When I first heard the title of this book, I wasn’t sure if it was referring to ending a life or ending a relationship. I’ll leave you to discover the true meaning for yourself.
The story isn’t that complicated: A girl is driving with her boyfriend to meet his parents for the first time at their house. They have some interesting discussions and make some stops along the way. And when they arrive, something just doesn’t feel right. And that’s pretty much the story.
“You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.”
This book is eerie but you don’t know why as you’re reading. You will feel very unsettled throughout the novel, but you won’t know what’s causing it. It’s best to go in with as little information as possible so as not to spoil the ending.
People seem to either love this book or hate it, but I feel like I fall right in the middle. I enjoyed the beginning of the book. I liked the atmosphere the author was setting up and how emotionally evocative the narrative was. I was invested in our characters and I wanted to know what would happen. There were some scenes that seemed to go on for longer than necessary and some stylistic decisions I wasn’t sure about, but I was rolling with it, enjoying my time listening to the audiobook (which I would recommend, by the way).
But then the book ended and I was confused. I thought to myself, I think the ending is trying to tell me this and it means this (no spoilers here), but I wasn’t totally sure if I had it right. So I went looking for spoiler reviews and discussions, and it turns out I had interpreted the ending correctly. The problem was, it didn’t blow my mind and make me go, “Wow, what an ending! Totally didn’t see that coming.” Nor did it make me go, “That’s it? Seriously? What a letdown,” which seem to be the two responses I’ve seen the most. I mostly just felt meh, like, “Oh that’s the twist? Hm. Alright then.” And I moved on. It didn’t negate my enjoyment of the novel in the beginning, but neither did it make me want to immediately reread the novel to gain a whole new perspective on the story now knowing how it ends, which is what I’ve seen some people recommend. I enjoyed my time listening, but I’m moving on now.
I will say that I do really want to watch the adaptation at some point though. That looks good, at least.
Do I recommend this book? I don’t really know. It’s not very long so it’s probably worth a read, but I also don’t think you’re missing out on the greatest piece of literature ever written if you skip it. If you like eerie atmospheres (not scary or creepy but just eerie) combined with stories that make you feel unsettled then you will probably enjoy this.
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