Timeless Noir

The Women in the Window: A Novel – A J Finn (William Morrow)

On occasion a book comes along that tips the publishing world over because of its unique or daring prose. While I am not certain that the debut novel from A J Finn, The Women in the Window, is either of those things individually. What I am certain of is, it is an astonishingly good book that truly blurs the lines between styles and even the time of the setting.

Finn will have you conjuring images from classic films that he splatters mentions of throughout the book. You may find yourself wondering if this story is taking place in the fifties, except for the mentions of cell phones and the internet. Characters name Alistair and Jane Russell sound like throwbacks to a different time.

Clearly the agoraphobic, child psychologist has a complete set of her own baggage as she self-diagnoses, self-medicates and self-marinates with copious amounts of Merlot. Finn will have you thinking of Jimmy Stewart in the Hitchcock classic Rear Window, mixed with a dose of The Sixth Sense, with just a pinch of Psycho, to keep things interesting.

Fans of trying to figure out who done what, will be carefully spoon fed indications of where things are going in teaser amounts that will have you convinced you have the answer as Finn pulls the bait just out of your grip and then serves up the payoff that will keep you plugging along. This is a very skilled debut that has a timeless noir feel that will be perfect for its eventual and I am sure stylish appearance on the big screen.