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The Best Psychological Thriller Books and Novels

If there’s one thing thriller lovers know, it’s that danger is lurking around every corner—or at least at the end of every chapter. If you adore twisty thrillers that let you take a peek behind closed doors, we have endless recommendations for you.

Perhaps you enjoy domestic thrillers that prove white picket fences can hide horrendous crimes, or modern thrillers that will make you rethink social media. You can even work your way through the masters of the genre, from Joyce Carol Oates to Jack Higgins.

From psychological thrillers to books with jaw-dropping plot twists, there's nothing like a novel designed to send chills down your spine. Discover books from classic authors like Patricia Highsmith to modern writers like Lucy Foley and Liane Moriarty. And whatever you do, remember that not everything is as it seems.

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The Lucky Ones
The Lucky Ones
by Tiffany Reisz
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All These Beautiful Strangers
All These Beautiful Strangers
by Elizabeth Klehfoth
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Remember Me
Remember Me
by Lynda Renham
The Tremor of Forgery
The Tremor of Forgery
by Patricia Highsmith, Francine Prose
The House on the Strand
The House on the Strand
by Daphne Du Maurier
Melmoth
Melmoth
by Sarah Perry
The Chemistry of Death
The Chemistry of Death
by Simon Beckett
A Simple Lie
A Simple Lie
by Mary Bush
The Perfect Marriage
The Perfect Marriage
by Jeneva Rose
The Three Women
The Three Women
by Valerie Keogh
Before He Finds Her
Before He Finds Her
by Michael Kardos
In the Lake of the Woods
In the Lake of the Woods
by Tim O'Brien
The Good Doctor
The Good Doctor
by Damon Galgut
An Awfully Big Adventure
An Awfully Big Adventure
by Beryl Bainbridge
The Lies He Told
The Lies He Told
by Valerie Keogh
The Shut Eye
The Shut Eye
by Belinda Bauer
Be Afraid
Be Afraid
by Mary Burton
The Trap
The Trap
by Melanie Raabe, Imogen Taylor
Blind Faith
Blind Faith
by CJ Lyons
The Night Before
The Night Before
by Lisa Jackson
The Hole
The Hole
by Hye-young Pyun, Sora Kim-Russell
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Vulnerable
Vulnerable
by Mary Burton
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8 Books Like The Silent Patient
The Lathe of Heaven
The Lathe of Heaven
by Ursula K. Le Guin
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What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
by Henry Farrell, Mitch Douglas
Sweet Baby
Sweet Baby
by Sharon Sala
Cardiff, by the Sea
Cardiff, by the Sea
by Joyce Carol Oates
All the Names
All the Names
by Jose Saramago, Margaret Jull Costa
Shadow Image
Shadow Image
by Martin J. Smith
Evil Eye
Evil Eye
by Joyce Carol Oates
Come Closer
Come Closer
by Sara Gran
The House of Stairs
The House of Stairs
by Ruth Rendell
The Two Faces of January
The Two Faces of January
by Patricia Highsmith
The Retribution
The Retribution
by Val McDermid
The Crocodile Bird
The Crocodile Bird
by Ruth Rendell
What the Dead Know
What the Dead Know
by Laura Lippman
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9 Books for Fans of Sharp Objects
The Tree of Hands
The Tree of Hands
by Ruth Rendell
Phases of Gravity
Phases of Gravity
by Dan Simmons
Asta's Book
Asta's Book
by Ruth Rendell
Nemesis
Nemesis
by Joyce Carol Oates
See What I Have Done
See What I Have Done
by Sarah Schmidt
A Girl Named Anna
A Girl Named Anna
by Lizzy Barber
The Widow's Web
The Widow's Web
by Susan Moore
Almost
Almost
by Elizabeth Benedict
Wild Life
Wild Life
by Liam Brown
Going Wrong
Going Wrong
by Ruth Rendell
Your Republic Is Calling You
Your Republic Is Calling You
by Young-ha Kim
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Some say that Agatha Christie invented the psychological thriller with And Then There Were None while others credit James Fenimore Cooper’s The Spy from 1821 with being the earliest example of the genre. Some contemporary writers that have furthered the genre are Dennis Lehane with Shutter Island, Colleen Hoover’s Verity, and a spread of books by Frieda McFadden. 

A thriller in itself is typically an action-packed story emphasizing tension, anxiety, and fear. A psychological thriller is simply a thriller that is more focused on the inner life and thoughts of the protagonist.