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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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A Winter Haunting
A Winter Haunting
by Dan Simmons
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The People Next Door
The People Next Door
by Keri Beevis
The House on the Strand
The House on the Strand
by Daphne du Maurier
The Chemistry of Death
The Chemistry of Death
by Simon Beckett
The Perfect Stranger
The Perfect Stranger
by Wendy Corsi Staub
Every Little Breath
Every Little Breath
by Keri Beevis
Be Afraid
Be Afraid
by Mary Burton
The Hole
The Hole
by Sora Kim-Russell, Hye-young Pyun
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The Perfect Marriage
The Perfect Marriage
by Jeneva Rose
The Night Before
The Night Before
by Lisa Jackson
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The Lathe of Heaven
The Lathe of Heaven
by Ursula K. Le Guin
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Foucault's Pendulum
Foucault's Pendulum
by Umberto Eco
Sweet Baby
Sweet Baby
by Sharon Sala
Come Closer
Come Closer
by Sara Gran
The Two Faces of January
The Two Faces of January
by Patricia Highsmith
Death in the Castle
Death in the Castle
by Pearl S. Buck
Song of Kali
Song of Kali
by Dan Simmons
A Station on the Path to Somewhere Better
A Station on the Path to Somewhere Better
by Benjamin Wood
All the Beautiful Sinners
All the Beautiful Sinners
by Stephen Graham Jones
Comes the Dark Stranger
Comes the Dark Stranger
by Jack Higgins
The Tremor of Forgery
The Tremor of Forgery
by Patricia Highsmith, Francine Prose
Usher's Passing
Usher's Passing
by Robert McCammon
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Pretty Ugly Lies
Pretty Ugly Lies
by Pamela Crane
I Know Where She Is
I Know Where She Is
by S. B. Caves
In the Lake of the Woods
In the Lake of the Woods
by Tim O'Brien
Going Wrong
Going Wrong
by Ruth Rendell
Shadow of the Lions
Shadow of the Lions
by Christopher Swann
Make No Bones
Make No Bones
by Aaron Elkins
An Awfully Big Adventure
An Awfully Big Adventure
by Beryl Bainbridge
The Optician's Wife
The Optician's Wife
by Betsy Reavley
All the Names
All the Names
by Jose Saramago, Margaret Jull Costa
Daddy Love
Daddy Love
by Joyce Carol Oates
The Tenth Commandment
The Tenth Commandment
by Lawrence Sanders
Sweet Little Lies
Sweet Little Lies
by Caz Frear
Talking to Strange Men
Talking to Strange Men
by Ruth Rendell
The Favorite Daughter
The Favorite Daughter
by Kaira Rouda
Three Novels
Three Novels
by Katherine Neville
The Retribution
The Retribution
by Val McDermid
The Doll-Master
The Doll-Master
by Joyce Carol Oates
As Long as We Both Shall Live
As Long as We Both Shall Live
by JoAnn Chaney
What the Dead Know
What the Dead Know
by Laura Lippman
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The Crocodile Bird
The Crocodile Bird
by Ruth Rendell
See What I Have Done
See What I Have Done
by Sarah Schmidt
Nemesis
Nemesis
by Joyce Carol Oates
The 7th Victim
The 7th Victim
by Alan Jacobson
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The Death of Sweet Mister
The Death of Sweet Mister
by Daniel Woodrell, Dennis Lehane
Mistaken
Mistaken
by Neil Jordan
The Widow's Web
The Widow's Web
by Susan Moore
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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.