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Thrillers and Suspense October 2026 |
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Rules for Aging and Larceny by Julia LondonFrances Deluca has always been a force of nature. Active and agile into her 70s, she can handle anything—except perhaps the stretch of empty days looming ahead. Widowed, with a grown son living far away and her own mortality suddenly in view, Frances longs to feel busy again. What she really wants is the familiar rush of a well-crafted plan coming together. It’s been a while, decades in fact—since Frances and her friends pulled off a heist . . .
Frances, Joan, Edie, and Irene were a girl gang before such things even existed, joining forces in their 20s for a one-time job that revealed a remarkable affinity for crime. They developed a code of honor, taking only from those who deserved it—until misunderstandings and pride drove them apart.
Now, one by one, Frances manages to convince her old friends to put aside their grudges and reunite. And where better for a reunion tour than Las Vegas? Their Rocco Vitali, a mobster’s grandson who’s developed a high-tech shakedown. Rocco is a Crypto-loving scam artist, and Edie’s beloved granddaughter just lost everything to him, including her self-respect. But the women intend to take it all back—with interest.
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The Butlerby Clare MackintoshThe South of France is stunning, though not without its imperfections, from pickpockets to burglars to the occasional cold-blooded killer. But in his twenty-five years of service, Baxter—with a spotless reputation as a polished, well-mannered butler—has never run into any issues catering to the ultrawealthy. Until now.
Baxter's latest assignment is at Villa Sérénité, where Alec Prescott is hosting a colorful cast of characters, including his ex-wife, his much younger lady friend, and some Hollywood hotshots, after the Cannes Film Festival. But it doesn't take long for a week of sun, wine, and a family birthday celebration to devolve into bickering and backstabbing. And soon, secrets aren't the only thing floating to the surface . . .
When one of the guests is found dead in the villa's glittering pool, the unflappable Baxter must assist the gendarmes in determining who's responsible. With some standing to gain and others motivated to take it away, fingers are pointed in all directions. A good butler is expected to see everything and say nothing—but what if he too becomes a target?
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We Will See You Bleed by Ron CurrieIt's late summer 1984, and Babs Dionne’s hometown of Waterville, Maine is on the verge of collapse. A strike at the paper mill has dragged on for a year, pitting neighbor against neighbor, leaving everyone broke and exhausted.
As head of the union local, Babs has presided over Little Canada’s decline. She's sworn off violence since killing a man when she was a teenager, and has stuck to this vow even as it's become clear that only violence can save their community. When Babs’ best friend Rita returns home after five years away, she is shocked by the state of things. And as the strike comes to a head, Rita notices something the men may be broken, but the women are furious, ready to do whatever necessary to take back Little Canada.
They just need Babs to be the fearless woman who emerged from the woods fifteen years ago, drenched in blood. They need Babs to face what she already that the only way to fix things is to assume control. Completely. Mercilessly.
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If Books Could Killby Kate EberleWhen Roxie makes a tongue-in-cheek wish to live out the plot of her favorite author’s next novel, she has romance in mind—namely, the sweet, safe, swoon-worthy storylines Anna Matthews is known for. It should be a dream come true when her wish is granted and she finds herself swept into a first date with a handsome stranger who seems designed to take her breath away.
Except for one little hiccup: That handsome stranger tries to take her breath away. Literally. With a knife. The thing is, Roxie may be the new Anna Matthews protagonist—but this time, Anna is writing a crime thriller.
Thrown into a perilous genre she’s never read, Roxie is desperate for help. So when her escape takes her straight into the path of Grant Hoffman, an anxious English professor with a convenient love of crime novels, she decides that kidnapping a grown man is a small price to pay for her own survival. Together, Roxie and Grant navigate a madcap story where the lines between fiction and reality blur. They’ll find out if they have what it takes to make it to The End—or maybe even Happily Ever After.
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The Talking Bone by Rene DenfeldRuby Spencer is known as “the exonerator.” Her job as an investigator is to free innocent men from death row, and she’s good at what she does. What many people don’t know is that she spends her time finding missing women, too. The orphaned daughter of an orphaned mother, Ruby feels a natural affinity for those who have been mistreated by the world at large.
Her newest case takes her to Georgia, and involves a man set to be executed in two weeks. What begins as a routine exoneration unexpectedly sends Ruby down a winding path. Pursuing the truth, she begins to uncover crimes that lead to startling revelations about her own life.
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What Happens in the Darkby Kia AbdullahLily and Safa were best friends growing up. Now, Lily is the nation’s favourite breakfast TV presenter and Safa, once a renowned journalist, is reeling from a recent fall from grace.
When news breaks about suspicious bruises on Lily’s body, Safa attempts to rekindle their old friendship. But Lily claims the bruises are nothing to worry about.
And then one night the police are called to Lily’s home. Lily is strangely calm – and a body lies dead at her feet.
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The Night Hunter by Natalie MossWhen their conservationist mother passes, Danielle and her sister, Grace, reunite to return to their isolated family house nestled within a wild-game reserve. While Grace clings to nostalgia as their mother’s favorite, only Danielle carries the weight of their enigmatic mother’s final “Find the storehouse . . . Burn everything inside.”
What begins as a reluctant homecoming disguised as a safari adventure—each sister inviting two friends to ease the journey—turns into a nightmare when a murder rocks their first morning in the bush. In the chaos that follows, they crash their vehicle, stranding them, with no way to call for help.
Now Danielle must lead them on foot across miles of merciless savannah, with dwindling supplies and only one rifle. As the group navigates land where every rustle could mean death, a truth someone is sabotaging their escape.
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Desert Heistby Alex DekkerNate Wilde is a former Green Beret and aspiring Harvard archaeologist. Leaving the military after a catastrophic deployment that ended with most of his team dead or injured, he chooses to pursue his passion for history. When his dissertation proposal to search for the legendary lost city of Ubar in Saudi Arabia is rejected by the Harvard examining committee and his expedition permit is denied by the Saudi government, Nate resolves to continue his research by any means necessary. And the only path left to him is to enter Saudi Arabia’s Empty Quarter through war-torn Yemen, the same sands where his brothers lost their lives years ago.
Knowing he’s going back into harm’s way, Nate turns to the only men left alive that he truly trusts—Sergeant Benjamin “Wally” Walton, a medic formerly with the British Special Air Service; Shane Price, UFC fighter turned Green Beret and an affluent playboy; and Sergeant Tim McBride, Nate’s former best friend and a true warrior. Along the way the group meets Ana Metry, a geologist of Egyptian heritage searching for her missing father, whose research is key to Nate’s quest.
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Getting Away with Murder by Shari LapenaJill and Ted adore their New York brownstone the way others adore their children. They have carefully, expensively, made every inch of it their own. It reflects who they are, their status and tastes. With the grand mahogany staircase and state-of-the-art kitchen, it is the stuff of glossy magazines and real-estate dreams. It is their sanctuary.
So when Ted’s inheritance runs out and he makes a bad investment, they panic. How can they protect their beloved home and enviable lifestyle?
The answer is obvious. Or at least, it is obvious to Jill and Ted. The death of one wealthy family member—from whom they stand to inherit millions—could solve all their problems. Together, they will get away with murder.
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You'll Be Sorryby Lisa GardnerFor Raquel and Theo Collins, it appeared to be love at first sight. Raquel, a renowned interior designer, and Theo, a brash financial wizard met and married in a matter of months, only to confront a terrible tragedy. Now, unbearably aware of the distance between them, they’ve come to a remote town in New Hampshire to begin anew.
Perched on a ledge with stunning views, the Dixon’s family lodge was once a crown jewel of the mountains. Until late one August night, when both parents and their four children vanished, leaving behind a trail of bloody footprints, and a mystery that has endured for thirty years. Now, its latest occupants, the Collinses, are arriving, and the former grand lodge is once more stirring to life.
For Amanda Grady, following in her father’s footsteps as the recently appointed Shereford police chief, it’s good to see a fresh start for the derelict Dixon place. However, not everyone is happy about a new family in the old home and its hidden past may have returned with a vengeance.
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The Unknown by Riley SagerStruggling actress Marin Keane is shocked when she lands a role in a major motion picture about the unsolved mystery of New Avalon, an island on sprawling Lake Faraday in Vermont. She’s even more surprised when she learns that the role requires a weeklong research trip to that very spot.
Because New Avalon isn’t your ordinary island. A century ago, it was a commune for spiritual mediums—until they all vanished in 1926. The only trace of them was five dresses hanging from the branches of an old oak tree in the middle of the island, one for each missing woman. Some locals say they simply left. Others think they were murdered. But the prevailing opinion, thanks to a diary left behind by one of the vanished, a young woman named Daisy Rue, is that a séance gone wrong conjured something supernatural that took them all one by one.
Not long after arriving, Marin and her castmates, including legendary actress Violet Wright and white-hot director Ronan Peters, begin to realize all is not right with New Avalon. They hear strange noises in the night and notice mysterious symbols left behind by the island's previous occupants. And after a sudden health emergency leaves Marin, Ronan, and the other actors stranded on the island, the disappearances begin again.
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The Women in Whiteby Sarah PekkanenIn 1964, four remarkable young women at a prestigious university became the subjects of parapsychology experiments by a visionary scientist. On the cusp of a historic breakthrough, the women mysteriously vanished and the program was erased from history. Decades later, Riley Bell, newly divorced and desperate for a fresh start, accepts a caretaker job for an elderly widow named Betty. Riley steps into a home that is frozen in another era - no microwave, television, or cell phones, and Betty has never heard of the internet. Why has Betty lived in such profound isolation for so many years, and why does she need Riley now? As the story unfolds across two timelines - Betty’s 1960s era of 5 o’clock martinis and high-stakes experiments, and Riley’s quest to uncover the truth about the missing women - old secrets rise to the surface. And the only way to survive is to confront the mystery that has lingered for sixty years.
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Look What You Made Me Do by John Lanchester"Every successful marriage has its own private language." So it is for baby boomer Kate and her beloved architect husband Jack, thirty years into their seemingly idyllic metropolitan North London life. And so it is for spiky millennial screenwriter Phoebe and her charming loafer of a partner, Tony.
But when Phoebe’s steamy television series Cheating becomes the year’s most talked-about show, Kate thinks she sees in it details and intimacies of her marriage that only she and her husband could possibly have known. Who has betrayed whom? Who has stolen whose story—and why?
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Three Reasons for Revengeby Dervla McTiernanAlexis Turner walks into the police station to report an assault. By the end of the day, she is nowhere to be found.
Soon after she disappears, three identical packages arrive at three very different a respected psychologist's home, a socialite's mansion, and a struggling single father's run-down apartment. Inside, each gift is perfectly tailored to its recipient - and each will tear apart the life of its intended victim.
Detective Sergeant Judith Lee is smart and experienced, but this is no ordinary case. Someone with intimate knowledge of their targets is orchestrating these attacks. Someone who knows exactly how to hurt each victim where they're most vulnerable. And she's convinced that somehow, it connects back to Alexis Turner.
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The Fervent Whites by De'shawn Charles WinslowThe year is 1982, and the people of the Hudson Valley community of Fervent have begun to move on from a homicide that upended the once quiet town. When the former neighbors who were convicted of the crime, James and Ella White, are proven innocent, released from prison, and return to Fervent, some people have cause for concern.
Sylvia Upshaw and her best friend, Lafayette “Fate” Jolly, are uneasy about the Whites’ return. While the Whites were incarcerated, Sylvia revealed an explosive secret to their adopted son, Morgan, with devastating consequences. During the murder trial, Fate’s testimony helped seal their fate. James and Ella won’t let the betrayals go unpunished. Sylvia and Fate quickly become victims of harassment from the Whites, and when another murder is committed in Fervent, the town is left to fend for itself.
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Stay Buriedby Jennifer McMahon1919: Frankie O’Massey has always been the black sheep of isolated Boone’s Ferry, Vermont. Her uncle, Dr. Thomas Endicott, has been training her in the science of medicine, something the townspeople are wary of. When a mysterious illness strikes the town, and the community suspects supernatural forces, the two desperately search for a logical explanation. Patient zero seems to be the town’s knackerman—a recluse who collects dead and dying farm animals to make use of their parts.
2016: Siblings Ashley and Malcolm lost their mother two years ago. When their grandmother dies, they inherit a property in Boone’s Ferry—a place they’ve heard of but their grandmother has always refused to talk about—and embark on a trip to their ancestral home. The idyllic town is full of autumnal décor, picturesque farmland, and small-town charm. But some of the townspeople aren’t very welcoming—and they have some unsettling traditions, like leaving offerings to a vengeful spirit four times a year.
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Brain Damage by Freida McFaddenAfter years of hard work, Dr. Charly McKenna finally has it all. Prosperous career as a dermatologist? Check. Spacious apartment overlooking Central Park? Check. Handsome lawyer husband? Double check.
Then one night, a bullet rips through the right side of her skull and she loses everything.
As Charly struggles to recover from her brain injury, she begins to realize that the events of that fateful night are trapped in the damaged right side of her brain. Now she must put the jigsaw pieces together to discover the identity of the man who tried to kill her... before he finishes the job he started.
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That Nightby Gillian McAllisterOn vacation in Europe, Frannie makes two urgent phone calls. One to her sister, and one to her brother. The siblings come running, and they find their sister covered in blood, kneeling over an unmoving body.
There’s been an accident: Frannie has hit a man with her car, and she needs their help. They bury the body, and they make a promise. They’ll never tell anyone.
But when the police come calling, the siblings’ lies start to spiral. They begin to doubt their trust in each other. Because what really happened that night?
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Promise Me Never by Liv ConstantineAspiring writer Savannah’s scheme to meet superstar horror novelist Bennett Bryson turns out better than she ever imagined: not only does her charming and handsome literary idol offer to read her work, he is instantly smitten with her. After a whirlwind romance, Savannah says "yes" to marriage, and the two settle into Bennett's secluded upstate home.
But just as Savannah thinks she has it made, cracks appear in her perfect new life. Bennett's behavior becomes dark and controlling: he criticizes Savannah’s writing, dictates her permitted activities, and spends most of his time locked in his office, forbidding her from entering. And everywhere, Savannah cannot escape the shadow of Bennett's first wife, the free-spirited and passionate artist Poppy, who died in a tragic accident, but who seems still to be Savannah’s rival for Bennett's affection.
Then comes an enigmatic warning: Bennett is not who he seems. The women that came before Savannah have disappeared. And Savannah could be next.
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Nearshoreby Steve HawkDaybreak, West Virginia: A “small” nuclear bomb detonates beside an Appalachia highway. The weapon’s explosive yield is meager, the death count blessedly low. And yet—it is history’s first act of nuclear terrorism, and it threatens to tilt the world beyond reckoning.
Months later, surfer and lifeguard Jamie Palmer is patrolling his domain, a treacherous stretch of wild California coast, when he responds to a mysterious nearshore boating accident that has jettisoned two people overboard. The victims turn out to be Palmer’s best friend—a brilliant, renegade Stanford University professor—and the man’s teenage son, Luca. The professor drowns, Luca survives—leaving Palmer the boy’s guardian.
Soon after, Chelsea Wu, a math prodigy and doctoral student, confides to Palmer that she and the professor unearthed a link between a Silicon Valley megacorporation, its sociopathic billionaire founder, and the nuke in West Virginia. When a second device is detonated, this unlikely team—the surfer, the orphan, and the math whiz—must persuade investigators that the bombmakers are not only homegrown, but also hiding in plain sight.
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