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.

Shattered Triangle

Shattered Triangle, a Well-Characterized Murder Mystery by William P. Messenger

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The Bottom Line: An uncommonly well-characterized murder mystery about the friendship between a politician, a priest and a police lieutenant. When a leading candidate for the U.S. Senate returns to his Los Angeles home, he finds his wife, two teenage daughters and eleven-year old son murdered. To investigating lieutenant and close family friend Tom Moran, it looks like a professional hit. But what could the […]

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Triple Crossed, a Highly Recommended Crime Thriller by R.C. Hartson

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The Bottom Line: A first-rate crime novel told in the classic noir tradition of Raymond Chandler, Jonathan Cain and Dennis Lehane. Highly recommended. Chicago private eye Cleve Hawkins’ latest client is Bethany Hubbard, a socialite who suspects her husband is cheating. But when her chemist spouse goes missing, Hawkins suspects a mob connection. Will Hubbard’s vow to keep his company’s stealth project a secret cost

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Insidious, Another Satisfying Thriller by Catherine Coulter

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The Bottom Line: Yet another rock-solid outing in Coulter’s FBI series, Insidious is reliable comfort food for thriller fans everywhere. FBI agents Savich and Sherlock must discover who is trying to murder Venus Rasmussen, a powerful, wealthy society icon. They soon find out that the danger may be closer than expected. Venus Rasmussen, a powerful woman who runs the international conglomerate Rasmussen Industries, believes someone is

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A Selfless Man, a Cinematic Page-Turner by Shawn Raymond Poalillo

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The Bottom Line: A cinematic page-turner about family, spite and sacrifice that manages to be both tragic and uplifting. Highly recommended. In 1994, projected first-round NFL draft pick Roland Moses was arrested for killing a man in Harlem. He went to prison. In 2015, he returned for his one and only year in the NFL, where as a 46-year-old running back for the New York Giants,

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Dead Lawyers Don’t Lie, a Crime Thriller by Mark Nolan

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A mysterious killer who calls himself The Artist is assassinating wealthy lawyers in San Francisco. When photo-journalist Jake Wolfe accidentally takes his picture during a murder, The Artist adds Jake to his kill list and he becomes a target in a deadly game of cat and mouse that only one of them can survive. Jake is a military veteran with a secret black ops past

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The Blood on My Hands - Shannon O’Leary

The Blood on My Hands, a True Crime Thriller by Shannon O’Leary

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The Bottom Line: For fans of the serial killer genre, this shattering autobiography by the child of a real-life mass-murderer will be absolutely unforgettable. “I first contemplated suicide at the age of four,” writes Shannon O’Leary, who uses pseudonyms to protect family members. “I devised my death plan down to the very last detail but never had the courage to see it through to completion.

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Pigeon Blood Red

Pigeon Blood Red, a Crime Thriller by Ed Duncan

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The Bottom Line: This charming, classically-told crime thriller is a must for noir fans. Ed Duncan’s debut crime thriller revolves around a stolen necklace with sixteen colormatched rubies, each a prized pigeon-blood red. The necklace – which comes with quite a pedigree – belongs to Chicago loan shark Frank Litvak, who entrusts it to rank-and-file muscle Rico Sanders and his colleague, Jerry. If you’re thinking

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The Butterfly Garden

The Butterfly Garden, a Mystery by Dot Hutchison

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Near an isolated mansion lies a beautiful garden. In this garden grow luscious flowers, shady trees…and a collection of precious “butterflies”—young women who have been kidnapped and intricately tattooed to resemble their namesakes. Overseeing it all is the Gardener, a brutal, twisted man obsessed with capturing and preserving his lovely specimens. When the garden is discovered, a survivor is brought in for questioning. FBI agents

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