10 best thrillers in literary history that will keep you on your toes

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

If you are fascinated by dark secrets, dynamic plot and unexpected endings, you will surely appreciate this collection.

1. "Silence of the Lambs" by Thomas Harris

A book that will stay with you forever. Harris managed to write an amazing story that will keep you on your toes until the last pages. In the story, a young FBI specialist Clarissa Starling is on a hunt for a maniac who rips the skin off his victims. But the investigation gets confused, and Clarissa has to seek help from another serial killer - psychiatrist Hannibal Lecter. They have long conversations, the girl tells Hannibal about her past - and a strange connection arises between them.

The novel was filmed by director Jonathan Demmy and starred by Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster.

2. "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn

Another good thriller, which was also filmed (in fact, a similar fate for books in this genre is natural). The main character of the novel, Nick Dunn, is accused of the disappearance of his wife Amy. The whole city suspects that he killed his wife and hid the body. But is it really so? The second part of the novel will contain all the answers.

Flynn accurately describes not only the events, but also the thoughts, feelings and psychological state of the characters. The novel may well be called a warning to those who decided to commit treason.

3. "Text", Dmitry Glukhovsky

The first realistic novel by the famous science fiction writer, creator of the book series "Universe Metro 2033".

The main character of "Text" Ilya Goryunov stands up for his girlfriend and ends up in prison - he is accused of possession of drugs that were actually planted on him. After serving time, he returns home and realizes that his life will never be the same. The only way to feel alive again is to steal someone else's life.

An interesting fact: the events of the novel, written in 2017, two years later, in a strange way rhymed with the case of Ivan Golunov.

4. Misery, Stephen King

In this list of the best thrillers there could be many books by the king of horrors, Stephen King, but I will limit myself to my favorites. This is "Misery" - an amazing psychological thriller about the edges of madness and obsession. And, of course, this is a novel about power and violence. By the way, he was awarded the Bram Stoker Prize.

The hero of the book, the famous writer Paul Sheldon, gets into an accident due to a blizzard. He is rescued by ex-nurse Annie Wilkes, who turns out to be his crazy fan. She takes Paul to her home and provides first aid. Days pass, but Wilkes is in no hurry to release the idol from captivity until he finishes a new novel. And the life of a writer turns into hell.

5. "Rose Marena", Stephen King

An eerie and mesmerizing book. Of course, there are supernatural forces and a mystical line here, but the main thing is that this is a difficult but important topic of domestic violence.

The heroine of Marena Rose, Rosie Daniels, escapes from her husband, a former police officer, sadist and psychopath Norman, who regularly beats her. Rosie hides in a small town and plunges headlong into an imaginary world that becomes almost real for her. But Norman starts looking for her in order to punish her.

6. "The Collector", John Fowles

The debut novel of the English postmodernist Fowles was released in 1963 and made him famous overnight. This is the story of the obsession of one hero - Ferdinand Clegg, who collected butterflies and in love with Miranda Gray. The girl does not share his feelings at all, and one day Ferdinand decides to steal her, lock her in the basement and let her get to know him better. He is sure that then Miranda will definitely love him.

7. "The Silent Patient" by Alex Michaelides

Writer Alex Michaelides has repeatedly said in interviews that when writing "The Silent Patient" he was inspired by the myth of Alcesta, who sacrificed herself for her lover. This is partly the key to understanding its tangled history.

The novel takes place in a psychiatric clinic, where criminal psychotherapist Theo Faber is transferred. He has to figure out the strange case of the artist Alicia Berenson, who killed her own husband, a famous photographer. Five years ago, she shot him in the face and since then has not uttered a word - as if she had taken a vow of silence.

8. "Aspect of the Devil" by Craig Russell

An exciting thriller and historical detective story at the same time. The action takes place in 1935, on the eve of World War II. Six especially dangerous criminals are kept in the Czech castle - the "six of the devil". The main character named Victor, a young psychiatrist and student of the great Jung, comes to the castle to find out what these cruel criminals are so obsessed with and what it is, the nature of evil.

9. "Snowman", Yu Nesbo

The detective novel by the Norwegian Yu Nesbo is the seventh in a series about the famous investigator Harry Hall.

Women are missing in Oslo. Next to the body, they always find the signature trail of the criminal - he leaves a snowman. Detective Harry Hole compares the case materials and concludes that there is no connection between the victims - other than the fact that each of them is married and a mother.

Nesbo's novel was filmed in 2017, and the main roles were played by Michael Fassbender and Rebecca Ferguson.

10. "Surgeon", Tess Gerritsen

This detective thriller by a Chinese American writer was released in 2001. As in Nesbø's Snowman, women are also victims of the serial killer. The maniac enters their homes under cover of night and brutally deals with them: conducts "operations" and tortures to death.

Interesting fact: Gerritsen is a physician by training, so her descriptions are truly bloody and filled with anatomical details. If you want to read a chilling thriller, then "Surgeon" is exactly what you need.

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