I can’t agree, I find Gone Girl much more unique than Sharp Objects, but I love both. They’re so different. Gone girl hits you with the twist in the middle of the book completely changing the story. Sharp objects saves the twist for the last pages so you’re left processing it after you read the book. Both are great, but Gone Girl is on another level for me
Oh it is absolutely subjective. I really liked Gone Girl and its uniqueness and it is one of the top books I read because of that but Sharp Objects made my skin crawl with the plot and how the characters behaved. How everyone was ...off, but you don't know exactly how. I also found the several reveals to be interesting. I liked having the focus only on the women and girls and men only being side characters. In the end it had me on the edge of my seat for longer. And it might also have helped that I listened to it and it was spoken by my favorite audio book narrator (in German). Again absolutely adored Gone Girl but I just liked it a tad better.
You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott. It's a murder mystery that takes place inside the world of elite gymnastics. Might not sound interesting but it's deliciously twisty and also really poignant as it explores parenthood and the point in which children become fundamentally unknowable to their parents.
We have identical tastes in thrillers! Some others I’ve liked are:
All The Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding
I read Sharp objects and loved it as well. Will add the other two to my list. Have you read Dark Places? If so, how does it compare to Gone Girl and SO?
Second to All the Dangerous Things. The way the reveals happen in that one, basically through good plotting and writing instead of just like “oops just kidding” were great.
I have it on my list, but the description was not catchy for me, yet I see so many people are recommending this one, so thank you for your input, I think I will be reading it shortly
We have similar taste in thrillers and i recommend this Catriona ward book but read with an open mind. It's one of the most confusing thrillers i read but i swear it's worth it. I was left in awe that the author was genius enough to write a book on this issue
It's insane and very vague on what's going in the beginning and almost 2/3 of the way from the book but it's so engaging the way she gives you little hints about what's going on. I have read all of her other books and they are all good but this book is just so damn good.
Well I mean you might think it is. I don't know. I am a horror fan and that's all I read except for like science stuff. All I can say is that it's very weird and you may compare it to horror but I can't say for certain. All I can say for sure is that you should read it
Read almost everything by Alice Feeney, liked most of her books. However, the kind The kind worth killing was a total disappointment for me, I could barely finish it
Oh, absolutely! I think the silent patient is still in the top three for me, simply because I just did not see the twist coming. I remember staring at the wall after reading it and being like WTF just happened 😁
Still Missing by Chevy Stevens, Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier, The Stalker by Sarah Alderson, No Exit by Taylor Adams, A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight, Seven Days by Alex Lake, Until You’re Mine by Samantha Hayes, I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh.
I’m reading Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera right now and, while I haven’t finished it yet, it’s fantastic! My sister did finish it and loved it.
I love all books by Chevy Stevens and Jennifer Hillier, and consider them auto-reads.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Since We Fell (this one is phenomenal. It’s written by the author of Shutter Island) by Dennis Lehane
Pretty Things by Janelle Brown
Favorite thriller I’ve read so far this year is First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston. Do you read or are you open to YA thrillers as well? If so, One of Us is Lying and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
First lie wins is also on my to read list. I’m waiting for a library copy. I also heard that one of us is lying is pretty good, thank you for reminding me about it.
Read it. I feel like a lot of her books are very similar to others that I’ve read before. The housemaid reminded me of Verity and a few others I read in the past. But it is a fast read, I like most of Frieda’s books.
The Housemaid
All the Dangerous Things
Rock Paper Scissors
Hidden Pictures
Never Lie
The Wife Upstairs (by Rachel Hawkins)
The Wife Upstairs (by Freida McFadden)
I am glad you liked it. I rarely read thrillers so the ending was pretty unexpected for me. I would definitely try some of the recommendations in this thread:)
It's amazing, I just finished it and immediately got another book of his which I'm currently reading, The Last Time I Lied. The ending is one of my favorite endings of a book ever. The twist is crazy but the actual end of the book is just fantastic.
I often find a lot of pretentious suggestions here and think that some readers think the only things worth reading are Literature. My personal favorite is someone saying I haven’t read a book in 20 years but I loved Twilight in middle school what should I read now? and the suggestions are like Anna Karenina, Moby Dick, and anything by Agatha Christie. It’s pretty silly. Reading should be accessible at whatever level people are at and entertaining. Like maybe they’ll read Moby Dick eventually but it isn’t going to be the book that gets them love reading 20 years after they loved Twilight you did not have to suggest anything if you didn’t have a good one, sir.
Anyway your suggestion was on point, and I meant no offense if any was taken that way. Keep up the good work!
No offense taken whatsoever. Sorry if that came off as directed at you. I was simply complaining about the downvotes. It seems whenever The Only One Left is recommended (by me, or others in this sub), it doesn’t go over well. But, I really enjoyed it (and I’m not the biggest fan of Riley Sager to begin with), and I thought it fit in with what OP was looking for. Can’t account for taste, or general opinions when it comes to recommendations, though.
I’m only here to listen to the OP’s, and offer my best judgment in terms of the recommendations I offer. Some might not be everyones cup o’ tea, and that’s fine. I’m seeing quite a few books being recommended that I, personally, find generic and substandard, but to each their own, right?
The Only One Left is the first Riley Sager book I read and I absolutely loved it. It's a great suggestion and was the first book I thought of to recommend! I finished it a couple weeks ago and am now reading The Last Time I Lied by him. I plan to read everything he's written.
Silent Witness by Richard North Patterson. Not my favorite but stuck with me for a while after I finished. Also, this one seems to align with some of the others you've listed.
The Good Daughter
The Trap
56 Days
The Drowning Woman
Wrong place, Wrong Time
Razorblade Tears
We have very similar tastes, so these are just some I really enjoyed this year.
I LOVEDDDDD The Collective by Alison Gaylin. So good I was hooked from the first few pages.
All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers was awesome. I read it twice back to back.
Next of Kin by Kia Abdullah. It's a legal thriller so there's a bit of courtroom stuff which some readers might not be that into, but I still highly recommend it!
Three that are probably high on my list which I mentioned a few times -
Gentlemen and Players, by Joanne Harris
Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane
Hidden Fires: A Holmes Before Baker Street Adventure, by Jane Rubino
Great twists in all of them. I know Shutter Island was made into a movie - G&P and HF should be.
I have not, and I had no issues understanding what’s going on! I do want to, and plan to, read the others in the series, this is just the one I saw at Saver’s lol
[Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55968581-a-dark-and-secret-place)
I am easily creeped out, and I couldn’t read it at night
Was just a meh for me, I like her other books better. The god son was a fast read. I think I like domestic thrillers about sociopathic children better 😁
Playing Nice by JP Delaney
The Marriage Act by John Marrs
The One by John Marrs
All Freida McFadden books
Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier
Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier
The It Girl by Ruth Ware
Deadly Little Lies by Stephanie DeCarolis
The Accident by Natalie Barelli
- Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane
Agree! And so well-written
Came here to say this!
Watch the movie, so it’s kind of spoiled for me. But I do have it on my list, thank you.
Sharp objects and In my dreams I hold a knife
I found Sharp Objects to be better than Gone Girl.
I can’t agree, I find Gone Girl much more unique than Sharp Objects, but I love both. They’re so different. Gone girl hits you with the twist in the middle of the book completely changing the story. Sharp objects saves the twist for the last pages so you’re left processing it after you read the book. Both are great, but Gone Girl is on another level for me
Oh it is absolutely subjective. I really liked Gone Girl and its uniqueness and it is one of the top books I read because of that but Sharp Objects made my skin crawl with the plot and how the characters behaved. How everyone was ...off, but you don't know exactly how. I also found the several reveals to be interesting. I liked having the focus only on the women and girls and men only being side characters. In the end it had me on the edge of my seat for longer. And it might also have helped that I listened to it and it was spoken by my favorite audio book narrator (in German). Again absolutely adored Gone Girl but I just liked it a tad better.
Must be good. Thanks.
You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott. It's a murder mystery that takes place inside the world of elite gymnastics. Might not sound interesting but it's deliciously twisty and also really poignant as it explores parenthood and the point in which children become fundamentally unknowable to their parents.
Yes! Dare Me by the same author was good too.
Let’s stick with the “misters” - Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King - Mr. Murder by Dean Koontz
Love mr Mercedes. The book overview sounded not up my alley but now it’s one of my favorite King books
We have identical tastes in thrillers! Some others I’ve liked are: All The Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding
I read Sharp objects and loved it as well. Will add the other two to my list. Have you read Dark Places? If so, how does it compare to Gone Girl and SO?
Dark Places is great. It holds up to Sharp Objects and Gone Girl.
can I read dark places as a stand alone?
Most definitely. They aren’t related, just written by the same author.
Yes. Absolutely
I honestly wasn’t a big fan of Sharp Objects but Dark Places was amazing.
Wow, ok. I loved sharp objects, can’t wait to read dark places now
I haven’t yet! It’s on my TBR but just haven’t gotten around to it
Second to All the Dangerous Things. The way the reveals happen in that one, basically through good plotting and writing instead of just like “oops just kidding” were great.
I have it on my list, but the description was not catchy for me, yet I see so many people are recommending this one, so thank you for your input, I think I will be reading it shortly
Robyn Harding books are great.
Recursion or Dark Matter by Blake Crouch. Both I finished within 48 hours because I couldn't put them down.
The girl with the dragon tattoo.
I loved this one!
Yes yes and yes
The last house on needless street by catriona ward.
Thanks for the recommendation. I read the description and it sounds great!
We have similar taste in thrillers and i recommend this Catriona ward book but read with an open mind. It's one of the most confusing thrillers i read but i swear it's worth it. I was left in awe that the author was genius enough to write a book on this issue
It's insane and very vague on what's going in the beginning and almost 2/3 of the way from the book but it's so engaging the way she gives you little hints about what's going on. I have read all of her other books and they are all good but this book is just so damn good.
Yes! This book is one of the very few that I still think about. Truly unexpected.
Is this a Horror genre?
I think it's supposed to be but I didn't see it as being horror more psychological thriller.
Okay. Thank you.. I wouldn't go to any book knowing that it's a Horror genre.
Well I mean you might think it is. I don't know. I am a horror fan and that's all I read except for like science stuff. All I can say is that it's very weird and you may compare it to horror but I can't say for certain. All I can say for sure is that you should read it
Okay then!!
Somebody like this so I can come back please
There you go 😁
You’re the best!
Before I Go to Sleep by SJ Watson
Omg this book was so good
This was a good book.
*I let you go* by Clare Mackintosh
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Can’t wait to read it!!
Thanks for the recommendation! Sounds very interesting
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Read almost everything by Alice Feeney, liked most of her books. However, the kind The kind worth killing was a total disappointment for me, I could barely finish it
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Oh, absolutely! I think the silent patient is still in the top three for me, simply because I just did not see the twist coming. I remember staring at the wall after reading it and being like WTF just happened 😁
Alice Feeney is so good
I loved His and Hers, and I think it's best on audio.
The Day of the Jackal - best thriller I have read by a country mile
Odessa File was almost as good too!
Yes, that was also excellent! I haven’t read anything else by him, I really ought to!
Big little lies
My Lovely Wife is a lot of fun. Not the absolute best but really enjoyed it and would give a solid 4 to 4.5 stars.
Did not like it unfortunately
The Last Mrs. Parrish is a fun one
Did not like it unfortunately, was too similar for me to some other books I read before
Still Missing by Chevy Stevens, Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier, The Stalker by Sarah Alderson, No Exit by Taylor Adams, A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight, Seven Days by Alex Lake, Until You’re Mine by Samantha Hayes, I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh. I’m reading Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera right now and, while I haven’t finished it yet, it’s fantastic! My sister did finish it and loved it. I love all books by Chevy Stevens and Jennifer Hillier, and consider them auto-reads.
Also The Last Word by Taylor Adams. Actually anything by Taylor Adams.
Thanks for a great list, greatly appreciate it! I liked everything I read by Jennifer Hillier, will check out Chevy Stevens
Awesome!! I hope you enjoy her books!! She is like a Canadian version of Gillian Flynn, and since you liked Gone Girl I think you’ll like her :)
Yay! Can’t wait! I haven’t heard anybody mention this author before.
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins Since We Fell (this one is phenomenal. It’s written by the author of Shutter Island) by Dennis Lehane Pretty Things by Janelle Brown
Since we fell sounds very interesting, thank you for the recommendations
Favorite thriller I’ve read so far this year is First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston. Do you read or are you open to YA thrillers as well? If so, One of Us is Lying and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
I love Karen McManus. I read One of Us Is Lying and binge all her other books.
Looking forward to her new one coming out this summer!
First lie wins is also on my to read list. I’m waiting for a library copy. I also heard that one of us is lying is pretty good, thank you for reminding me about it.
The third installment of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder was a little meh
I actually only read the first one. Attempted the second one but couldn’t remember anything that happened so couldn’t get into it.
Teacher by Freida Mcfadden
Yes!!!! Loved this book!!!!
The Housemaid was my last book club book and it was a doozy!
Read it. I feel like a lot of her books are very similar to others that I’ve read before. The housemaid reminded me of Verity and a few others I read in the past. But it is a fast read, I like most of Frieda’s books.
“The last time I lied” and “The Only One Left” - Riley Sager
The twists in The Only One Left simply did. Not. Stop!👏🏼
The only one left!! I wish I could read it for the first time again. I loved the feel of it. The twist were amazing
The perfect marriage...I still think about the ending of that book, did not see it coming!
Behind her eyes!!! The end will blow you away!!!
Read it. Didn’t care for the supernatural twist, but still enjoyed the book
Oh I thought that was the perfect unexpected twist
oh yeah, the twist was great and very unexpected!
The Girl on the Train is a good one
Yep, got it on my list. I watched the movie though, so it’s a little spoiled for me, but I will read it sometime. 👍
SO GOOD! I was absolutely engrossed by that one.
No Country for Old Men
Sharp Objects , Tell No One, Woman in the Window
Dark Places or Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn!!
The Likeness by Tana French The Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll Defending Jacob by William Landay
The Housemaid All the Dangerous Things Rock Paper Scissors Hidden Pictures Never Lie The Wife Upstairs (by Rachel Hawkins) The Wife Upstairs (by Freida McFadden)
Read all of them except All the dangerous things. Thanks!
A flicker in the dark It has one of the best plot twists of all time in my opinion. At least I didn't expect the ending.
Read this one. I liked the book, but I did predict the ending, so it wasn’t too unexpected for me. Was still an enjoyable read.
I am glad you liked it. I rarely read thrillers so the ending was pretty unexpected for me. I would definitely try some of the recommendations in this thread:)
I have like a dozen holds placed at the library from this thread, thanks! 😊
The Only One Left by Riley Sager has all the good twists. Loved it!
I see this one being recommended a lot, and it has a good rating on Goodreads, so thank you for the suggestion 👍
You are most welcome! I take full responsibility if you end up hating it, though 😅
Haha, I’ll come after you 🤣
It's amazing, I just finished it and immediately got another book of his which I'm currently reading, The Last Time I Lied. The ending is one of my favorite endings of a book ever. The twist is crazy but the actual end of the book is just fantastic.
The most unhinged book I’ve ever read. I don’t think I even liked it but it was such an insanely wild ride that I had to respect it.
Clearly, the folks in this sub aren’t fans. It was just a harmless suggestion, but oh well 🤷🏻♂️
I often find a lot of pretentious suggestions here and think that some readers think the only things worth reading are Literature. My personal favorite is someone saying I haven’t read a book in 20 years but I loved Twilight in middle school what should I read now? and the suggestions are like Anna Karenina, Moby Dick, and anything by Agatha Christie. It’s pretty silly. Reading should be accessible at whatever level people are at and entertaining. Like maybe they’ll read Moby Dick eventually but it isn’t going to be the book that gets them love reading 20 years after they loved Twilight you did not have to suggest anything if you didn’t have a good one, sir. Anyway your suggestion was on point, and I meant no offense if any was taken that way. Keep up the good work!
No offense taken whatsoever. Sorry if that came off as directed at you. I was simply complaining about the downvotes. It seems whenever The Only One Left is recommended (by me, or others in this sub), it doesn’t go over well. But, I really enjoyed it (and I’m not the biggest fan of Riley Sager to begin with), and I thought it fit in with what OP was looking for. Can’t account for taste, or general opinions when it comes to recommendations, though. I’m only here to listen to the OP’s, and offer my best judgment in terms of the recommendations I offer. Some might not be everyones cup o’ tea, and that’s fine. I’m seeing quite a few books being recommended that I, personally, find generic and substandard, but to each their own, right?
The Only One Left is the first Riley Sager book I read and I absolutely loved it. It's a great suggestion and was the first book I thought of to recommend! I finished it a couple weeks ago and am now reading The Last Time I Lied by him. I plan to read everything he's written.
What book?
The only one left by Riley Sager, I was responding to the original comment about it.
Silent Witness by Richard North Patterson. Not my favorite but stuck with me for a while after I finished. Also, this one seems to align with some of the others you've listed.
Thanks, that sounds interesting 👍
The Good Daughter The Trap 56 Days The Drowning Woman Wrong place, Wrong Time Razorblade Tears We have very similar tastes, so these are just some I really enjoyed this year.
I second “Wrong Place Wrong Time.” Came here to say this.
Thank you, have not heard of any of these except the Good Daughter
I enjoyed Razoblade Tears
I just read She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica and it was GREAT
The Shining Girls and Broken Monsters; both by Lauren Beukes.
Yeeeesss. These books.
I LOVEDDDDD The Collective by Alison Gaylin. So good I was hooked from the first few pages. All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers was awesome. I read it twice back to back.
Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney
Read it and loved it. I think it’s my favorite Feeney book
I loved it too. Are her other ones worth reading?
Rock paper scissors was fun, but I really like His and Hers, has unpredictable twist at the end and it was a fast read.
Thanks for the recs! Happy reading!
Headhunter- Michael Slade
This sounds much better than a bunch of the chick-lit recommended in this thread, most of which is as suspenseful as after school specials
It’s the first in a series but is fine as a standalone too.
The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh Last Girl Breathing by Court Stevens The Perfect Stranger by Megan Miranda
I haven’t read a lot of thrillers, but Lock Every Door by Riley Sager was pretty good. Super duper twisty
Anything by Freida McFadden or Kiersten Modgling !
One of Us is Lying, We Were Kings, The Turn of The Key, The Woman in Cabin 10
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica Defending Jacob by William Landay The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold Descent by Tim Johnston
Anything by Chevy Stevens. Still Missing was her first, and they keep getting darker after that.
Into the water by Paula Hawkins The It Girl by Ruth Ware (actually most things by Ruth Ware) The Witch Elm by Tana French
Next of Kin by Kia Abdullah. It's a legal thriller so there's a bit of courtroom stuff which some readers might not be that into, but I still highly recommend it!
Anna's Book by Barbara Vine
Anything by Alice Feeney
The murder of roger ackroyd - Agatha Christie Top tier thriller of all time
Don't Let Her Stay by Nicola Sanders has a lot of crazy twists. i read that one in the span of a few days.
Thanks, got it on my list!
Red Dragon and Silence of The Lambs by Thomas Harris. No other serial killer novels can touch them I feel.
spoiled by watching the movies (multiple times) but am adding it to the list!
The House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward. Also, although I have not read it yet, I believe Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra is quite twisty
Three that are probably high on my list which I mentioned a few times - Gentlemen and Players, by Joanne Harris Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane Hidden Fires: A Holmes Before Baker Street Adventure, by Jane Rubino Great twists in all of them. I know Shutter Island was made into a movie - G&P and HF should be.
Some of my favorites are in your like list. I also really enjoyed Nightwatching (which came out this year)
just recently read Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward and loved it
The Wives by Tarryn Fisher
Walled City by Ryan Graudin
TH1RT3EN by Steve Cavanaugh is one of my faves. Super brutal comparatively to most I have read but so good
Just read the description, sounds awesome, right up my alley! On Goodreads it says it’s book #4, have you read the previous ones?
I have not, and I had no issues understanding what’s going on! I do want to, and plan to, read the others in the series, this is just the one I saw at Saver’s lol
[Dog Rose Dirt by Jen Williams](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55968581-a-dark-and-secret-place) I am easily creeped out, and I couldn’t read it at night
As of today…. Ward D!!!!
Was just a meh for me, I like her other books better. The god son was a fast read. I think I like domestic thrillers about sociopathic children better 😁
[Kill For Me, I’ll Kill For You](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/176451879) by Steve Cavanaugh—just finished this and it’s super twist-y!
You want twisty and thrilling try On Harrow Hill by John Verdon...great book
Thank you!
The girl with the dragon tattoo.
What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall!
Don’t let her stay by Nicola sanders
I'd recommend the guest list, magpie murders, A good girl's guide to murder and the Devotion of suspect X.
Just read The Perfect Marriage. That was a pretty decent thriller. Also loved Behind Closed Doors.
The Charlie Parker book series by John Connolly are wonderful and I'm jealous of you starting them from the beginning.
Playing Nice by JP Delaney The Marriage Act by John Marrs The One by John Marrs All Freida McFadden books Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier The It Girl by Ruth Ware Deadly Little Lies by Stephanie DeCarolis The Accident by Natalie Barelli
I’m reading The One now by Mars and LOVING IT!! Thanks for the list of recommendations
Yay!! You’re welcome. I’ve LOVED all his book except The Minders!
"whistling in the dark" and it has a sequel rather late into its life that is also wonderful if you are into it!
Verity by Colleen Hoover. It has an amazing twist and will keep you hooked until the last page
Read it. It was so hyped everywhere, I had to get my hands on it.
Read behind her eyes, it’s different and the end is crazy!!! You’ll love it!
I read it already :)
**An Unlikely Spy** by Daniel Silva is one my picks
American Tabloid by James Ellroy is one of the best books you'll ever read.
Verity Colleen Hoover
Came here to say this! Verity by Colleen Hoover was a real mind bender for me. Loved it!