The Year’s Most Anticipated Psychological Thrillers
Authors Everyone’s Talking About
If your TBR is fueled by buzz, big-name authors, and plot twists that dominate group chats, this list is for you. Quickly pick up your next read from the list below before any spoilers leak to you FYP on BookTok. Because this year’s psychological thriller lineup is stacked.
Because if you’re a Trendsetter, you want to read it first.
And if you’re a Serial Reader, you won’t sleep until you finish it.
From A.R. Torre’s suspenseful novels to Liv Constantine’s scandal-soaked domestic drama, from Frieda McFadden’s unputdownable mind games to Mary Kubica’s slow-burn tension that detonates in the final pages, these are the books poised to define the year in thrillers.
Expect unreliable narrators, toxic marriages, buried secrets, missing persons, and twists you won’t see coming (even though you’ll swear you should have).
11 Must-Read New Psychological Thrillers:
Dear Debbie
by Freida McFadden
"A perfectly plotted, diabolically fun revenge story. Debbie is such an endearing psychopath -- I couldn't stop reading!" -- Shari Lapena, New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door
A brand new twisted thriller that will have you cheering "good for her!" from the #1 New York Times bestselling and global sensation Freida McFadden, author of The Housemaid!
Sometimes, enough is enough...
Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction.
Or at least, she did.
The Exes
by Leodora Darlington
A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
Who hasn't wanted to murder an ex--figuratively, at least? In this explosive debut thriller, a woman's seemingly perfect romantic life is on the verge of collapse as she uncovers a hidden history surfacing dark secrets that have deadly consequences.
Natalie has only ever wanted to find "the one." The perfect man, the happy family she never had. But each time she thinks she is finally getting somewhere, she's bitterly disappointed. Another red line through a list of exes. And that was before the night of the Big Fallout that left her even more alone.
The Hotel Guest (Original)
by Rosemary Hennigan
"Their fate was her fate, their future, her future..."
Kit's summer position at the Abbaye de Saint Maurice, an upscale hotel in the French Alps, was meant to be a new start. But after she became entangled with a mysterious group of guests, the estate came to hold her darkest secret, which left her with no choice but to flee.
It Should Have Been You
by Andrea Mara
A gripping new thriller from Andrea Mara, the #1 international bestselling author of ALL HER FAULT, now streaming on Peacock
Your neighbors have secrets. How far would they go to keep them?
"A simple, ordinary mistake explodes into a suburban nightmare in this hugely compelling, one-sitting read packed full of thrilling moments and genuinely surprising twists. Andrea Mara is at the very top of her game." --Catherine Ryan Howard
You press send and your message disappears. Full of secrets about your neighbors, it's meant for your sister. But it doesn't reach her - it goes to the entire local community WhatsApp group instead.
It's Not Her
by Mary Kubica
Two families at a secluded lake resort are at the center of a chilling crime in this twisty thriller from the bestselling author of Local Woman Missing
A scream shatters the silence...
Courtney Gray's peaceful vacation turns into a nightmare when she discovers her brother and sister-in-law dead in their lakeside cottage. Her niece Reese is missing. Her nephew Wyatt is asleep upstairs--unharmed.
A town full of secrets...
As police swarm the quiet resort, dark truths about Courtney's family--and the town itself--begin to surface. Is Reese a victim... or the killer?
A truth no one saw coming...
With everyone hiding something, Courtney races to uncover the terrible mystery. But the closer she gets, the harder it is to know who--or what--to trust.
The Missing Ones
by A R Torre
In an exclusive and close-knit community, the secrets of the past threaten to destroy three women in a shocking novel of suspense by New York Times bestselling author A. R. Torre.
Behind the manicured lawns and guarded gates of Crestmore Estates lies a neighborhood built on secrets.
Five years ago, three residents vanished without a trace. No bodies. No answers. Just rumors, whispered around the country club. Now, when human remains surface on the golf course, old suspicions rematerialize--and the spotlight falls on the women left behind.
My Sister's Daughter and Silent Echo: Two Thrillers
by Liv Constantine
From the New York Times-bestselling author of Reese's Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish comes two page-turning domestic thriller novellas.
In My Sister's Daughter, Ashley Bowers hopes her recently orphaned thirteen-year-old niece, Serena, will blend seamlessly into her own family once they've all had time to mourn. But as days become weeks, a series of troubling occurrences turn the once-peaceful Bowers home into a maelstrom of accusation, denial, and fear. Is Serena simply acting out after the tragic loss of both her parents? Or is something far more dangerous happening under Ashley's own roof?
Nowhere Burning
by Catriona Ward
Nowhere Burning is a harrowing tale of survival that places the dark fairy tale of Peter Pan and the ruthless dangers of Lord of the Flies into the unforgiving maw of the Colorado Rockies.
"Gripping and beautiful, haunting and virtuously crafted...you won't be able to stop reading."--Virginia Feito, author of Victorian Psycho
Secrets in the flames. Answers in the ashes.
Riley and her brother Oliver set off in the pitch-black night, fleeing their troubled home. They are heading for Nowhere--an abandoned ranch, once the playground of its former eccentric movie-star owner, now a haven for runaways.
What awaits could be the freedom they crave.
Our Beautiful Mess
by Adele Parks
Number One bestseller Adele Parks returns with an explosive and deeply emotional family drama that explores the lengths a mother will go to protect her family, even if it risks exposing her past. Perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell and Lianne Moriarty.
Connie can't wait to have all her daughters back home for Christmas. It's not just the excitement of the girls being together under one roof; uni student Fran is bringing a new boyfriend to stay. The empty nest will once again be full of friends, family and young love.
Society Women
by Adriane Leigh
The USA Today bestselling author of the Influencer series delivers a riveting psychological thriller about power, betrayal, and the haunting legacy of family secrets filled with diabolical turns and shocking twists.
Some invitations are meant to be declined. . . .
Ellie works as an accountant at her father's successful investment company in New York City. She enjoys all the comforts her privileged lifestyle affords--a two-bedroom apartment overlooking Central Park, a generous trust fund, and a devastatingly attractive if often absent husband who works long hours for her father as well. Yet the introverted young woman who wants for nothing feels aimless and untethered. Ellie lost her mother at a young age and still has nightmares about her death. She sometimes sleepwalks at night and finds herself stumbling through the days.
But Ellie's life takes a turn when she receives an anonymous invitation in the mail, asking her to join an elite women's club known only as "The Society."
The Storm
by Rachel Hawkins
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
Hurricane season can be murder...
St. Medard's Bay, Alabama is famous for three things: the deadly hurricanes that regularly sweep into town, the Rosalie Inn, a century-old hotel that's survived every one of those storms, and Lo Bailey, the local girl infamously accused of the murder of her lover, political scion Landon Fitzroy, during Hurricane Marie in 1984.
When Geneva Corliss, the current owner of the Rosalie Inn, hears a writer is coming to town to research the crime that put St. Medard's Bay on the map, she's less interested in solving a whodunnit than in how a successful true crime book might help the struggling inn's bottom line. But to her surprise, August Fletcher doesn't come to St. Medard's Bay alone. With him is none other than Lo Bailey herself. Lo says she's returned to her hometown to clear her name once and for all, but the closer Geneva gets to both Lo and August, the more she wonders if Lo is actually back to settle old scores.
Clear your weekend plans, readers.
These new psychological thrillers aren’t meant to be read slowly. Whether you’re first in line for every buzzy release or you live for the adrenaline rush of a perfectly executed twist, these 11 novels promise sleepless nights and nonstop suspense. Add them to your TBR now!