Action Thriller Books

The best action thriller book reviews. Action thrillers feature extensive fight scenes, battle scenarios or high-intensity adventure.

Colony, a Shockingly Great YA Sci-Fi Thriller by Ron Wolff

The Bottom Line: A shockingly great YA Sci-Fi thriller that earns its suspense and pays it off repeatedly. Highly recommended for any sci-fi fan.  At a time when establishing an outpost on Mars seems more plausible than ever before, Ron Wolff’s Colony opens – appetizingly so – with a detailed schematic diagram of Hellas Station, a base for human colonization and scientific exploration. What follows next is […]

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Invaders of the Heartland, a Riveting Police Thriller by James Bultema

The Bottom Line: A riveting police thriller that deftly explores the ramifications of drug legalization in America. Get in on the ground floor of this promising series. Invaders of the Heartland opens in Los Angeles as LAPD officer Jake Dalton is called to an in-progress armed bank robbery. The incident quickly devolves into a hostage situation in which Jake shoots and kills one of the thieves

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Miles in Time, a Dazzling YA Sci-Fi Thriller by Lee Matthew Goldberg

The Bottom Line: A dazzling and poignant exploration of time, memory and the fragile courage of youth. Miles in Time opens as Miles Hardy, a 14-year-old aspiring detective living in the sleepy town of Frontier, Iowa, is jolted awake by a bang that seems to fracture reality itself. Dreaming of melting clocks — a clever nod to Salvador Dalí and the book’s time-centric themes — he awakes to find the acrid scent

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Born of Bombs

Born of Bombs and Bullets, a Hard-Hitting Historical Thriller by David A. Dummer

The Bottom Line: A welcome respite from monotonous historical thrillers, Born of Bombs and Bullets delivers a fresh, hard-hitting take on Northern Ireland’s Troubles as seen through the eyes of a vulnerable American.  After failing to stop a preventable murder in the American prison where he worked, psychologist Aaron Thornton moves to his wife’s native city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, for a fresh start. Thornton specializes in psychological trauma, including vicarious

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The Crisis, an Endearing Action Comedy Thriller by T.O. Paine

The Bottom Line: A clever action comedy that manages to be both quirky and endearing while packing a sneaky emotional punch. The Crisis opens on a Monday, as Florida Pay-N-Save convenience store workers Mattie and Calvin survive an armed robbery. But during the incident, Mattie notes that something seems off with the criminal couple – a muscled man and a young girl with a number tattooed on her leg. On their way

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Sabotage, a Mesmerizing Crime Thriller by Dave McKeon

The Bottom Line: A mesmerizing crime thriller that is alternatingly charming, savage and cinematic. Recommended for fans of C.J. Box and Craig Johnson.   When former Canadian commando Lou Gault and his wife inherited the charming fly-in sporting lodge Havre de Poisson, they took on more than just a speculator wilderness destination. They also inherited a legacy. The lodge and surrounding forty-five square miles was a gift

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Fugitive Agent, a Taut, Scorchingly Funny Action Thriller by Dan J Ford

The Bottom Line: A taut action thriller with scorchingly funny scenes, Ford delivers his best Agent Series book yet.    Dan J Ford’s Rogue Agent introduced us to Tom Wiseman, a one-man wrecking crew in an exceptional series debut. Ford’s second Agent Series book, Fugitive Agent, opens with a flashback that lays the groundwork for the book’s primary struggle. In a bar, we see former FBI boss and

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Rescue Run, an Essential World War II Thriller by John Winn Miller

The Bottom Line: Based on real World War II heroes, and profoundly researched from cover-to-cover, Rescue Run is every bit as riveting and essential as anything in Clive Cussler’s body of work.  Set during World War II, Rescue Run opens as American Captain Jake Rogers’ cargo ship comes under attack from a Nazi submarine. Despite the assistance of a B-24 bomber in fending off the U-boat attack, Rogers’ battered

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Stuntman

The Stuntman, an Impeccably Paced Action Thriller by Evan Graver

The Bottom Line: Don’t miss this sharply funny, impeccably paced action thriller. Amidst an ocean of heroes who take themselves far too seriously, Luke Wesson is a breath of fresh air. The Stuntman opens on a Hollywood movie set as Luke Wesson – doubling for actor Jordan Reese – prepares to jump his motorbike onto the roof of a moving train. After a bee sting triggers

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The Best C.J. Box Books, Ranked in Order

What are the best CJ Box books? For newcomers to Box’s work, deciding which book to pick up first is a serious challenge. That’s because Box has been incredibly prolific in the years since the publication of his first novel. Box is best known for his Joe Pickett series, featuring an honest, upright, hardworking and faithful Wyoming Game and Fish warden. Pickett’s famous flaw is

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