10 Keep-You-Up-All-Night Thrillers to Read

This story focuses on two young women who go missing in the same small town 10 years apart, but don’t write this one off as your typical missing-girl psychological thriller. There’s a fantastic twist: The story is told backward.

This Japanese novel has been nominated for prestigious mystery awards in both Japan and the United States. Set in the Tokyo suburbs, it follows a young mother who enlists her co-workers to help her dispose of her husband’s body.

This chilling thriller featuring a woman whose child and husband have both died has been recommended by several Everygirl readers. One reader commented, “I finished it about a month ago and my mind is still blown,” and another called it “a wild ride.”

For a more literary page-turner, try this Gothic tale about a reclusive author. When budding biographer Margaret Lea is contacted by the famous (but mysterious) author Vida Winter, she has no idea why Winter wants her to write her official biography. But once Vida begins telling her story, Margaret is enthralled — and you will be, too.

Controversial blogger Emily Lindsey is found covered in blood (not hers) and holding a hunting knife. As Detective Steven Paul investigates the mystery, Emily repeatedly scratches out an odd symbol — the same symbol Detective Paul has been seeing in his nightmares for years.

For a young adult thriller you won’t be able to put down (that still appeals to adults), try this story of two sisters who go from best friends to estranged after a horrible car accident. After Dara vanishes, a nine-year-old girl also goes missing, and Nick becomes desperate to find her sister.

This book opens with a sad scene: a little boy escapes from his mother’s grasp and dies in a hit-and-run car accident. Mackintosh’s training as a former police officer shows in the procedural narrative, but just wait until you get to the twist!

For a classic thriller, pick up Patricia Highsmith’s inspiration behind the film featuring (baby!) Matt Damon and Jude Law. This is the perfect time to read the original because a surprising amount of Ripley read-a-likes have been released lately (including one of TEG’s anticipated spring picks, Tangerine by Christine Mangan).

This true crime book was highly anticipated when it released in February 2018, but it’s only gotten more popular since then due to the arrest of the suspected subject of the book — the Golden State Killer. Knowing the killer’s (alleged) identity won’t lessen the grip of this book, however, so you’ll still find yourself reading into the wee hours.

This one won’t actually keep you up all night, only because you’ll finish it in a few hours. The entire book is written in verse and takes place in just 60 seconds: the length of time it takes for a teenager to ride down an elevator with a gun tucked into his waistband, on his way to visit his brother’s killer.