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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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One Night Gone
One Night Gone
by Tara Laskowski
True Grit
True Grit
by Charles Portis
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The Secrets We Kept
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by Lara Prescott
Hope Is the Thing with Feathers
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by Emily Dickinson
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Where the Missing Go
Where the Missing Go
by Emma Rowley
The Glovemaker
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by Ann Weisgarber
All the Best, George Bush: My Life in Letters and Other Writings
All the Best, George Bush: My Life in Letters and Other Writings
by George H.W. Bush
Fast and Loose
Fast and Loose
by Fern Michaels
1776
1776
by David McCullough
Visible Empire
Visible Empire
by Hannah Pittard
Warlight
Warlight
by Michael Ondaatje
For Whom the Bell Tolls
For Whom the Bell Tolls
by Ernest Hemingway
The Girl Who Was Taken
The Girl Who Was Taken
by Charlie Donlea
The Men in My Life: A Memoir of Love and Art in 1950s Manhattan
The Men in My Life: A Memoir of Love and Art in 1950s Manhattan
by Patricia Bosworth
Let Me Lie
Let Me Lie
by Clare Mackintosh
Salt Fat Acid Heat
Salt Fat Acid Heat
by Samin Nostrat
Layover
Layover
by David Bell
A Possibility of Whales
A Possibility of Whales
by Karen Rivers
Keep Her Safe
Keep Her Safe
by K.A. Tucker
The Book of Etta
The Book of Etta
by Meg Elison
The Bleeding Edge
The Bleeding Edge
by Thomas Pynchon
The Bible
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by King James Version
 The First Mountain Man
The First Mountain Man
by William W. Johnstone
The Neapolitan Novels
The Neapolitan Novels
by Elena Ferrante
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Are You There, God? It's Me Margaret
Are You There, God? It's Me Margaret
by Judy Blume
The Long Winter
The Long Winter
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
On Chesil Beach
On Chesil Beach
by Ian McEwan
The Hidden Staircase
The Hidden Staircase
by Carolyn Keene
Today Tonight Tomorrow
Today Tonight Tomorrow
by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Die A Little
Die A Little
by Megan Abbott
The Black Flamingo
The Black Flamingo
by Dean Atta
Every Summer After
Every Summer After
by Carley Fortune
Towards Zero
Towards Zero
by Agatha Christie
Just Listen
Just Listen
by Sarah Dessen
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Outer Dark
Outer Dark
by Cormac McCarthy
Nova Express
Nova Express
by William S. Burroughs
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Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland
Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland
by Gerald Clarke
The Last True Poets of the Sea
The Last True Poets of the Sea
by Julia Drake
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Your Corner Dark
Your Corner Dark
by Desmond Hall
Adventures in Old New York
Adventures in Old New York
by Greg Young and Tom Meyers, aka The Bowery Boys
Lifeboat No. 8
Lifeboat No. 8
by Elizabeth Kaye
The Dark Dark
The Dark Dark
by Samantha Hunt
The Trojan War: A New History
The Trojan War: A New History
by Barry Strauss
Sadie
Sadie
by Courtney Summers
John Adams
John Adams
by David McCullough
Grown
Grown
by Tiffany D. Jackson
Women and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her
Women and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her
by Susan Griffin
Management Mess to Leadership Success
Management Mess to Leadership Success
by Scott Jeffrey Miller
Rock Bottom at the Renaissance: An Emo Kid's Journey Through Falling In and Out of Love In and With New York City
Rock Bottom at the Renaissance: An Emo Kid's Journey Through Falling In and Out of Love In and With New York City
by Mike Henneberger
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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.