9 Best Thrillers Of The Past 10 Years

There's a reason why thriller books are some of the most popular contemporary works, as there's nothing more gripping than a mystery you can't quite get to the bottom of. Whether they're thrillers for true crime fans or fictional explorations of relevant social and cultural themes, these books are fun because of their crimes and red herrings. However, they always manage to make an emotional impact without the high-octane tone of the stories. Thriller books with shocking twists make readers and characters question their realities and wonder if the narrators can be trusted to tell the truth. No one is who they seem to be in the best thrillers of the decade. The genre has only gotten more complex and engaging in recent years, making it impossible to predict what will happen next within the pages of these brilliant novels. The God Of The Woods (2024) By Liz Moore Plenty of thrillers explore the lives of teenagers and take advantage of the spooky setting of summer camp, but few do this as well as The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. Exploring class, prejudice, and the lies that prominent families build their lives on, The God of the Woods unfolds in the wake of the disappearance of Barbara Van Laar, the younger sister of another boy from their wealthy family who went missing over a decade earlier. The connection, if there is one, between their vanishing is explored through multiple timelines and perspectives as friends, loved ones, and detectives attempt to piece together what happened to Barbara and her brother. Tensions run high, and everyone has something to hide in this exploration of generational lies. Netflix's The God of the Woods adaptation needs to capture the atmosphere and thrills that unfold throughout Moore's novel. The God of the Woods is available for purchase here. The Last Thing He Told Me (2021) By Laura Dave When Hannah's husband, Owen, suddenly disappears, it's up to her to take care of his daughter, Bailey, and piece together the notes and cryptic hints he left behind before vanishing without a trace. Despite their love, Hannah realizes that almost everything she knew about Owen is a lie, and the people she needs to protect Bailey from are more real than she realized. Jennifer Garner leads the cast of the TV adaptation of The Last Thing He Told Me as Hannah, capturing her shock and determination in the face of increasingly disturbing reveals about her husband's past. The sequel, The First Time I Saw Him, expands on Hannah's story and gives readers more insight into just how strong Hannah is. The Last Thing He Told Me is available for purchase here. Harlem Shuffle (2021) By Colson Whitehead Colson Whitehead has written some of the most resonant and gripping additions to the thriller and crime genres of the 21st century, and Harlem Shuffle is no exception. Packed with incredible characters and jaw-dropping heists, Harlem Shuffle follows Ray Carney, a man balancing the responsibilities of being a family man while also getting involved in some thievery along the way that doesn't always turn out to be the most expert. Whitehead paints Ray, his crime world, and New York City beautifully, giving the reader a texture that feels as if you're in the action alongside Ray. Of course, it isn't just petty theft that Ray gets involved in, but conspiracies that go all the way to the top of who's really running the city. The Harlem Shuffle is available for purchase here. The Silent Patient (2019) By Alex Michaelides Psychologically mind-bending and full of twists until the final pages, The Silent Patient is a stunning debut from Alex Michaelides. The protagonist, Theo Faber, is a psychotherapist treating the enigmatic Alicia Berenson​​​​​​, who has refused to speak since she murdered her husband. As he attempts to unravel the mystery of her silence while dealing with the fallout of his own troubled life, Theo gets involved in plots he never imagined. Enormously popular for a reason, The Silent Patient takes the reader on a wild, intense ride that isn't easy to forget. The Silent Patient movie is currently in development at Sony, so hopefully it won't be too long before readers get to see Michaelides' brilliant thriller brought to life onscreen. The Silent Patient is available for purchase here. Bury Your Gays (2024) By Chuck Tingle Taking its title from the "bury your gays" trope, which sees LGBTQ+ characters killed off time and again in fiction, Bury Your Gays subverts the readers' expectations. The protagonist, Misha, is a screenwriter facing pressure to sacrifice his story for clickbait and kill a gay character in one of his shows. However, this decision has a bigger impact than the executives know, forcing Misha to grapple with a dark past. Interweaving elements of social commentary, satire, and the cost of fame and fortune, Bury Your Gays is a whip-smart novel that will grab hold of the reader from the first pages. Just because Hollywood is beautiful doesn't mean it isn't violent, bloody, and dangerous, and Misha knows that better than anybody. Bury Your Gays is available for purchase here. My Sister, The Serial Killer (2018) By Oyinkan Braithwaite Tight, brilliantly paced, and unforgettable, Oyinkan Braithwaite's My Sister, The Serial Killer follows Korede​​​​​, the long-suffering older sister who has been cleaning up her younger sister's messes for years. This is because Ayoola, the younger sister, has a habit of killing her boyfriends, but Korede can't let her sister go down for these crimes. However, things change when Ayoola starts dating a man Korede has always had feelings for, and Korede knows how badly all of Ayoola's relationships end. Darkly hilarious and thrilling until the book's final moments, My Sister, The Serial Killer makes Korede confront how far she's willing to go to protect her sister, and how many bodies can pile up before she does something. My Sister, The Serial Killer is available for purchase here. The Woman In Cabin 10 (2016) By Ruth Ware In The Woman in Cabin 10, Lo Blacklock believes that she's won the lottery of journalistic assignments as she spends a week on a cruise in the North Sea. However, like all of Ruth Ware's books, The Woman in Cabin 10 quickly takes a turn for the worse when Lo sees a woman thrown overboard. Things get worse when it's revealed that no passengers are missing, making Lo question her reality. As opposing forces come together to try to convince Lo she was imagining things and force her to let it go, Lo can't help getting to the bottom of the murder she knows she saw. Adapted for the screen in 2025, the movie stars Keira Knightley as Lo, and while the mystery unfolds better on the page, watching the film after reading Ware's book is a fun exercise in comparing the stories. The Woman in Cabin 10 is available for purchase here. Razorblade Tears (2021) By S.A. Cosby The prolific mystery author S.A. Cosby is at his best in 2021's Razorblade Tears, an emotional portrait of two fathers' grief and their paths to acceptance in the wake of their sons' deaths. Exploring the intersection of racial prejudice within criminal investigations and LGBTQ+ stories, Razorblade Tears doesn't shy away from relevant social issues through the lens of Ike and Buddy Lee, an unlikely pair. Brought together when their married sons are murdered, Ike and Buddy Lee use connections from their criminal pasts to get to the bottom of the murder and reflect on their difficult relationships with their sons. Cosby finds a perfect balance between moving moments and propulsive investigation, making for a unique tone and compelling story in Razorblade Tears​​​​​​. Razorblade Tears is available for purchase here. We Are All Guilty Here (2025) By Karin Slaughter A small town is the perfect setting for any thriller, and Karin Slaughter uses the quaint-yet-mysterious setting of North Falls as the perfect backdrop for We Are All Guilty Here. North Falls is changed forever when two teenage girls disappear, and it's up to the town's detective, Emmy Clifton, to investigate friends and neighbors alike in the wake of the crime. We Are All Guilty Here questions whether this close-knit community can withstand tragedy and whether it's possible to preserve the safety the characters once felt now that everyone is a suspect. As Emmy investigates the web of lies that connects the girls to the town's underbelly, audiences will feel themselves getting sucked into the twists and turns of Slaughter's recent thriller. We Are All Guilty Here is available for purchase here.