The Night Train – Book Review

Martin Amis. If you don’t know about this author, let us tell you that he is one of the most popular fiction thriller writers in the West. He has written several novels that have brought him glory for their ingeniously suspense and chilling stories that tend to haunt you long after you have finished them. We looked forward to reading the author’s and here is our review of it.

What’s It About?

This crime novel opens with a policewoman, Mike Hoolihan, describing her worklife and taking us straight to the bizarre crime scene she is supposed to be handling. The case is of Jennifer Rockwell, the daughter of a respected police officer. Jennifer was an astrophysicist, the one who studies the space. She was a happy and satisfied soul and yet she was found with three bullets holes in her head. She has apparently shot herself, which research and reports claim to Mike.

But Mike is not leaving out the prospect of murder by suspecting her lover and someone else who knew Jennifer. Is a secret of dark romanticism or possession about to be revealed? Or something else is into play here?

The book is divided into 3 parts and tells the riveting story in just 160 pages. Despite its short length, it is difficult to read this in one sitting. The reason for it is described below.

The Writing

Something is missing from or not right in this book, considering it’s a Martin Amis novel, the master of whodunits. His choice of telling this story through Mike, the policewoman, isn’t entirely appealing. Instead of adding pace to the suspense thriller, it slows it down, making you get annoyed with Mike’s consistent shammy cop talk.

But it’s still Amis writing the story. So there are prose shining with wit and innovation and describes the darkest parts with charm.

The Good

• Amis’ innovative writing

The Bad

• The crime story offers nothing new
• The narrative by Mike tends to take away the attention from the story

Verdict

We give Night Train 3/5 stars. Night Train is for you if you love Martin Amis’ crime fiction. For readers who have never read Amis before, they should go for other books that are better written with a story that is worth reading all night long, such as London Fields, The Information and Heavy Water.