2.0 (1 rating)
I'm Thinking of Ending Things
NOW A NETFLIX ORIGINAL FILM DIRECTED BY CHARLIE KAUFMAN
AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2016
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things is one of the best debut novels I’ve ever read. Iain Reid has crafted a tight, ferocious little book, with a persistent tenor of suspense that tightens and mounts toward its visionary, harrowing final pages” (Scott Heim, award-winning author of Mysterious Skin and We Disappear).
I’m thinking of ending things. Once this thought arrives, it stays. It sticks. It lingers. It’s always there. Always.
Jake once said, “Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.”
And here’s what I’m thinking: I don’t want to be here.
In this “dark and compelling…unputdownable” (Booklist, starred review) literary thriller, debut novelist Iain Reid explores the depths of the human psyche, questioning consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear, and the limitations of solitude. Reminiscent of Jose Saramago’s early work, Michel Faber’s cult classic Under the Skin, and Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk about Kevin, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is an edgy, haunting debut. Tense, gripping, and atmospheric, this novel “packs a big psychological punch with a twisty story line and an ending that will leave readers breathless” (Library Journal, starred review).
AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2016
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things is one of the best debut novels I’ve ever read. Iain Reid has crafted a tight, ferocious little book, with a persistent tenor of suspense that tightens and mounts toward its visionary, harrowing final pages” (Scott Heim, award-winning author of Mysterious Skin and We Disappear).
I’m thinking of ending things. Once this thought arrives, it stays. It sticks. It lingers. It’s always there. Always.
Jake once said, “Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.”
And here’s what I’m thinking: I don’t want to be here.
In this “dark and compelling…unputdownable” (Booklist, starred review) literary thriller, debut novelist Iain Reid explores the depths of the human psyche, questioning consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear, and the limitations of solitude. Reminiscent of Jose Saramago’s early work, Michel Faber’s cult classic Under the Skin, and Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk about Kevin, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is an edgy, haunting debut. Tense, gripping, and atmospheric, this novel “packs a big psychological punch with a twisty story line and an ending that will leave readers breathless” (Library Journal, starred review).
Pages: 210
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2.0
1 rating
Read Letter D.
Feb 8, 2026
This book could have been so much more. I almost DNF'd it early on when I could barely get through 30 pages in a sitting, because everyone was saying "OMG the ending!" but it was not worth the time. The only time I found myself actually interested in knowing more was when she is at the parents house and goes into a room, hears something out side, then thinks her shoes have been moved. I wanted to know more about that, to explore the potentially creepiness behind that. I suppose the ending does, but not in a worthwhile way.
Even the "OMG twist" didn't really get me. Sure I didn't see it coming (I guess?) but it was a let down, essentially a version of 'it was all a dream' which is such a cop-out. I just feel that there were WAY more interesting ways for this one to go, for what it was it was far too long, maybe as a short story this plot (and style - full of clipped sentences and repetition) would have worked. But it drug on for me at even 'short novel' length.
At least I got this from the library so I didn't pay anything for it. I am marginally curious how they did a movie of it, but not sure if I want to devote any more of my life to this story.
Even the "OMG twist" didn't really get me. Sure I didn't see it coming (I guess?) but it was a let down, essentially a version of
At least I got this from the library so I didn't pay anything for it. I am marginally curious how they did a movie of it, but not sure if I want to devote any more of my life to this story.