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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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All the Beautiful Sinners
All the Beautiful Sinners
by Stephen Graham Jones
The Suspect
The Suspect
by L.R. Wright
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All These Beautiful Strangers
All These Beautiful Strangers
by Elizabeth Klehfoth
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One Step Too Far
One Step Too Far
by Tina Seskis
Comes the Dark Stranger
Comes the Dark Stranger
by Jack Higgins
The Scapegoat
The Scapegoat
by Daphne Du Maurier
The Chemistry of Death
The Chemistry of Death
by Simon Beckett
The Perfect Marriage
The Perfect Marriage
by Jeneva Rose
The Three Women
The Three Women
by Valerie Keogh
Just What Kind of Mother Are You?
Just What Kind of Mother Are You?
by Paula Daly
In the Lake of the Woods
In the Lake of the Woods
by Tim O'Brien
Every Little Breath
Every Little Breath
by Keri Beevis
Keep Your Friends Close
Keep Your Friends Close
by Paula Daly
Make No Bones
Make No Bones
by Aaron Elkins
Be Afraid
Be Afraid
by Mary Burton
The Night Before
The Night Before
by Lisa Jackson
Mine
Mine
by Robert McCammon
The Hole
The Hole
by Hye-young Pyun, Sora Kim-Russell
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The Missing Husband
The Missing Husband
by Natasha Boydell
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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
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
Phases of Gravity
Phases of Gravity
by Dan Simmons
A Station on the Path to Somewhere Better
A Station on the Path to Somewhere Better
by Benjamin Wood
The Death of Sweet Mister
The Death of Sweet Mister
by Daniel Woodrell, Dennis Lehane
Usher's Passing
Usher's Passing
by Robert McCammon
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What the Dead Know
What the Dead Know
by Laura Lippman
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The Tremor of Forgery
The Tremor of Forgery
by Patricia Highsmith, Francine Prose
Almost
Almost
by Elizabeth Benedict
Melmoth
Melmoth
by Sarah Perry
The Girlfriend
The Girlfriend
by Michelle Frances
The Good Doctor
The Good Doctor
by Damon Galgut
Going Wrong
Going Wrong
by Ruth Rendell
An Awfully Big Adventure
An Awfully Big Adventure
by Beryl Bainbridge
The Optician's Wife
The Optician's Wife
by Betsy Reavley
Three Novels
Three Novels
by Katherine Neville
The Avenue of the Giants
The Avenue of the Giants
by Marc Dugain, Howard Curtis
All the Names
All the Names
by Jose Saramago, Margaret Jull Costa
The Tenth Commandment
The Tenth Commandment
by Lawrence Sanders
The Retribution
The Retribution
by Val McDermid
The Doll-Master
The Doll-Master
by Joyce Carol Oates
A Dark-Adapted Eye
A Dark-Adapted Eye
by Ruth Rendell
See What I Have Done
See What I Have Done
by Sarah Schmidt
Nemesis
Nemesis
by Joyce Carol Oates
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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.