Top new thriller books in January 2026
Last updated:
January 29, 2026
January 2026 featuring new releases by Laura Dave, Simone St. James, John Marrs, Freida McFadden, Rachel Hawkins, Alice Feeney, Sophie Hannah, Andrea Mara, Ashley Elston, May Cobb and many more.
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The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave
Laura Dave continues Hannah Hall’s pulse-pounding journey in the riveting and deeply moving sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling blockbuster and Apple TV+ show, The Last Thing He Told Me.Five years after her husband, Owen, disappeared, Hannah Hall and her stepdaughter, Bailey, have settled into a new life in Southern California...north-america · usa · california · fiction · suspense · drama · contemporary · psychological · audiobook · family -
![A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James]()
A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James
Siblings return to the house they fled eighteen years before, called back by the ghost of their long-missing brother and his haunting request to come home.Strange things happen in Fell, New York: A mysterious drowning at the town’s roadside motel. The unexplained death of a young girl whose body is left by the railroad tracks...horror · mystery · suspense · ghosts · thriller · whodunit · paranormal · fiction · supernatural · vampires -
![Dead in the Water by John Marrs]()
Dead in the Water by John Marrs
From the multi-million copy bestselling author comes a chilling tale about life flashing before your eyes—including terrifying scenes you don’t remember.When Damon survives a near-drowning, his life flashes before his eyes. Every memory is crystal clear—except one. A dead boy. A face he can’t place. A moment he doesn’t remember living. At first he tells himself it’s a trick of the mind...suspense · serial-killers · crime · fiction · psychological · murder · thriller · mystery · book · adult -
![Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden]()
Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden
A brand new twisted thriller that will have you cheering "good for her!" from the #1 New York Times bestselling and global sensation Freida McFadden, author of The Housemaid!Sometimes, enough is enough…Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice... -
![The Storm by Rachel Hawkins]()
The Storm by Rachel Hawkins
St. Medard's Bay, Alabama is famous for three things: the deadly hurricanes that regularly sweep into town, the Rosalie Inn, a century-old hotel that's survived every one of those storms, and Lo Bailey, the local girl infamously accused of the murder of her lover, political scion Landon Fitzroy, during Hurricane Marie in 1984...fiction · suspense · drama · thriller · gothic · political-intrigue · politics · psychological · book · adult -
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![My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney]()
My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney
The New York Times bestselling Queen of Twists is back with a psychological masterpiece that will leave you questioning everything you know about love, identity, and revenge.Eden Fox, an artist on the brink of her big break, sets off for a run before her first exhibition... -
![No One Would Do What the Lamberts Have Done by Sophie Hannah]()
No One Would Do What the Lamberts Have Done by Sophie Hannah
'The twist is perfection...fiction · family · psychological · cozy · thriller · slow-burn · suspense · ghosts · animals · literary-fiction -
![It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara]()
It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara
Prepare to be hooked - pre-order the unputdownable new thriller from No.1 Sunday Times bestseller Andrea Mara.Look what you started.You press send. Your message is full of secrets about your neighbours. It’s meant for your sister, but it doesn’t reach her – it goes to the entire local community WhatsApp group instead.Now everyone knows what you did... -
![Anatomy of an Alibi by Ashley Elston]()
Anatomy of an Alibi by Ashley Elston
FROM THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF FIRST LIE WINSA tense, feverish thriller about two women’s lives that are forever intertwined when a murder threatens to expose them both.“Elston expertly unravels a web of secrets and lies. You won’t be able to put this excellent thriller down until the final shocking page... -
![All the Little Houses by May Cobb]()
All the Little Houses by May Cobb
Adults can behave badly too... It's the mid-1980s in the tiny town of Longview, Texas. Nellie Anderson, the beautiful daughter of the Anderson family dynasty, has burst onto the scene. She always gets what she wants. What she can't get for herself… well, that's what her mother is for...north-america · usa · texas · mystery · fiction · historical-fiction · suspense · thriller · female-mc · murder -
![Oxford Blood by Rachael Davis-Featherstone]()
Oxford Blood by Rachael Davis-Featherstone
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder meets Ace of Spades in this YA thriller where a girl has to navigate the cutthroat world of academia to uncover the truth behind her best friend's death.Love, Lies, Legacy...High-achieving state-school pupil Eva has one dream – reading English at Oxford... -
![Feral Vengeance by Emily Kimelman]()
Feral Vengeance by Emily Kimelman
Declan will die if he kills me. The community I belong to—my tribe—is strong and ruthless. Vengeful.Consuela or Declan could kill me right now. I don't have a gun. Either of them could raise their weapons, aim, fire. They could soak this carpet with my blood, spatter it across their shirts, mist droplets in their hair.But they don’t want to and not just because they don’t want to die... -
![Hemlock by Melissa Faliveno]()
Hemlock by Melissa Faliveno
A woman haunted by a dark inheritance returns to the woods where her mother vanished, in this queer Gothic novel—a butch Black Swan. Sam, finally sober and stable with a cat and a long-term boyfriend in Brooklyn, returns alone to Hemlock, her family’s deteriorating cabin deep in the Wisconsin Northwoods, where her mother disappeared years before and never returned...horror · gothic · lgbtq · fiction · spooky · southern-gothic · thriller · mystery · psychological · literary-fiction -
![Lyla, in the Flesh by Nick Roberts]()
Lyla, in the Flesh by Nick Roberts
An unputdownable new psychological horror and suspense novel from award-winning author Nick Roberts.A mysterious Italian castle. Terrible secrets. A dark truth...horror · audiobook · fiction · spirituality · thriller · paranormal · psychological · suspense · ghosts · supernatural -
![What Boys Learn by Andromeda Romano-Lax]()
What Boys Learn by Andromeda Romano-Lax
A twisty, jaw-dropping psychological thriller that unravels a mother's worst nightmare—that her child is capable of terrible violence—when her teenage son becomes a suspect in the murder of two classmates, from the author of The Deepest Lake.Over one terrible weekend, two teenage girls are found dead in a wealthy Chicago suburb... -
![Darkrooms by Rebecca Hannigan]()
Darkrooms by Rebecca Hannigan
“Haunting, fast-paced, and unforgettable.”— Karin Slaughter, #1 New York Times bestselling author of We Are All Guilty Here“A lush, moody mystery. Darkrooms is gripping and atmospheric, as two women wrestle with guilt and injustice...mystery · fiction · audiobook · suspense · literary-fiction · thriller · slow-burn · contemporary · murder · whodunit -
![A Pretender's Murder by Christopher Huang]()
A Pretender's Murder by Christopher Huang
Colonel Russell before the War had four sons; now he has four widowed daughters-in-law, each facing the aftermath in her own iconic way...mystery · historical-fiction · crime · amateur-sleuth · thriller · historical · suspense · fiction · book · adult -
![The Society by Karen Winn]()
The Society by Karen Winn
Rumors about the Knox and its influence have swirled through Boston for centuries. While some believe the secret society is merely an elite social club, others are convinced it hides something more sinister...Vivian Lawrence was born into old-money Boston, but when her family fortune vanishes, so does her carefully curated life...fiction · suspense · psychological · thriller · female-mc · literary-fiction · contemporary · book · adult -
![The Lodge by Paul Finch]()
The Lodge by Paul Finch
It’s the perfect getaway. Until there’s no way out.You have been dreaming of an unforgettable weekend escape, and Black Tarn Lodge seems to offer everything—a magnificent Gothic mansion with towering turrets nestled in the misty Lancashire hills.Expecting elegant dinners, vintage wines and a screening of a legendary lost film in the private cinema, all seems perfect...psychological · audiobook · thriller · crime · serial-killers · fiction · suspense · noir · book · adult -
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![Beth Is Dead by Katie Bernet]()
Beth Is Dead by Katie Bernet
Beth March’s sisters will stop at nothing to track down her killer—until they begin to suspect each other—in this debut thriller that’s also a bold, contemporary reimagining of the beloved classic Little Women.When Beth March is found dead in the woods on New Year’s Day, her sisters vow to uncover her murderer. Suspects abound...young-adult · mystery · retellings · fiction · crime · season-autumn · suspense · thriller · family · female-mc -
![A Gift Before Dying by Malcolm Kempt]()
A Gift Before Dying by Malcolm Kempt
In a hauntingly atmospheric novel set against the unforgiving landscape of the Arctic Circle, a disgraced police investigator discovers that his path to redemption is paved with ice—and blood...fiction · thriller · literary-fiction · crime · law-enforcement · police-procedural · ghosts · supernatural · book · adult -
![Paper Cut by Rachel Taff]()
Paper Cut by Rachel Taff
A compelling suspense debut about a woman infamous for escaping a cult as a teenager, whose future is threatened when dangerous secrets come back to haunt her—perfect for fans of Jessica Knoll and The Girls .Lucy Golden is a true-crime icon, infamous for the murder she committed while escaping a California cult twenty years ago...suspense · cults · fundamentalism · thriller · psychological · crime · coming-of-age · literary-fiction · murder · fiction -
![You'll Never Forget Me: A Novel by Isha Raya]()
You'll Never Forget Me: A Novel by Isha Raya
In this captivating cat-and-mouse thriller, a struggling actress is only just beginning to enjoy the life she’s always wanted after inadvertently killing her rival—but now she must contend with the woman who threatens to take it all away.Struggling actress Dimple Kapoor wouldn’t call herself a murderer, per se—she’d prefer the term “opportunist...wlw · lgbtq · fiction · contemporary · lesbian-mc · romantic-love · poc-mc · killer · thriller · law-enforcement -
![The Jills by Karen Parkman]()
The Jills by Karen Parkman
In this propulsive debut, a Buffalo Bills cheerleader will stop at nothing to solve the disappearance of her best friend and teammate, navigating the dark underbelly of a hardscrabble city, the grime and glamour of professional cheerleading, and her own tangled family history. Virginia is a Jill—a professional Buffalo Bills cheerleader—living the life she’s always dreamed of... -
![Very Slowly All at Once: A Novel by Lauren Schott]()
Very Slowly All at Once: A Novel by Lauren Schott
A propulsive and wickedly entertaining debut thriller for fans of Laura Dave and Ashley Elston that explores the dark underside of the American dream, about a couple whose financial problems are seemingly answered when they begin receiving growing sums of money from an unknown source . . . a windfall that will carry an unthinkable price...
