The longlist for the 2013 Women’s Prize for Fiction was announced this week which included LBG’s March selection Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.
Flynn’s psychological thriller has sold more than 2 million copies worldwide and is competing with Bring Up the Bodies — Hilary Mantel’s sequel to Wolf Hall — which has already won the Man Booker Prize and the Costa Book of the Year. No author has won all three in one year.
Gone Girl chronicles the disappearance of Amy Dunne, the beautiful and brilliant wife of Nick, on their fifth wedding anniversary. The police investigation reveals a marriage in decay. Not all is as it seems, however, and the mystery grows as more secrets are revealed.
Not only does Gone Girl raise questions about gender roles, power dynamics within intimate relationships but it has also tapped into a larger debate about the necessity for female-only awards such as the Women’s Prize for Fiction (formerly the Orange Prize).
This month’s discussion should be a cracker.