Gone Girl vs The Casual Vacancy

By Melissa Ann

Gone Girl vs. Casual Vacancy (Zombie)

Gone Girl had me from page one. It was a page-turner throughout even though it was very predictable. The annoying part is that it felt like it was written to be a movie and it lost its literary appeal to me half-way through. The book became a little cheesy but I finished it because it was still enjoyable and I wanted to see how it ended.

Gillian Flynn's writing style is easy to digest and it flows. It's written in such a way that makes you want to come back to it if you've put it down because you want to know what happens next. It draws you in. 

I had high expectations of Casual Vacancy because I enjoyed Harry Potter so much. I was disappointed because I kept putting this book down because it could not hold my attention. I felt like I was reading for homework, not pleasure. I read various passages throughout the book and can see that Rowling probably did a great job with her character development. But I didn't care for any of it. 

If I had enough discipline to sit down and read this book cover-to-cover, maybe my opinion would be different. But the fact that I would need discipline to read a book at all means it simply is not good (for me). 

I am a mother of two young children and when I love a book, I steal any opportunity to read two pages here or two pages there. Finishing emptying the dishwasher? Reward = 2 pages. Finishing cleaning kitchen? Reward = one chapter. I do this throughout my day. You get the picture. I was doing this for Gone Girl but not for Casual Vacancy. 

I do not think either of these books deserve to be a "winner" of a book tournament. But since I have to choose one, it is Gone Girl. I am basing this on whether or not I would recommend the books to patrons. I would recommend Gone Girl to patrons. Although it wasn't perfect, it was entertaining. Would I recommend Casual Vacancy? Never. 

Winner: Gone Girl