New addition to grip lit genre formulaic, but still a riveting read
In the years since “The Girl on the Train” became a blockbuster hit, the publishing world has witnessed a wave of “grip lit” thrillers anxious to cash in on the trend.
The formula is almost always the same: an unlikeable female narrator, typically with a drinking problem and/or stalker tendencies, enduring wild plot twists against a cinematic backdrop — all tied up with a shock-and-awe ending.
Many of these titles are penned by writers in flagging professions such as journalism and publishing, eager to make an exit, and as such are well-written, well-researched and infused with the mad, kinetic energy of career rebirth.
Such is the case with A.J. Finn’s debut novel, “The Woman in the Window.” A.J. Finn is a pseudonym for Daniel Mallory, an executive editor at William Morrow, the publisher of this title. His muchbuzzed-about page-turner has been sold in 35 territories, blurbed by the likes of Stephen King (“remarkable”) and Gillian Flynn (“astounding”), and is currently in development for a feature film.
None of that stops it from suffering from formula fatigue. Indeed, echoes of marquee “grip lit” titles can be felt throughout. Like so many flawed heroines on bookshelves these days, The Woman in the Window’s central character, Anna Fox, mourns the end of her marriage, downs endless bottles of wine and spies on suspicious neighbours. She’s unstable, unreliable, unbelievable to police. An agoraphobic psychologist with a penchant for film noir, and plenty of secrets to spill.
This book is missing the subtle feminist themes we find in many titles of the genre — written largely by women, for women — and, as such, feels a bit detached from its main character and the society in which her story unfolds. The writing here, though, is quite good, and as riveting as one might hope.
If you haven’t read many “grip lit” books in recent years, you’ll likely devour it in a single sitting.