The Girl on the Train: A Novel by Paula Hawkins | Summary & Analysis This is a Summary & Analysis of The Girl on the Train. Paula Hawkins’ debut novel The Girl on the Train is a
suspenseful thriller filled with a complex plot, shocking twists at every turn, and an ending that will both stun and leave the reader wanting more. Suspense, intrigue, drama, and murder, all
entangled together into one giant knot that is begging to be unraveled. Hawkins’ novel relates the story of Rachel Watson has spent the last few years stumbling through life in a booze-filled
depression ever since her husband left her for another woman. Now she wiles away her days riding the commuter train to and from London, despite having been fired from her job months ago. The
train makes a daily stop by her old neighborhood and it is here she spies a couple appearing to be living a perfect life from a beautiful home. She begins to fantasize about the couple,
inventing little lives and backstories for them to keep her mind off her own troubles. All of a sudden events take an unexpected turn.