A New York subway train is taken hostage in this “high-voltage thriller with the kick of a third rail” (The Washington Post).
A New York Times Bestseller
After a New York City train leaves the Pelham station at 1:23 p.m., four armed men take control of it—along with seventeen passengers. Their demands are simple: deliver one million dollars, or the hostages will be killed one by one. Fast-paced and intensely psychological, this novel tells the story from the point of view of each of the hijackers—revealing each man’s motivations, desperations, and fatal flaws.
The basis of a blockbuster 1974 movie that was remade in 2009 with Denzel Washington and John Travolta, this classic modern thriller will have you on the edge of your seat, and holding on tight.
“Entertaining . . . Clever in its details, frequently quite funny, and witty in its comments on how New York City functions . . . [A] slam-bang ending.” —The New York Times
“A wild ride.” —The Pittsburgh Press
“Harrowing, terrifying, and so, so good.” —BusinessWeek
John Godey is the alias of Morton Freedgood (1913–2006), an American novelist born in New York City. While working in public relations for 20th Century Fox, Paramount, and other film companies, he published numerous short stories in magazines such as Esquire and Cosmopolitan. He published more serious novels under his own name, and used the alias "John Godey" to write crime novels. It was under his alias that his writing saw the most success. Some of his most successful works include A Thrill a Minute with Jack Albany, a series that later became a Disney movie; and The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, a 1973 bestseller later made into a blockbuster motion picture.