From Stephen King to Ruth Ware: 12 Edge-of-Your-Seat Reads

From New York Times bestselling author Lisa Jewell, THEN SHE WAS GONE is a twisty, suspenseful novel about the lingering aftermath of a young girl’s disappearance and the ways we fail to recognize the truth even when it’s right in front of us. With heightened suspense, layered storytelling, and richly drawn characters, this novel is a must-read.

On a day that begins like any other, Hal receives a mysterious letter bequeathing her a substantial inheritance. Full of spellbinding menace and told in Ruth Ware’s signature suspenseful style, this is an unputdownable thriller from the Agatha Christie of our time.

Bernard White is a curmudgeonly widower who has lived in Seven Springs, Florida, for decades and has kept to himself since his wife passed. When his neighbor is murdered, he emerges from his solitude to reconnect with his fellow octogenarians. These connections become a literal lifeline as a second, and then a third, elderly woman is murdered, and “the originals,” as they call themselves, realize that they are being targeted.

Combining the unique atmosphere of the 1960s with a sinister, noirish plot, THE GLASS FOREST is a gripping yet thoughtful page-turner that will appeal to readers of both near-history fiction and literary suspense. At the center of this tightly wound, character-driven plot are three women who begin the story after WWII and transition through a turbulent, politically and culturally charged twenty-year period—all through the lens of a deeply troubled family.

Readers who loved Mindy Mejia’s GONE GIRL–esque thriller EVERYTHING YOU WANT ME TO BE will flock to her latest mystery, LEAVE NO TRACE. When Maya Stark is assigned to be the therapist to a damaged young man who was lost in the woods for ten years, she doesn’t realize how entwined their pasts are—as well as their futures.

ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL is an astonishingly incisive and suspenseful debut novel about a scandal amongst Britain’s privileged elite and the women caught up in its wake. You will not be able to put this timely novel down.

Read the full review of ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL.

James Lee Burke's most beloved character, Dave Robicheaux, returns in this gritty, atmospheric mystery set in the towns and backwoods of Louisiana. During a murder investigation, Robicheaux discovers he may have committed the homicide he’s investigating, one that involved the death of the man who took the life of Dave’s beloved wife. Haven’t read any James Lee Burke novels before? No worries, this is the perfect place to start.

“My husband did not mean to kill Annie Doyle, but the lying tramp deserved it.” If that first sentence doesn’t hook you, I don’t know what will. From the internationally bestselling author of UNRAVELING OLIVER, LYING IN WAIT is a propulsive thriller about a Dublin family whose dark secrets and twisted relationships are suddenly revealed.

HALF MOON BAY is a fast-paced and addictive psychological thriller whose central female protagonist may or may not be behind the murders of young girls in a Northern California beach town. With haunting and seductive writing, the New York Times bestselling author of TURN OF MIND has outdone herself.

Who are you when no one is watching? When a beloved high schooler is found murdered, no one in her sleepy Colorado suburb is untouched—not the boy who loved her too much; not the girl who wanted her perfect life; not the officer assigned to investigate her murder. In the aftermath of the tragedy, these three indelible characters—Cameron, Jade, and Russ—must each confront their darkest secrets in an effort to find solace, the truth, or both.

The bestselling author of LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE returns with a new novel about two sisters who join the cast of a reality TV series along with three other hypersuccessful women. But no one ever expected the season to end in murder. . . . A blisteringly paced thriller, THE FAVORITE SISTER explores the invisible barriers that prevent women from rising up the ranks in today's America and offers a scathing take on the relentless pressure to stay young, relevant, and salable.

The undisputed master of his genre is back—and this time Stephen King partnered with his son Owen to pen a spectacular new novel. What would happen if women were to disappear from the world? Set in a near and realistic future, women are wrapped in cocoon-like gauze when they go to sleep. If they are disturbed, they become violent. If left sleeping, they go to a peaceful place where harmony prevails. One woman, Eve, is immune and remains in the world of men. Some try to hunt her down, while others fight to save her, but while the women sleep, the men become increasingly feral.