Heavy Holds Alert: THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN

9781594633669_dc9b1When the NYT‘s Janet Maslin reviews a debut ahead of publication, it signals that she sees a hit coming. In the case of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, (Penguin/Riverhead, Jan. 13), which Maslin reviews today, her expectation is further backed up by heavy holds in libraries, averaging 10:1.

A January LibraryReads pick, this debut began drawing attention from librarians on GalleyChat back in August. It is one of three titles Entertainment Weekly considers a possible successor to Gone Girl, along with the “buzzy” The Kind Worth Killing, Peter Swanson, (HarperCollins/Morrow, Feb. 3) and “the most understated an plausible of the three,” The Daylight Marriage by Heidi Pitlor, (Workman/Algonquin, May 5).

Maslin credits The Girl on the Train with having “more fun with unreliable narration than any chiller since Gone Girl,” (which she also reviewed ahead of publication) and though she doesn’t find it as “clever or swift,” she expects it to also draw a “large, bedazzled readership.”

Fair warning to increase those orders.

One Response to “Heavy Holds Alert: THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN”

  1. Robin Beerbower Says:

    I just finished THE KIND WORTH KILLING, and even though there isn’t a likable protagonist in the bunch (in fact, most are darn repellent!) patrons will find it riveting. I liked it even better than GIRL ON THE TRAIN. I think DAYLIGHT MARRIAGE is next on my list.