The Passenger

When Tanya Pitts-Dubois discovers her husband dead at the bottom of the stairs, she knows she hasn't got a chance with the law. She's got a secret past that will condemn her as soon as her fingerprints are run.She sets out on an unusual road trip, exchanging cars and identities like socks. But she unwittingly tips off an enemy from her past when she calls in a favor and asks for case and new identity papers. A day's drive later, her enemy has assassins on her trail.A helpful woman bartender offers her a seemingly permanent solution to the identity problem in exchange for her help burying a dead body.As the miles roll on, readers will encounter multiple crimes and loads of suspense. Author Lisa Lutz creates great characters and situations. She's a master story teller who drops clues with perfect pacing. She keeps pulling out surprises to the very last paragraph.I highly recommend this book.

Get ready to suspend your disbelief and just enjoy the ride is my best description of this book. It is closer to pulp fiction than literary art, but the bottom line is that Lisa Lutz is an expert at crafting a page turner with so many plot twists and turns it keeps the reader compelled to turn the page and find out what's happening next. The story is almost too complex to describe, but the basic story line is that Nora Glass, the primary character, initiates a "life on the run" when her husband dies from a fall down the stairs in their home. For inexplicable reasons, only to be explained much later, Nora (who played no part in his death) flees the scene and enters a life on the run. The pace of the book is almost frantic, with Nora, undergoing an endless series of name, identity, and appearance changes is constantly on the move across the country. Early on, she meets another primary character, "Blue", a female bartender who recognizes her as a woman on the run, and they begin an intermittent collaborative relationship as somewhat kindred souls. The majority of the book is comprised of Nora simply "surviving" as she avoids dangers, dangerous people, and her strong survival instincts to pursue her life on the run with innate skills to both protect herself and get enough money, food, and shelter to survive. She literally lives live on the edge, and there are many close calls where she is finally in a situation she will never get out of, but amazingly she finds a way to do so and move on. From a real life perspective, the book is essentially unbelievable. No one could pull the stunts, thefts, and identity changes she undergoes without at some point having it fall apart. But as I said, just accept that there will be those forehead slapping "oh, c'mon!" moments and understand it's a book, not reality. And a damned good book. I read it in three days. Couldn't put it down. Even the ending, which ties up all the loose ends, is another one of those "oh really" moments, but in Lisa Lutz's skilled writing it amazingly works, and works well. Every once in a while we need a book like this. I read it while simultaneously wading my way through David McCullough's "John Adams" (all 600+ pages) as my "scholarly" read, but this book was a welcome interlude. As I said, you'll be hooked from the first paragraph and get ready for a wild ride. Highly Recommend.

Lisa Lutz’s The Passenger kicks off with such a great opening that it’s almost a relief when the rest of the book lives up to it. It’s the story of a woman named…well, honestly, that’s complicated, given how many names she has over the course of this book. So let’s just say that it’s the story of a woman whose husband falls down the stairs and dies in a genuine accident. But she’s a) not that upset to see him go, b) worried that people might think she did it, and most importantly, c) seems awfully nervous for the police to go digging around. So she packs up and hits the road, calls a mysterious benefactor, and gets a new identity. And that goes well…for a few pages, at least.Honestly, that’s about all I want to say about The Passenger, which is one of those books that are far more fun to read if you don’t know anything about them. Suffice to say, our heroine is on the move, constantly shifting identities based on the events around her, and only gradually revealing to us, the readers, exactly why she’s on the run in the first place. Even better, Lutz constantly raises the tension and the stakes, with dangerous run-ins, suspicious friends, and a kindred spirit who might be using her for nefarious means. It’s a gloriously twisty plot, one that uses every twist for maximum impact, whether to increase our unease or to stun with revelations.But even better is our heroine, a complicated figure who lives comfortably in a world between villainy and heroism. Not a good person by any means, Lutz’s heroine also isn’t the antihero we might suspect; she’s a survivor, through and through, and as we learn more about her, her actions become more and more understandable. Her narration and pragmatic worldview make for a great aspect of the book, and the perfect companion for the twisty plot. The result is a great read, especially for the summer; it’s light but compelling, twisty but never unfair, dark but never horrific – in short, it’s a complete blast for anyone wanting a great thriller.

Es un libro que recomiendo para entretenerte. Tiene sus partes intensas. Me parece que de repente sale de lo creíble de forma brusca y eso es lo único que le quita la quinta estrella. En general es bastante bueno.

"The Passenger" ist kein harter Thriller inklusive blutigem Gemetzel, ausufernden Gewaltfantasien und mindestens einem vollkommen wahnsinnigen Massenmörder. Passionierte Fans des Genres könnten es sogar zu harmlos finden, denn atemberaubende Spannung oder gruselige Verbrechen werden nicht geboten. Klar, Mord und Totschlag kommen vor. Allerdings werden diese nicht wirklich ausführlich beschrieben und sind vergleichsweise "sauber" - weit und breit keine abgehackten Gliedmaßen, herausgeschnittenen Organe oder sadistischen Folterszenen. Mir ist das sehr recht, denn diese Art von Thriller kann ich nicht ausstehen.Erzählt wird die Geschichte von Jo, die kapitelweise ihren Namen und ihre Identität wechselt. Auf der Flucht vor ihrer Vergangenheit reist sie quer durch die USA. Wovor sie genau flieht und was passiert ist (und wer der titelgebende Beifahrer ist), erfährt man erst allmählich. Zwischen die eigentliche Handlung ist ein jahrzehntelanger Schriftverkehr eingeschoben, aus dem man sich nach und nach ein paar Details aus dem früheren Leben der Erzählerin zusammenreimen kann. Die ganze Geschichte wird natürlich erst ganz zum Schluss enthüllt.Wie schon die anderen Romane der Autorin ist auch "The Passenger" gut geschrieben. Tatsächlich ist Lutz' unverwechselbarer Schreibstil hier einer der größten Pluspunkte (vielleicht DER größte) des Buches. Er ist locker, (hier nur vereinzelt) humorvoll, bisweilen nachdenklich und melancholisch. Jos Geschichte liest sich ein bisschen so, als ob sie einem gegenüber sitzen und direkt erzählen würde. So etwas macht es mir leicht, mich einzulesen. Auch wenn ich "The Passenger" nicht allzu spannend fand (von einem Thriller erwartet man doch etwas mehr in dieser Hinsicht), habe ich es doch gern gelesen und war vom Anfang bis zum Ende neugierig, wie die Geschichte ausgehen würde (bzw. wie sie eigentlich angefangen hat). Dass der Schluss vollkommen unglaubwürdig und dadurch etwas enttäuschend ist, kann ich einigermaßen verschmerzen, da ich bis dahin durchgehend Spaß an der Lektüre hatte.Andere Bücher der Autorin haben mir besser gefallen, aber trotzdem gute (und vor allem gut geschriebene) Unterhaltung. Nicht extrem spannend (für einen Thrilller), dafür erfreulich unblutig.

Nice read.. gripping... Cud have been better

This one is a fast paced book about identity theft, murder taken too lightly, drugstore hair dye jobs and inefficient cops ! Lisa Lutz failed to keep me interested. Not my cup of tea !

The first couple of pages I wasn't sure, but all thoughts of not reading this book was gone. Fast paced, edgy & utterly enthralling a fantastic book. Well done, if your looking for a really good read then this is it.