2025 Giller Prize (shortlist)
In this riveting historical thriller, a deadly plot unfolds aboard a train hurtling towards Paris. From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Room, Emma Donoghue takes you on a heart-pounding ride in The Paris Express.
'Ratchets up the pace until it's hurtling along as fast as the train itself' – Alice Winn, author of In Memoriam
'Riveting' – The Washington Post
'All about speed . . . this novel is a masterclass' – The Independent
Paris, 1895. Glamour hides a city on the brink. One morning, a young woman boards the Granville express with a deadly plan.
On the journey lives intertwine in explosive ways. There are the railway crew who have everything to lose, a little boy travelling alone for the first time, an elderly statesman with his fragile wife and a lonely artist far from home.
The train speeds towards the City of Light and into a future that will change everything . . .
'An edge-of-your-seat historical thriller that I couldn't put down' – Shelby Van Pelt, author of Remarkably Bright Creatures
Genre: Historical
'Ratchets up the pace until it's hurtling along as fast as the train itself' – Alice Winn, author of In Memoriam
'Riveting' – The Washington Post
'All about speed . . . this novel is a masterclass' – The Independent
Paris, 1895. Glamour hides a city on the brink. One morning, a young woman boards the Granville express with a deadly plan.
On the journey lives intertwine in explosive ways. There are the railway crew who have everything to lose, a little boy travelling alone for the first time, an elderly statesman with his fragile wife and a lonely artist far from home.
The train speeds towards the City of Light and into a future that will change everything . . .
'An edge-of-your-seat historical thriller that I couldn't put down' – Shelby Van Pelt, author of Remarkably Bright Creatures
Genre: Historical
Praise for this book
"In exploring a little-remembered event in history, Emma Donoghue manages to hold a mirror up to a whole society, from its train porters to its members of parliament, and show that however much one tries to wrench life to conform to one's will, everyone is vulnerable to its shocks. What an absorbing, panoramic, meticulously researched, lovingly peopled gem. A huge privilege to get an early glimpse!" - Esi Edugyan
"Donoghue's talents are at such glorious heights in this novel." - Heather O'Neill
"Captivating! Emma Donoghue writes in rich, luxuriant detail, yet the story moves at an exhilarating clip. THE PARIS EXPRESS brings big questions about human interconnectedness into an edge-of-your-seat historical thriller that I couldn't put down." - Shelby Van Pelt
"Clever, ambitious, and richly researched. A slice of 1890s Paris that makes us see that our modern problems aren't so modern after all! The Paris Express is a smartly structured novel that ratchets up the pace until it's hurtling along as fast as the doomed train itself." - Alice Winn
"Donoghue's talents are at such glorious heights in this novel." - Heather O'Neill
"Captivating! Emma Donoghue writes in rich, luxuriant detail, yet the story moves at an exhilarating clip. THE PARIS EXPRESS brings big questions about human interconnectedness into an edge-of-your-seat historical thriller that I couldn't put down." - Shelby Van Pelt
"Clever, ambitious, and richly researched. A slice of 1890s Paris that makes us see that our modern problems aren't so modern after all! The Paris Express is a smartly structured novel that ratchets up the pace until it's hurtling along as fast as the doomed train itself." - Alice Winn
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