I'm a big book nerd ... ESPECIALLY thrillers. Gillian Flynn's "Gone Girl" was my gateway book into the genre, and I've read all of her books ever since. "Dark Places" was my favorite overall, but the movie was God awful. Charlize Theron was the worst casting ever (no disrespect to her, but the character is described as the complete opposite in the book), and just overall it was a total hot mess.
"Gone Girl" with Rosamund Pike & Ben Affleck was so true to the book, and I lovedddd it. Neil Patrick Harris was an odd choice to me for his part, but he was still good.
"Sharp Objects" was my least favorite of Flynn's books, but when HBO released the trailer for the miniseries, man oh man... I was excited! Amy Adams is beyond perfect for the starring role, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that Chris Messina from "The Mindy Project" and "The Newsroom" is in it too.
Episode 1: Vanish aired on Sunday night, and I got to watch it last night with my husband (who, I would like to add, did not read the book... so you can get both of our perspectives here). As I said before, I did not love this book, and after episode 1 of this miniseries... I already like this MUCH better! It's beautifully shot, and the characters are all how I pictured them while reading the book. Jesse, who again did not read the book, said he was never lost watching it (which I feel like sometimes happens with book to movie adaptations), and how he had false assumptions about a lot of the characters, and enjoyed the twists along the way. I read it so long ago that I obviously know what's going on, but it's also great that I don't remember every little thing.
I saw some reviews from Twitter users last night, and I would say 80% of them were negative. I think that yes, it does move a little slow, but it's also great character and story development (just like the book). If you want something that's full of explosions & action, super hot people, and a very easy storyline, then I suggest "Baywatch" the movie instead.