Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger

on

 



🚉 Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger — A Twisty Thriller With Loose Ends

⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (3.5 out of 5 stars)
Genre: Domestic Thriller / Psychological Suspense
📢 Spoiler Alert: This review is packed with spoilers, plot twists, aliases, half-sisters, and at least two fake deaths.

🪑 I Thought This Was Going to Be a Murder on the Train. It Was... Not That

The first few chapters of Confessions on the 7:45 had me hooked.
We’re talking domestic tension, cheating husbands, creepy strangers on public transportation—it had all the ingredients for a twisty, propulsive thriller.

And it delivered... mostly. But it also left a few threads dangling like a cheap wig in a windstorm. I finished it both entertained and slightly annoyed. (More on that later.)

🕵️‍♀️ Selena Just Wanted a Normal Commute. What She Got Was Plot

We open with Selena, a hardworking mom who just found out her unemployed husband, Graham, is sleeping with the nanny (Geneva, who gives hot nanny energy).

On her way home, she meets a mysterious stranger named Martha on the 7:45 train. As one does, Selena spills all her drama to this woman, assuming she’ll never see her again.

Martha smiles and asks,

“Don’t you ever just wish your problems would take care of themselves?”

Selena says, “Sure,” like a normal person.

Then Geneva disappears. 😬

💬 It’s Martha, By the Way. From the Train. 😵‍💫

Selena starts getting texts from Martha, even though she never gave Martha her number.

Every message ends with:

“It’s Martha, by the way. From the train.”
Creepy! Yet kind of iconic.

Meanwhile, Geneva’s sister files a missing person report, and Graham is questioned by police. Selena’s ex-boyfriend Will (conveniently also a lawyer) ends up representing Graham, and Selena starts asking the age-old question:

Why did I marry this clown instead of Will?

🧳 Meanwhile, in Another Plotline…

We also meet Pearl and her shady mom Stella, ten years earlier. Stella owns a bookstore and collects random men. Her on/off guy is Charlie, who’s way too involved in Pearl’s life.

One day, Stella is murdered.
Charlie whisks Pearl away, tells her to call him “Pop,” and trains her to scam rich people. Normal childhood stuff.

Their scams include:

  • Posing as long-lost relatives

  • Grifting lonely widows

  • Blackmailing Pearl’s biological father (a Very Respectable man who does not want it known he fathered a child with Stella)

🪦 Dead Bodies, Dead Nannies, and Surprise Half-Sisters

Back in the present, police discover a body—but it’s not Geneva. It’s Jacqueline, a woman who once accused Graham of sexual assault.

Now he’s a full-on person of interest, but it’s not looking good.

Then:
Selena’s mom Cora sees video footage from the nanny cam and recognizes Pearl in the background.
Plot twist: Pearl is Selena’s half-sister.
Cora’s cheating ex-husband had a love child with Stella (Pearl’s mom), so this train encounter wasn’t accidental at all.

💀 Pop's Body Count Rises

In the past, Charlie brings home another girl, Gracie, whose mom was also murdered. He grooms her just like he did Pearl.

When one of Charlie’s old victims, Bridget, comes back for revenge, Gracie kills her with a bookend as Bridget shoots Charlie.

Both Charlie and Bridget die.
Pearl and Gracie bury the bodies, and Gracie confesses Charlie gave her the name Geneva. Yep. That Geneva.

They realize Charlie probably killed both their mothers. And now he’s dead, so there’s no way to get more answers.

🚨 Showdown: Graham, Geneva, and the Truth

Selena confronts Graham about Jacqueline’s murder.
He gets violent, but Pearl shows up just in time and stops him.

Pearl admits she was planning revenge—Selena got the perfect life while Pearl had to survive—but watching Graham made her realize Selena’s life was far from perfect.

Pearl tells Selena that:

  • Graham killed Jacqueline

  • Geneva is alive and in hiding

  • She forged new identities for herself and Geneva

  • And she's falling for Ben, one of her old marks

She also makes a call to retired cop Hunter, who’s been obsessed with these old cases for years. She thanks him for trying to find her. (🥹 I did not expect to cry at a Lisa Unger thriller, but here we are.)

🧵 Loose Ends? Yeah. But I’m Not Mad About It Anymore

Initially, I was a little annoyed that we didn’t get a full background on Charlie. Like…
Who was he? Why did he kill Stella and Gracie’s mom? What made him tick?

But after sitting with it a bit, I’ve made peace with the ambiguity.
Sometimes evil just is, and sometimes thrillers don’t wrap everything up in a tidy bow—and maybe that’s the point.

📚 Final Thoughts

  • Was it a page-turner? Yep.

  • Did it live up to the promise of the first few chapters? Not quite.

  • Did I enjoy it anyway? Absolutely.

3.5 out of 5 stars. Creepy, twisty, and satisfying enough—even with its slightly abrupt ending.

🛒 Buy Confessions on the 7:45 Now

👉 Buy the book on Amazon (affiliate link)

🧩 If You Liked This One, You Might Also Like:

  • The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine – master-level twisty scheming

  • The Housemaid by Freida McFadden – who’s the real villain here?

  • Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris – all smiles on the outside, total nightmare on the inside

  • The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson – strangers meet on a plane instead of a train, but the vibes are deliciously murderous

🚂 Your Turn

Did you see the half-sister twist coming?
Were you rooting for Pearl?
And are you now avoiding all conversations with strangers on trains?

Tell me in the comments—I’m all ears and unlicensed therapy.

Comments

Post a Comment