We Value Your Privacy

This site uses cookies to improve user experience. By continuing to browse, you accept the use of cookies and other technologies.

I UNDERSTAND
LEARN MORE

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.

Current Book Deal

Loading...
The Wheelman
The Wheelman
by Duane Swierczynski
Absalom, Absalom!
Absalom, Absalom!
by William Faulker
The Last Boy and Girl in the World
The Last Boy and Girl in the World
by Siobhan Vivian
The Virgin Suicides
The Virgin Suicides
by Jeffrey Eugenides
The Chocolate War
The Chocolate War
by Robert Cormier
Brother, I'm Dying
Brother, I'm Dying
by Edwidge Danticat
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House in the Big Woods
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
13 Books for Fans of Little Women
A Moveable Feast
A Moveable Feast
by Ernest Hemingway
Murder on the Ballarat Train
Murder on the Ballarat Train
by Kerry Greenwood
Persepolis
Persepolis
by Marjane Satrapi
The Lincoln Lawyer
The Lincoln Lawyer
by Michael Connelly
The Great Zoo of China
The Great Zoo of China
by Matthew Reilly
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
15 Authors Like Dan Brown
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
by Jonathan Safran Foer
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
The 6 Best Dads in Literature
The Magicians
The Magicians
by Lev Grossman
Out of Africa
Out of Africa
by Isak Dinesen
Death Prefers Blondes
Death Prefers Blondes
by Caleb Roehrig
Orphan Train
Orphan Train
by Christina Baker Cline
Let Me Sleep Until This Is Just a Dream
Let Me Sleep Until This Is Just a Dream
by Elissiv Stifoss-Hansen and May-Brit Akerholt
Blue Angel
Blue Angel
by Francine Prose
Night
Night
by Elie Wiesel
Marriage Can Be Murder
Marriage Can Be Murder
by Emma Jameson
Me Talk Pretty One Day
Me Talk Pretty One Day
by David Sedaris
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
23 Must-Read Books for Men
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant
Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant
by Anne Tyler
A Darker Shade of Magic
A Darker Shade of Magic
by V.E. Schwab
The Time Traveler's Wife
The Time Traveler's Wife
by Audrey Niffenegger
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
8 Novels Inspired by the Odyssey
The Lovely Bones
The Lovely Bones
by Alice Sebold
A Room of One's Own
A Room of One's Own
by Virginia Woolf
The Truth About the Titanic
The Truth About the Titanic
by Colonel Archibald Gracie
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
16 Essential Titanic Books
God's War
God's War
by Kameron Hurley
Queen of the Track
Queen of the Track
by Heather Lang
The Book of the Unnamed Midwife
The Book of the Unnamed Midwife
by Meg Elison
A Thread of Grace
A Thread of Grace
by Mary Doria Russell
Sophia: Princess, Suffragette, Revolutionary
Sophia: Princess, Suffragette, Revolutionary
by Anita Anand
Firefly Lane
Firefly Lane
by Kristin Hannah
Waverley
Waverley
by Sir Walter Scott
Charming Billy
Charming Billy
by Alice McDermott
White Teeth
White Teeth
by Zadie Smith
Fates and Furies
Fates and Furies
by Lauren Groff
Where'd You Go Bernadette
Where'd You Go Bernadette
by Maria Semple
Normal People
Normal People
by Sara Rooney
Thin Air
Thin Air
by Lisa Gray
Romance Is My Day Job
Romance Is My Day Job
by Patience Bloom
Ecotopia
Ecotopia
by Ernest Callenbach
Expecting Ty's Baby
Expecting Ty's Baby
by Empi Baryeh
It Happened One Autumn
It Happened One Autumn
by Lisa Kleypas
Escape from Camp 14
Escape from Camp 14
by Blaine Harden
The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
by Jennifer Ryan
Packing for Mars
Packing for Mars
by Mary Roach
The King's General
The King's General
by Daphne du Maurier
BUY
SEE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS
9 Must-Reads for Fans of Poldark
Showing 551-600 of 956 results

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.