Welcome back to Subject Spotlight, your go-to source for quarterly data-driven insights into the performance of particular subjects in the Canadian book market.
Previously, we looked at the sales and library circulation of Non-Fiction / Indigenous books. In this instalment, we shine the spotlight on Fiction / Thrillers titles. How did these titles perform during the second quarter of 2024? We find out with the help of our SalesData and LibraryData services.
Buying Fiction / Thrillers
Compared to 2023, the overall sales of Fiction / Thrillers titles were up 13% over the entire second quarter. Looking at the graph below, from April to June 2024 sales of Fiction / Thrillers increased by 45%. Sales of Fiction / Thrillers titles increased by 64% in the second quarter of 2023.
These are the BISAC subcategories with the highest year-over-year increase in sales:
Fiction / Thrillers / Technological — up 200%
Fiction / Thrillers / Terrorism — up 189%
Fiction / Thrillers / Legal — up 138%
From April to June 2024, the most purchased Fiction / Thrillers subcategories were:
Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense — 46% of all Fiction / Thrillers sales
Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological — 18% of all Fiction / Thrillers sales
Fiction / Thrillers / Crime — 13% of all Fiction / Thrillers sales
Borrowing Fiction / Thrillers
From April to June 2024, library loans and renewals of Fiction / Thrillers titles were up 16% and 26% respectively from 2023.
In the entire second quarter of 2024 loans increased by 6%.
Renewals for Fiction / Thrillers titles from April to June 2024 were up 4%.
In the second quarter of 2023, loans increased by 25% from April to June and renewals were up by 26%.
Which Fiction / Thrillers BISAC subcategories were the most popular in Canadian public libraries? From April to June 2024, these subcategories saw the greatest increases in library circulation compared to 2023:
Fiction / Thrillers / Legal — loans up 42% and renewals up 52%
Fiction / Thrillers / Domestic — loans up 24% and renewals up 52%
Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological — loans up 24% and renewals up 40%
During the second quarter of 2024, the most circulated Fiction / Thrillers subcategories were:
Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense — 46% of all Fiction / Thrillers loans and 45% of all Fiction / Thrillers renewals
Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological — 14% of all Fiction / Thrillers loans and 14% of all Fiction / Thrillers renewals
Fiction / Thrillers / Crime — 14% of all Fiction / Thrillers loans and 13% of all Fiction / Thrillers renewals
Reading Fiction / Thrillers
Here are the top selling and top borrowed Fiction / Thrillers titles from the second quarter of 2024.
Top borrowed
Resurrection Walk by Michael Connelly
The Exchange by John Grisham
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
The Secret by Lee Child and Andrew Child
The Edge by David Baldacci
Top selling
You Like It Darker by Stephen King
The Housemaid Is Watching by Freida McFadden
Camino Ghosts by John Grisham
The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
Eruption by Michael Crichton and James Patterson
Until next time!
Stay tuned for future instalments of this series or sign up to our eNews for more digestible data on the Canadian book market.
How to use CataList reports to keep track of new drop-in titles and changes to key elements that publishers make to their forthcoming titles.