Crime Thriller Books

The best crime thriller book reviews. “Crime thriller” is a catch-all term for thriller subgenres that feature a struggle for dominance between criminals and law enforcement, such as mafia thriller, police procedural, detective fiction, true crime, serial killer fiction and others.

Crickets, a Stunning Debut Thriller by Lee Chappel

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The Bottom Line: A small-town psychological thriller with a big-time payoff. This stunning debut novel is a must-read for Gillian Flynn fans. “Mine’s one of those stories that can’t be true,” says Kara Peterson in the first chapter of Crickets. Kara, the daughter of Paige, Ohio’s former Sheriff, accused Dalton Rolenfeld of rape a decade earlier. Her father’s sudden death has brought her back to […]

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Now & Then, an Expertly Paced Serial Killer Thriller by Justin M. Kiska

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The Bottom Line: This expertly paced tale of a resurgent serial killer and his seasoned adversary delivers multiple shockers that fans won’t soon forget. First-time novelist Justin M. Kiska puts a delicious spin on the “one last job” trope as small town police chief Ben Winters is thrust into a career-defining nightmare just before retirement. Forty years earlier, then-rookie detective Ben and his partner, Tommy,

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Unseen: Evil Lurks Among Us, a Sophisticated Crime Thriller by Jeffrey James Higgins

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The Bottom Line: A sophisticated crime thriller that simmers with menace, passion and heart. Malachai Wolf had planned to follow in his father’s footsteps by pursuing a PhD in economics. But when his father was killed in the Boston Marathon bombing, he decided to dedicate his life to the pursuit of justice. As Unseen begins, Wolf has transformed into a D.C. detective hungry to solve

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Stolen Lives, an Unforgettable FBI Thriller by Joseph Lewis

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The Bottom Line: A harrowing and unforgettable FBI thriller. On a Navajo reservation in Arizona, 14-year-old George Tokay witnesses the brutal murder of another boy in the desert. FBI Agent Pete Kelliher arrives soon thereafter, and is counting on George’s testimony to find the murderer of the new victim and a dozen others like him. Kelliher believes the killers are running a sex trafficking operation.

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Billy Summers, an Absorbing Assassination Thriller by Stephen King

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The Bottom Line: A masterfully told assassination thriller about about vengeance, love and redemption. Stephen King’s latest centers around an American sniper and decorated Iraq war veteran named Billy Summers. Billy is a killer for hire with a strong moral compass. To hire Billy, he has to believe that his target is truly a bad person. But Billy has decided to hang up his rifle,

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Stolen Truth, an Irresistable Psychological Thriller by Henya Drescher

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The Bottom Line: A must-read psychological thriller for fans of Have You Seen Me? and The Girl on the Train. In a novel that brilliantly plays on the frailty of the human mind and sanity itself, new mother Bree Michaelson wakes feeling disoriented and drugged, similar to the way she felt when she was date raped in college. She soon realizes that her husband Todd,

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Graffiti Red Murder, a highly original LGBTQ+ crime thriller by Alexi Venice

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The Bottom Line: A highly original LGBTQ+ crime thriller with eye-popping doses of murder, mystery and romance. In Alexi Venice’s third Monica Spade Novel, the battle-tested attorney agrees to represent a surgeon police want to question regarding the brutal murder of two of her patients. Monica learns that the surgeon, Dr. Nicole Kershaw, also has been threatened numerous times. As Kershaw describes it, some of

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Divided States, a Must-Read Political Thriller by Rick Treon

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The Bottom Line: A must-read political thriller with a bad-ass heroine at the helm. It’s New Year’s Eve in post-secession America, and former detective Lori Young is in New Orleans’ French Quarter. But instead of enjoying confetti and fireworks, she takes a bullet from an unknown assailant. Spotting the shooter in the crowd, Lori summons all her strength amid the pandemonium to help take him down. But that’s just

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The Devil and the Dark Water, an Unforgettable Historical Thriller by Stuart Turton

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The Bottom Line: A highly visceral and engaging whodunnit set in the 1600s. Samuel Pipps, the world’s greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be executed. Traveling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent. En route to boarding the ship, Pipps is pelted with stones by a jeering crowd. The chaos is interrupted by the

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Faux Friends, a Potent Crime Thriller by A.J. McCarthy

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The Bottom Line: A potent, briskly-paced crime thriller featuring a detective whose vulnerability creates first-class suspense. Homicide detective Chantal Pouliot wants action. After being held captive by a psychopath in a remote cabin months earlier, she’s endured months of therapy, and is itching to solve murders. Unfortunately, the psychologist treating her feels she’s not quite ready, and Chantal is instead assigned to a cyber-crime case.

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