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The Best Thriller Books for Chill-Chasing Readers

Thriller books are characterized by the suspense, excitement, and anxiety they elicit in their readers. Good thrillers books are action packed and full of twists and turns to keep readers on the edge of their seats. The stakes are always high and the characters are usually determined to complete a mission or goal before time runs out, whether due to an actual countdown ending or just increasing danger. 

There are many subgenres under the thriller umbrella, including domestic thrillersscience fiction thrillers, and legal thrillers. Sometimes thrillers also contain mysterious elements to form the subgenre of mystery thriller books. Across the genre, the best thriller books feature a palpable sense of urgency, as characters race against the clock.

From tales of political spies trying to shut down conspiracies, to books about husbands attempting to outwit murderous wives, the thriller genre covers a range of topics so you can pick one up, no matter your interests. 

These are our best thriller book recommendations to get your heart racing.

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Six Days of the Condor
Six Days of the Condor
by James Grady
Sweet Little Lies
Sweet Little Lies
by Caz Frear
A Gathering of Spies
A Gathering of Spies
by John Altman
Hunter's Green
Hunter's Green
by Phyllis A. Whitney
See What I Have Done
See What I Have Done
by Sarah Schmidt
Nemesis
Nemesis
by Joyce Carol Oates
An Unkindness of Ravens
An Unkindness of Ravens
by Ruth Rendell
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Archie Meets Nero Wolfe
Archie Meets Nero Wolfe
by Robert Goldsborough
Death Sentence
Death Sentence
by Brian Garfield
The Death of Sweet Mister
The Death of Sweet Mister
by Daniel Woodrell, Dennis Lehane
The Silent Ones
The Silent Ones
by William Brodrick
Nerve
Nerve
by Dick Francis
Disturbed
Disturbed
by Kevin O'Brien
Moving Mars
Moving Mars
by Greg Bear
The Paper Wasp
The Paper Wasp
by Lauren Acampora
Bones of the Earth
Bones of the Earth
by Michael Swanwick
The Killing Hills
The Killing Hills
by Chris Offutt
The Fallen
The Fallen
by Jassy Mackenzie
The Sin Eater
The Sin Eater
by Sarah Rayne
Moist
Moist
by Mark Haskell Smith
The Other Side of the Sun
The Other Side of the Sun
by Madeleine L'Engle
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The Re-Read: A Wrinkle in Time
Eleven
Eleven
by Patricia Highsmith, Graham Greene
The Optician's Wife
The Optician's Wife
by Betsy Reavley
As Long as We Both Shall Live
As Long as We Both Shall Live
by JoAnn Chaney
Country of the Blind
Country of the Blind
by Christopher Brookmyre
Last Summer
Last Summer
by Evan Hunter
Chambermaid
Chambermaid
by Saira Rao
The Lifeguard
The Lifeguard
by Richie Tankersley Cusick
Consumed
Consumed
by David Cronenberg
The Dark Labyrinth
The Dark Labyrinth
by Lawrence Durrell
Shadow of the Lions
Shadow of the Lions
by Christopher Swann
The Devil's Advocate
The Devil's Advocate
by Taylor Caldwell
Asking for the Moon
Asking for the Moon
by Reginald Hill
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
by Henry Farrell, Mitch Douglas
A Dram of Poison
A Dram of Poison
by Charlotte Armstrong
Mr. Moto Is So Sorry
Mr. Moto Is So Sorry
by John P. Marquand
Murder in the English Department
Murder in the English Department
by Valerie Miner
A Stranger in the Kingdom
A Stranger in the Kingdom
by Howard Frank Mosher
Design for Dying
Design for Dying
by Renee Patrick
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The Mandelbaum Gate
The Mandelbaum Gate
by Muriel Spark
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Celebrating Author Muriel Spark
Toots in Solitude
Toots in Solitude
by John Yount
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The Assassin
The Assassin
by Evelyn Anthony
Dial M for Merde
Dial M for Merde
by Stephen Clarke
John Woman
John Woman
by Walter Mosley
Showing 151-200 of 305 results

A thriller book is a book that keeps readers on the edge of their seats with action, excitement, and urgency, with a high stakes premise and a protagonist on a mission.

A book is usually classified as a thriller when it has an action packed plot that follows a hero in a race against time and evokes feelings of anxiety and excitement as it builds towards a climax.

While books can fall under both horror and thriller categories, the two genres differ in that horror books are meant to be scary and, well, horrifying, whereas thriller books are not necessarily fearsome but more exciting and suspenseful.