There’s nothing quite like a thriller to get you out of a reading slump so here are 15 that I loved!
The Hike – Lucy Clarke
4 friends – Maggie, Liz, Helena and Joni – go on a trip together every single year and this year they’ve decided on the adventure of a lifetime: a 4-day hike in the Norwegian wilderness.
But they’re just not very prepared and when they start to hear stories of a missing woman and decide to ignore weather warnings…everything starts to go wrong.
This is as much about a dangerous hike into the unknown as it is about the complicated friendships of 4 women who have known each other almost their entire lives.
Suddenly A Murder – Lauren Munoz
A group of friends attend a week-long 1920s themed graduation party at Ashwoof Manor on an isolated island when one of the turns up dead. A raging storm traps them on the island with 2 detectives as they attempt to figure out which one of them has killed their friend.
This has strong Agatha Christie vibes but focuses on a group of ultra-rich teenagers.
And Don’t Look Back – Rebecca Barrow
Harlow has been on the run for her entire life with her mother but she has no idea why. When her mother unexpectedly dies in a car crash and her last words warn Harlow to keep running, she must decide whether she’ll do exactly that or try to figure out what they were running from.
This young adult thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat with it’s creepy old house in the woods and lots and lots of family secrets.
The Silent Bride – Shalini Boland
Alice and Seth have the perfect love story and Alice has been dreaming of the day she gets to marry him. But as she makes her way down the aisle… she realises that the man at the end of it isn’t her husband. As everyone insists that this man is her husband-to-be, Alice begins to question her sanity and her life begins to fall apart.
This was such an interesting read because you genuinely don’t know who to believe! Is Alice going crazy or is everyone lying to her?
In My Dreams I Hold A Knife – Ashley Winstead
10 years after their friend was murdered, a group reunites for their college reunion. But the brother of the girl who died isn’t ready to move on. He believes that it was actually one of her friends that killed her and over the course of the reunion weekend, he’s determined to prove it.
A great book about friends with terrible secrets reuniting.
In A Dark, Dark Wood – Ruth Ware
Leonora is invted to the English countryside for a weekend away by her estranged best friend to celebrate her engagement. But, as the night creeps in, they start to realise they might not be alone in the woods.
This was my first every Ruth Ware book (and maybe my first ever thriller?) and I loved the isolated setting of the woods.
My Sister, the Serial Killer – Oyinkan Braithwaite
Ayoola has killed her last 3 boyfriends in what she claims is self-defence and her older sister, Korede, is always there to help her clean up the mess and dispose of the body. Korede loves her sister and will always help her… until Ayoola starts dating Korede’s longtime crush.
This is one of my all-time favourite thrillers. It’s short, fast-paced and has such an interesting storyline and a unique look into the strong bond between sisters.
People of Abandoned Character – Clare Whitfield
In 1888, Susannah rushes into marriage with a young and wealthy surgeon but after a passionate honeymoon everything changes. Her new husband starts to become increasingly violent and when he starts staying out all night and returning covered in blood, she begins to suspect that he might be Jack the Ripper.
There’s something so interesting about thrillers that focus on real things that happen and this one was really good!
Run on Red – Noelle W. Ihli
Laura and Olivia are on their way to a party and are on an isolated road with no phone signal when they notice the car that’s tailing them. What, at first, seems like a simple case of road rage quickly turns into a battle of survival as they try to escape from 2 horrifying men that seem hellbent on taking them.
This book has a really creepy start and goes in a direction I wasn’t expecting!
The Girls Are All So Nice Here – Laurie Elizabeth Flynn
Ambrosia thought that she’d gotten away with what she and her former best friend, Sully, had done in their first semester of college but when she receives an invite to her 10-year college reunion alongside a note that says ‘It’s time to talk about what we did’ Amb knows that her secrets aren’t going to be concealed for much longer. Over the weekend, she starts to receive increasingly menacing messages from someone who wants more than just the truth.
I love thrillers about college students doing horrible things and having to return to the scene of the crime years later to figure out what exactly happened. And this one focuses on mean girls that remind me of Blair Waldorf and Georgina Sparks from Gossip Girl!
The Housemaid – Frieda McFadden
A desperate woman takes a job as a housemaid for the Winchester family. But soon after she starts she realises there’s something ntot quite right with Nina Winchester and notices that the tiny attic room she’s been given only locks from the outside…
This book has blown up online lately and it’s not hard to see why. It keeps you on the edge of your seat with odd and interesting characters and twists that you’ll never expect.
The Last House on the Cliff – Anne Wyn Clark
When her aunt dies, Lowri returns to her childhood home in Anglesey where strange things begin to happen. Her daughter insists there’s an old woman visiting her when no one is watching and a tattered old doll keeps being left for them to find.
Then Lowri’s daughter disappears and she starts to uncover dark family secrets.
This interesting thriller is set in an isolated part of Wales and features a creepy house, an even creepier doll and an unreliable narrator.
The Sanatorium – Sarah Pearse
Elin is invited to her brother’s engagement at an isolated hotel that was converted from a sanatorium in the Swiss Alps. Elin immediately feels on edge and soon after they arrive, the bride-to-be has disappeared and a snowstorm traps them in the hotel.
This thriller with an isolated setting kind of reminds me of Lucy Foley’s ‘The Guest List.’
The Silent Patient – Alex Michaelides
Alicia Berenson’s life was seemingly perfect. She was a famous painter with a great husband and lived in an amazing house. Until one evening, her husband returned home and she shot him 5 times in the face.
Since since, she’s not uttered a single word.
Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who is determined to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of what let her to kill her husband.
This is a bit of a slower one that is told through a dual timeline and set in a mental health ward.
The Woods Are Always Watching – Stephenie Perkins
Best friends Neena and Josie are about to head off to different colleges and have one last chance to spend time together so decide to go on a 3-day hike in the woods. But simmering tensions and one wrong turn lead them into a waking nightmare.
This is a short young adult thriller that focuses on friendship and keeps you on the edge of your seat as these 2 friends attempt to figure out what they’re going to do to get out of the woods.
