The New Girl

Harriet Walker Press Reviews

Taut, stylish, utterly gripping . . . satisfied all my thriller cravings and my love of fashion world gossip -- Lucy Foley

Keenly observed and brimming with tension, The New Girl is a must-read -- Clare Mackintosh

Her blistering first novel . . . a disturbing psychological thriller . . . Walker's inside knowledge of the fashion world will fascinate civilians, while her superbly paced plot keeps you up all night, compulsively turning pages - The Times

A Devil Wears Prada-meets-Gone Girl mash-up, this is a deliciously heady concoction of fashion and fear, best gobbled down whole, over one lockdown weekend -- Pandora Sykes

I was so absorbed by The New Girl. In this suspenseful debut, Harriet Walker applies the finest of brushes to those shades of grey between friendship and rivalry - not so much domestic noir as domestic gris. I recommend -- Louise Candlish

I have not been as gripped and stunned by a story since reading Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl. I could not put it down. This is a masterpiece -- Emma Gannon

Female friendship, fashion and intense rivalry makes for an unsettling and unputdownable debut novel - Grazia

A harsh look at the deep insecurities of women in an intriguing debut from The Times fashion editor - Woman & Home

Single White Female meets The Devil Wears Prada, this is an ingenious thriller that I couldn't put down. A beautifully written, tense and chilling story of toxic friendships, insecurities and guilt. This deserves to be huge - Claire Douglas

A taut psychological thriller, and a chilling and intricate examination of the complexities of female friendships and rivalries -- Charlotte Philby

A sleek and stylish thriller - Red

i devoured it. I could never predict the ending, which takes immense skill. This book is going to be a huge hit -- Bella Mackie

New wave of postnatal punk - The Sunday Times

Harriet Walker's The New Girl, set against a backdrop of magazines, explores female friendships while ramping up the tension and is ideal for lazing in the sun with - Stylist

Movingly portrays the fragility of friendship and the corrosive effect of mistrust and recriminations in a wickedly funny psychological thriller that's in turn brutal and tender - Publishers Weekly

A tense, sophisticated exploration of female friendships fraught with insecurities set in the ruthless world of fashion magazines. Gripping and thrillingly unsettling, it kept me reading through the night -- Ruth Hogan

A magnificent rollercoaster of a book - Celia Anderson, author of 59 Memory Lane

This gripping tale of friendship and motherhood is the perfect summer read - MSN

A taut and tense debut . . . with a plot that is both pacy and rich with tension and a cast of unreliable and flawed characters. The New Girl is suspenseful and stylish writing at its very best. - The Literary Edit

Wonderfully drawn . . . Reveals something deep and real about the isolation of new motherhood. There were moments when I held my breath in this twisty tale, and moments when I caught my breath in sharp recognition. - Georgina Clarke, author of Death and the Harlot

As smart and stylish as a fashion week catwalk show, this gripping debut kept me hooked late into the night! - Annie Lyons

Wonderfully twisty and richly psychological - a compelling read - Leaf Arbuthnot

A compulsive and gripping story that delves into the female psyche and explores how despite appearing to have everything we can be our own worst enemies. With a twisty plot and deftly drawn characters this was a compelling and all-consuming lockdown read - Hannah Persaud, author of The Codes of Love

Ideal for lazing in the sun with - Stylist

Offers a pacey account of modern paranoias . . . a cleverly observed study of the pressure on women to identify as professionals or parents - The Sunday Times

A proper page turner - The Mail on Sunday's YOU Magazine

A smart page-turner [which] tackles female rivalry - i Newspaper

The New Girl does what the very best psychological thrillers do: takes a scenario that many of us know well and twists it so that it becomes utterly terrifying. Choosing a maternity leave rivalry as a plot device was a masterful stroke and it's executed perfectly; the writing is beautiful and the storyline constantly refuses to head where you think it is going. I flew through this book in a few days (or should that be nights that were later than they were meant to be, as I read 'just one more chapter') - Caroline Corcoran

This stylish psychological thriller brilliantly portrays female friendships and rivalries, new parenthood and the glamorous world of fashion . . . this is essential reading for anyone fascinated by fashion shoots, page layouts, catwalk shows and high-end designers - Independent