, we waited for the flight at the Albanian airport. As a passionate book lover, I visited one of the small bookstands there. "One Little Mistake" by Emma Curtis caught my eye at once. I knew nothing about the author then but loved the cover and synopsis.
Moreover, I enjoy discovering new authors. I had a gut feeling that Emma Curtis would be such an author. My intuition didn't fail me – Emma Curtis has been one of my auto-buy and favorite writers since then.
I do hope you'll enjoy reading the books by Emma Curtis as much as I did!
Anyway, thank you for dropping by and reading the post that I created with the deepest love and care!
Stay safe, take care, and happy reading!
September 16, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Corvus for an advanced copy of The Commuter in exchange for a review.
4.5 stars rounded up.
Oh. My. Goodness. I saw one of my favourite authors post on Instagram about loving this book so I immediately went to request it and was not disappointed!
I love a thriller that keeps me thinking and guessing, whilst not being able to even come up with an idea about how it’s going to turn out. Every single thing that happened, I was nowhere near expecting. And I loved it! As well as the brilliantly unpredictable story, there was the stunning writing. During the scene-setting part of the story, Emma created such an incredible feeling of unease, and slow-building tension. And then the truths start to be revealed… and it was just ace!
The story itself centres around Rachel – although we do start to hear snippets from the points of view of more of the characters towards the end. It starts with Rachel having a car crash and then waking up from a coma, unable to remember anything from the last few weeks. We don’t know why she was in such a panic to get home – but she soon learns that her husband, Anthony, was killed that night.
We then go back in time a few weeks, and find out how precarious Rachel and Anthony’s marriage had become, and how Rachel met a mystery man on her commute to work. But she cannot remember whether she had an affair or not, and has no way of contacting him.
I thought the characterisation of Rachel was brilliant – she felt like a real person, with lots of layers and a sad and difficult history. The fact that she couldn’t remember parts of the recent past made it feel like I was living the story with her, willing things to be pieced together.
Quite an exhausting read (I couldn’t stop reading it from about 60% through!) but thoroughly enjoyable!
4.5 stars rounded up.
Oh. My. Goodness. I saw one of my favourite authors post on Instagram about loving this book so I immediately went to request it and was not disappointed!
I love a thriller that keeps me thinking and guessing, whilst not being able to even come up with an idea about how it’s going to turn out. Every single thing that happened, I was nowhere near expecting. And I loved it! As well as the brilliantly unpredictable story, there was the stunning writing. During the scene-setting part of the story, Emma created such an incredible feeling of unease, and slow-building tension. And then the truths start to be revealed… and it was just ace!
The story itself centres around Rachel – although we do start to hear snippets from the points of view of more of the characters towards the end. It starts with Rachel having a car crash and then waking up from a coma, unable to remember anything from the last few weeks. We don’t know why she was in such a panic to get home – but she soon learns that her husband, Anthony, was killed that night.
We then go back in time a few weeks, and find out how precarious Rachel and Anthony’s marriage had become, and how Rachel met a mystery man on her commute to work. But she cannot remember whether she had an affair or not, and has no way of contacting him.
I thought the characterisation of Rachel was brilliant – she felt like a real person, with lots of layers and a sad and difficult history. The fact that she couldn’t remember parts of the recent past made it feel like I was living the story with her, willing things to be pieced together.
Quite an exhausting read (I couldn’t stop reading it from about 60% through!) but thoroughly enjoyable!
September 17, 2024
The Commuter Emma Curtis
5 stars
Another amazing story from this author
.
I have read two of this author's previous books so was really pleased to request this one and it certainly did not disappoint!
Rachel is 38 and has been married to her husband Anthony, who is 68, for 12 happy years. The only downside is her stepdaughter, Caroline, who is an aspiring actress who spends most of her life 'resting' and living off her father in the marital home. Rachel has tried to explain to Anthony over the years that Caroline needs to stand on her own two feet but, in his eyes, she can do no wrong. When Rachel tries to make Anthony understand one more time he hits her which has never happened before and makes her start to re evaluate her marriage and her life.
On her daily commute to work Rachel meets an attractive stranger on the tube and is immediately attracted to him. All she knows is that he is called Sean but reeling from her husband's behaviour Sean becomes the highlight of her day.
The book begins when Rachel goes to a friends party, gets very drunk but on receiving a phone call from her husband saying 'What have you done?' jumps into her car and wakes up in a coma in the hospital remembering almost nothing and then discovering Anthony has been murdered.
Caroline is determined to blame Rachel and as Rachel cannot remember anything makes a good case against her. Rachel goes to a psychologist to try and sort her life out but is he the man he seems? The plot has many twists and turns and we hear all different sides of the story. I enjoyed this book and wanted to know what had really happened. The characters are always very well written and I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good story.
Karen Deborah
Reviewer for Net Galley
July 28, 2024
I have read and enjoyed some of Emma Curtis's previous novels, but I think this one is my favourite so far. It is perhaps best entered into with a slight suspension of disbelief, but you will be repaid in spades for that minor concession.
Rachel is married to Anthony who is rich, successful and 25 years her senior. They have no children, although Anthony has a very problematic adult daughter, Caroline, from his previous marriage, who lives with them.
There are some tensions in the marriage - primarily around this issue and Anthony's health worries - which culminate in an incident when Anthony hits Rachel. Shocked and upset, she resol'ves to try to work things through, but at this point she encounters Sean, far younger than her husband and very attractive, in a rush hour train carriage.
A certain chemistry sparks between the two of them. There is a nice use of the device of a train delay and how this enables a kind of meet cute involving the Metro newspaper, crosswords and haiku.
So, what then happens between that incident and the time shortly afterwards, when Rachel wakes up in a hospital room after being in a car accident only to be told that Anthony has been murdered in their home while she was on the way there? It's hard to say, because Rachel finds that she has major gaps in her memory in the weeks leading up to the accident...
This is the kind of story best read in one sitting, so that the suspense can be enjoyed and the suspension of disbelief with respect to some of the plot twists maintained. A thoroughly entertaining book. It gets 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Rachel is married to Anthony who is rich, successful and 25 years her senior. They have no children, although Anthony has a very problematic adult daughter, Caroline, from his previous marriage, who lives with them.
There are some tensions in the marriage - primarily around this issue and Anthony's health worries - which culminate in an incident when Anthony hits Rachel. Shocked and upset, she resol'ves to try to work things through, but at this point she encounters Sean, far younger than her husband and very attractive, in a rush hour train carriage.
A certain chemistry sparks between the two of them. There is a nice use of the device of a train delay and how this enables a kind of meet cute involving the Metro newspaper, crosswords and haiku.
So, what then happens between that incident and the time shortly afterwards, when Rachel wakes up in a hospital room after being in a car accident only to be told that Anthony has been murdered in their home while she was on the way there? It's hard to say, because Rachel finds that she has major gaps in her memory in the weeks leading up to the accident...
This is the kind of story best read in one sitting, so that the suspense can be enjoyed and the suspension of disbelief with respect to some of the plot twists maintained. A thoroughly entertaining book. It gets 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
September 14, 2024
This was a complex, twisty tale of a younger woman married to a very rich older man with a very spoilt daughter who resents the stepmother. The wife crashes her car drunk one night and wakes up to find her husband is dead and she is under suspicion and she’s lost her memory of the weeks before the crash. Her first words on waking and being told her husband is dead are, ‘I killed him’.
The book did hook me in and did keep me intrigued enough to keep me going for quite a while but ultimately it felt like a long, long book. The book is told from various viewpoints which cover all the same details but from a different point of view, which I found quite tedious. The main character, Rachel, is somewhat naive and often gullible, especially towards the end and I found that frustrating, She has the broken relationship with her mother. (highly popular in books written by women) and is emotionally damaged by that. The daughter Caroline, is just a horrible person, spoilt by her indulgent father, worshipped by her mother. She’s a pretty unsuccessful actress but manages to fool Rachel constantly so actually can’t be that bad an actor. In fact, none of the characters are particularly likeable.
I got confused with the guy on the train and the psychiatrist and thought they were one and the same person. Maybe that’s what I was supposed to think?
It’s basically a good story but loses it’s appeal towards the end, sadly not for me.
My thanks as always go to the author, the publishers and to NetGalley for an advanced e.copy of this book.
The book did hook me in and did keep me intrigued enough to keep me going for quite a while but ultimately it felt like a long, long book. The book is told from various viewpoints which cover all the same details but from a different point of view, which I found quite tedious. The main character, Rachel, is somewhat naive and often gullible, especially towards the end and I found that frustrating, She has the broken relationship with her mother. (highly popular in books written by women) and is emotionally damaged by that. The daughter Caroline, is just a horrible person, spoilt by her indulgent father, worshipped by her mother. She’s a pretty unsuccessful actress but manages to fool Rachel constantly so actually can’t be that bad an actor. In fact, none of the characters are particularly likeable.
I got confused with the guy on the train and the psychiatrist and thought they were one and the same person. Maybe that’s what I was supposed to think?
It’s basically a good story but loses it’s appeal towards the end, sadly not for me.
My thanks as always go to the author, the publishers and to NetGalley for an advanced e.copy of this book.
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