11 Captivating Literary Thrillers

We could easily have placed Jean Hanff Korelitz’s bestselling 2021 literary thriller The Plot at the top of our list — and if you haven’t yet read it, we encourage you to do so! Today, however, we’re shining a spotlight on The Sequel, Korelitz’s equally electrifying follow-up. While the first book in the series focused on the cutthroat literary aspirations of Jacob Finch Bonner, The Sequel centers on Anna Williams-Bonner, Jacob’s wife. Anna is riding high in the wake of her husband’s success and is about to publish her own novel. After all, how hard is it really to write a bestseller? Complications arise, however, when a mysterious figure begins corresponding with Anna, threating to expose secrets that need to stay buried. Expertly paced and packed with plot twists and turns, The Sequel is “another taut and compulsively readable spellbinder from Korelitz” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

The Wall Street Journal hails this gripping murder mystery by Peter Nichols as “a thrilling tour de force.” We have to agree, as we were swept away by Granite Harbor’s complex characters, haunting atmosphere, and monstrous villain. The novel takes place in the tight-knit coastal Maine community of Granite Harbor, where a local teen has been found murdered at a nearby archeological site known as the Settlement. Two single parents — one an employee at the Settlement and the other the town’s sole detective — partner up to solve the case and protect their own children from harm. But wicked secrets lurk beneath this seemingly placid small town. Are they ready for what they’re about to unearth?

You know a book is great when readers still talk about it decades after its release — which certainly is the case with Donna Tartt’s The Secret History, first published in 1992. The acclaimed literary thriller is set at a foreboding New England college, where six classics students get taken down a dark and dangerous path in their search for excitement. Beautifully written and psychologically chilling, this book has an intellectual air, a complex plot, and an evocative academic setting. In fact, it’s one of the most compelling dark academia books around. 

The Comfort of Strangers, an early cut from Ian McEwan’s body of work, is definitely worth a read. The disquieting gothic tale centers on Mary and Colin, a couple visiting an unnamed European city comprised with narrow cobbled streets and a dizzying network of canals. Mary and Colin soon attract the interest of an older man named Robert and his wife, Caroline. As their relationship intensifies, a violent and obsessive fantasy unfolds, pulling everyone into a dangerous game. The Comfort of Strangers was adapted into a 1990 film starring Christopher Walken and Helen Mirren, but we recommend going back to the source material to fully absorb its psychosexual themes. 

A Booker Prize nominee declared by TIME as one of the 100 best mysteries and thrillers ever written, My Sister, the Serial Killer is a devilish delight. Set in Lagos, Oyinkan Braithwaite’s novel focuses on Korede and her sister, Ayoola. Ayoola is the favorite daughter, even though she has a habit of killing her lovers and expecting Korede to help clean up the mess. But when Korede’s doctor crush asks for Ayoola’s number, Korede must decide which person to protect more. Intense and unsettling, Braithwaite’s literary thriller is also darkly funny. 

Alexandra Andrews’s Who Is Maud Dixon? appeared on a slew of best-of lists in 2021, including from The New York Times, NPR, and Entertainment Weekly. We highly recommend picking it up — if not for its twisty plot, then for its deliciously wicked satire of the publishing industry. The novel centers on Florence Darrow, who leaves behind a disastrous affair with her old boss to start a fresh romance with her new one, the acclaimed and reclusive author Maud Dixon. The pair jet off to Morocco, where Florence luxuriates in the sights, sounds, and flavors of Marrakesh — until she wakes up in a hospital bed after a terrible accident, with no sign of Maud. 

The Guide is a compelling narrative by Peter Heller — “the poet laureate of the literary thriller” (bestselling author Michael Koryta) — that combines a fast-paced plot with an astonishing natural setting. The novel takes place at Kingfisher Lodge, a high-end nature getaway in the Colorado wilderness. Surrounded by barbed wire and a heavy gate, the elite retreat is a world away from the illnesses and instability that plague the outside. Jack is assigned to guide a wealthy singer during her Kingfisher stay, but the excursion turns dark when a scream exposes a sinister plot.

Like The Guide, Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips is an acclaimed literary thriller that combines masterful suspense with a vibrant sense of place. The novel takes place on Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, where two sisters vanish without a trace. It then delves into the inner workings of this isolated community, tracing the lives of the women and girls affected by the disappearance. A National Book Awards finalist, Phillips’s novel explores themes of family, community, and gender set against a beautiful and ominous backdrop.

Liz Moore’s New York Times bestselling novel The God of the Woods is a no-brainer for this list. The “immersive and enthralling literary thriller” (bestselling author Paula Hawkins) is not just a mystery but a rich social commentary with a cast of dynamic characters. In August 1975, Barbara Van Laar disappears from her bunk at an Adirondack summer camp — 14 years after her older brother disappeared in the same way. The Van Laar family own the camp and employ most people in the region, which compounds Barbara’s disappearance with a tense have/have-not dynamic. 

The Leftover Woman is an enthralling narrative by Jean Kwok, New York Times bestselling author of Searching for Sylvie Lee. It’s equal parts family drama and suspense, exploring themes such as love, belonging, motherhood, and cultural identity. In the book, Jasmine Yang escapes her rural Chinese village and her abusive husband for New York City, where she begins to search for the daughter who was taken from her at birth. Meanwhile, wealthy Rebecca Whitney experiences a scandal that threatens both her job and her home life with her husband and adopted daughter. 

Written by Booker Prize–winning author Eleanor Catton, Birnam Wood is a topical literary thriller that boasts compelling characters, a layered plot, and a whole lot of suspense. When a landslide on New Zealand’s South Island washes out roads and results in a sprawling farm property being abandoned, a guerrilla gardening collective known as Birnam Wood moves in to occupy the land. The activist initiative brings the group — and its leader, Mira — into the sights of American billionaire Robert Lemoine. At first glance, Mira and Robert appear utterly opposed. Soon, however, the pair realize they might have more in common than anticipated — especially after things on the ground take a shocking turn. Bestselling author Stephen King recommends Birnam Wood as a “multi-layered, character-driven thriller” — so you know it’s going to be good.