10 Intense Psychological Thrillers That’ll Mess with You

Oh, what on earth is even going on here?! This is one of those books that makes writing these types of articles so hard but in the best way possible. Because I want you to read this book . . . maybe I even need you to read this book, but I can tell you only so much. This sci-fi thriller set in the near-future builds and builds for a psychological, mind-bending journey. Junior and Henrietta live comfortably on their isolated farm, far from any cities. They don’t get visitors there, or at least they didn’t. One day a stranger arrives at the farm with news that Junior has been selected to move far away from their little farm. In fact, he’ll be going so far away, he won’t be coming back. This fantastic opportunity is that Junior has been selected to join a colony in space, but this relocation does not extend to Henrietta. The stranger assures him, though, that everything will be fine. In fact, his wife won’t even miss him, because she’ll never be alone. Reid’s writing style brings this whole story together with short chapters that hurtle the reader toward an unsuspecting ending.

FIRST BORN has so much to unpack! If you like slow-building character studies and insanely twisty endings, then you absolutely need to read this book. Molly and Katie may be identical twins, but they couldn’t be more different in personality. Katie is fearless. She is outgoing, spontaneous, ambitious, and completely unafraid to move from London to New York to study at Columbia. Meanwhile, Molly has always been much more reserved, filled with constant anxiety and needing to live a quiet, structured life. Despite their differences, however, they share a connection . . . right? But now the unfathomable has happened. Katie is found dead in her apartment. Grieving and terrified, Molly makes her way to New York as it looks more and more like her sister was murdered. Molly will have to face her fears and enmesh herself in Katie’s former life if she has any hope of catching the killer. But the more Molly learns, the more she realizes that while they may have looked the same, she didn’t really know her sister at all.

Okay, if you like dysfunctional and downright terrifyingly bloody families, then LITTLE CRUELTIES should be screaming your name. Nugent aims her dark and snarky style at the disturbing side of Hollywood showbiz for a twisty, non-linear story. There are three Drumm brothers, and one of them is dead. Which one is lying in the coffin, and which one did it? Well, those are the questions. With their bitter rivalry, the answer is that any one of them could have been the victim or the killer. Groomed and raised on competition, Will, Brian, and Luke grew up vying desperately for their narcissistic mother’s affection as they built their careers in entertainment. And that same sense of competition between them fuels everything in their adult lives. With a deep dive into these despicable characters, Nugent will have you loathing them as she slowly reveals the who, the why, and the how. This book is so wicked and wild! I loved the non-linear timeline building up until the coffin reveal.

A missing father, an isolated cabin, and a confrontation of past trauma . . . let’s dive right in! GULL ISLAND is intense and quiet as Jude’s mind slowly unravels. Jude’s father is missing, and normally, that’s not much of a surprise, but this time things are different. Tasked by her mother, Jude ventures out to the old family cabin on Gull Island in search of his will. However, when entering with the neglected structure, Jude must confront her own just as neglected childhood. Loneliness, nightmares, and frightening memories take hold as a vicious storm sweeps her boat out to sea, stranding her. Now completely isolated, she realizes there is more to fear than just her past. This haunting psychological thriller lives inside Jude’s mind and the reader’s with a wonderful gothic atmosphere and a slow stumble into madness. I love how Porter brings all Jude’s fears and worries to fruition while Jude is trapped both physically and by her own memories.

Alyssa Cole tackles a fantastic concept in WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING, combining psychological horror with very real injustices as gentrification sweeps in. Sydney Green was born and raised in Brooklyn, but these days it feels like her neighborhood changes by the second. New condos fill every empty space and “For Sale” signs appear out of nowhere. But it’s more than just the buildings that are changing, it’s the people too. Neighbors she’s known since she was a kid, people she thought would never move, are disappearing too. Desperately clinging to her community, Sydney creates a walking tour of the neighborhood. With the initial unwanted help of one of her new neighbors, Theo, she digs into the history of these streets. The more they research, the more it becomes clear that things are not as they seem. The people Sydney grew up around are not moving to the suburbs or other boroughs, and the revitalization efforts are much more sinister than she ever would have guessed. With paranoia growing, will Sydney and Theo be able to trust each other before they disappear too? WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING nudges closer toward thriller horror that will lead you on a terrifying and wild tour of your own.

BONE DEEP came out a few years ago, but if you haven’t had a chance to dive in, it’s an enthralling read. Eerie and creepy, this story is very atmospheric and filled with betrayal, tension, love, and spooky legends. What if the legends are true? Mac is a retired academic working on writing a collection of folk stories inspired by local legends. Her son, worried about his mother’s health, insists that Mac hires an assistant. So Lucie, suddenly in need of a place to stay, finds herself living in the cottage on the property and transcribing Mac’s work. The more Mac writes, the more she becomes obsessed with the story of rival sisters who fell in love with the same man. The more Mac and Lucie work together, the stranger things seem to get as both women are determined to keep their secrets to themselves. I live in a city filled with local legends and have always been fascinated by those types of folk tales—so that piece really adds to the tense vibe of BONE DEEP.

You may recognize Hillier’s name from some of her other thrillers, such as JAR OF HEARTS or THE THINGS WE DO IN THE DARK, but her earlier erotic thriller, CREEP, is just as dark and obsession fueled. Dr. Sheila Tao is an expert on human behavior, so she knows she needs to get her life on track and settle down with the good, kind-hearted, and well-off investment banker who truly adores her. And in order to do that, she needs to end the complicated, sexy, terribly messy, and all-consuming lustful affair with her graduate teaching assistant, Ethan. But when she attempts to end their fling, Ethan refuses to let her go. Obsessed with making her pay for rejecting him, Ethan is determined to ruin her relationship and her career. Ethan and Sheila circle each other in a violent chess match until a female student is found murdered on campus. Determined to keep her secrets, Sheila finds herself playing a far deadlier game than she realized. If you are looking for a fun psychological thriller that is quick, thrilling, and creepy—well, then, CREEP lives up to its name!

If you’re in search of a thriller with a truly unreliable narrator, plagued by tragedy and determined to find the truth, then you should probably pick up RIVER ROAD. It’s a chilling, atmospheric thriller that’ll leave you more twisted on the inside than a dark, wintry road. Nan has faced tragedy before. After losing her young daughter, she never really recovered from her grief. Instead, she’s devoted herself to teaching her creative writing students at a local college. So when she finds out at the faculty holiday party that she still hasn’t made tenure, she reaches a new low. Things get worse when she hits a deer on the way home. Only, she can’t find the deer . . . Perhaps it was only injured and ran off? But now, stuck in a snowstorm, Nan is forced to leave her car at the side of the road and trudge home. To her horror, she is awakened by the knocking on the door from a police officer. Perhaps the only thing worse than the state of her career and losing her daughter is being accused of killing one of her students in an accident that eerily reflects how her daughter was killed. Leia Dawson was found dead on the side of River Road, killed in a hit-and-run, with Nan’s car making her the prime suspect. Outraged, the entire community turns against Nan, but she is determined to prove her innocence. Could she really have done it, or was someone else on the road that night? Goodman weaves a tale of such uncertainty as Nan, isolated and desperate, begins to spiral into addiction.

I love how unnerving and remote an island-setting feels in a thriller. THE BLACKHOUSE comes alive with vivid descriptions and a heap of superstition for an all-around enchanting, chilling, and brooding read, as any good gothic mystery should be. There are many secrets on the remote Scottish island of Kilmeray. First, there is Robert Reid, a man who brought his family to the island in hopes of safety only to realize that he cannot escape his fate. Second is Maggie. Maggie MacKay has felt haunted by a sense of wrongness her entire life. And maybe she’s right, maybe there is something wrong with her. Because when Maggie was five she stated that a man had been murdered on the island, but she’d never been there and did not know the man. Her claims drew wild media attention and created paranoia and distrust that hasn’t ceased. Now, Maggie is determined to return to Kilmeray and make sense of what she felt as a child. But the islanders are not kind to outsiders; they never have been. Told from both Robert’s and Maggie’s perspectives, there is much to love and unpack in this sinister horror thriller.

THE HOUSEKEEPER is subtle in its menacing obsession. This story doesn’t begin with a murder or a stalker or a threatening note—just people, people with secrets and fascinations that turn dark and ugly. And while this one may not feel like an all-out sprint of a thriller, the psychological character aspects and tense drama create something compelling. If you are looking for a drama-driven read, then this should be next on your list. Anne Morgan was happy and secure in her place in the culinary scene with her position as a sous chef at a high-end London restaurant and in her relationship with said restaurant’s handsome owner. But when he leaves her for another woman, Anne is shocked, embarrassed, and looking for a new start. She stumbles upon a blog post from the inspirational Emma Hemsley, a Martha Stewart type, who is in need of a housekeeper. Anne jumps at the opportunity and is hired to clean for the picture-perfect Hemsleys. However, Anne soon finds herself cleaning up more and more messes revealing Rob’s and Emma’s secrets. But Anne has fallen in love with this life and her purpose in the family, and will do what she must to keep those truths hidden.