The Grownup by Gillian Flynn
Narrator: Julia Whelan
Published by Random House Audio
Publication Date November 3rd 2015
Source: Library
Genres: Thriller
Goodreads
Gillian Flynn’s Edgar Award-winning homage to the classic ghost story, published for the first time as a standalone.
A canny young woman is struggling to survive by perpetrating various levels of mostly harmless fraud. On a rainy April morning, she is reading auras at Spiritual Palms when Susan Burke walks in. A keen observer of human behavior, our unnamed narrator immediately diagnoses beautiful, rich Susan as an unhappy woman eager to give her lovely life a drama injection. However, when the psychic visits the eerie Victorian home that has been the source of Susan’s terror and grief, she realizes she may not have to pretend to believe in ghosts anymore. Miles, Susan’s teenage stepson, doesn’t help matters with his disturbing manner and grisly imagination. The three are soon locked in a chilling battle to discover where the evil truly lurks and what, if anything, can be done to escape it.
“The Grownup,” which originally appeared as “What Do You Do?” in George R. R. Martin’s Rogues anthology, proves once again that Gillian Flynn is one of the world’s most original and skilled voices in fiction.
First Impressions
The first sentence in The Grownups by Gillian Flynn includes the words “hand job”. I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. What direction will the story take? To be frank, it was a turn-off.
Impressions While Reading
The Grownups was odd, to say the least. An unnamed psychic who knows how to show a guy a good time is called upon to cleanse a house. The eerie nature of the home and its residence was reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. The characters were creepy, giving the impression that something was not right and far from feng shui. As for the house, it creaked and gave off a sense of being haunted. If walls could talk I’d like to know what these have to say.
Final Impressions
The Grownups by Gillian Flynn was an old-fashioned ghost story. The ending left chills and thought that this story was just beginning. It reminded me of the ghost story about “The Hook”. A rattling noise on a car door was not in the driver’s imagination after all. It was psychological and kept this listener’s attention with eyes wide open.
This sounds so interesting! I love horror, but this is the first I’ve heard of this book. It does sound a little odd, but I’m glad it worked out for you! It does seem like a creepy read! Great review! 😀
It does take a little to get into but once I got in the groove it was pretty addicting. The Grownup is creepy with being overdone and is a perfect read for this time of year.
Ohh great review I really love this short story by Gillian Flynn even though I am not a fan of short stories, but I really love and enjoy The Grownup a lot. Thank you for the awesome post my friend.
I’m not a big fan of short stories either but The Grownup caught my attention. I’m so glad you enjoyed it too. Thank you for commenting!