Give Me All The Thrills - Part Two

You should know by now I love thrillers. I have been scoping out alllll of the best thrillers for you so here is another post with some amazing books to add to your TBR.

1. You Are Not Alone by Sarah Pekkanen and Greer Hendricks

Okay- so I have blogged about this badass duo of lady authors before and with this one they definitely did not disappoint. At first this book might seem like a slow burn as in it takes awhile for the action to pick up but boy does it pick up. It had me on the edge of my seat! The story begins with Shay Miller- who might be described as a loner. She is living with her best guy friend who has no idea she is in love with him. Shay lives by numbers- she’s an analyst who lives and breathes statistical data. She even carries a notebook around tracking data on anything you could possibly imagine. Shay is just floating through life in-between jobs and unsure of her next move when she witnesses a bizarre suicide in the subway. Shay becomes obsessed with learning the identity of the young girl who took her own life. She discovers the girl’s name was Amanda and she was an emergency room nurse who had an elite group of girlfriends who hosted a memorial service that Shay inconspicuously attended. At the memorial service Shay meets the Moore sisters who she would desperately like to befriend. The Moore sisters have ulterior motives for Shay- will Shay also be driven to take her own life? You will have to read to find out!

I have read all of the books written by this dynamic duo and they are notorious for throwing some crazy plot twists so I 100% recommend adding this book to your TBR.

2. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

I have always heard that Agatha Christie is THE queen of murder mystery and after reading this that is absolutely correct. This is your 100% classic “WHO DONE IT”. The writing style is definitely old English and it takes getting into the book a little bit to get used to it but trust me it makes the story telling so much better. This story begins with the different perspectives from ten different strangers who are all summoned to join together at this remote island off the coast of Devon, England by a mysterious person named “U.N. Owen”. After all ten guests arrive at the mansion they are welcomed by a elaborate dinner and drinks. During the extravagant dinner they listen to a recorded message addressing each guest with their deepest and darkest secrets laying their sordid past out in the open. By the end of the night one guest is murdered. As each day passes the guests are murdered one by one. No one can figure out who the culprit is and who will survive on this secluded island. See if you can figure out who the murderer is by the last chapter!

I had to reread the last chapter to figure it out. This book was so incredibly well written- I was mad at myself for waiting this long to read an Agatha Christie novel.

3. The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson

Before boarding a flight from London to Boston- Ted and Lily meet in an airport bar and form and unlikely connection over one too many martinis. Ted drunkenly reveals that he just recently witnessed his wife, Miranda, cheating on him. Lily offers to help Ted kill his wife and cover up the murder. The two hash out a plan for the murder of his wife and reconvene weeks later outside of Boston to discuss the plan further. While planning the demise of Miranda, Ted and Lily cannot deny the attraction to one another. What the pair does not realize is that every one has secrets and a sordid past. Will they be able to pull this murder off or will they need to save themselves?

I so wanted to give you more detail on that book but there are so many crazy good twists in the plot I had to leave it a bit ominous. I found out about this book through a book club on Instagram and I am so glad I read it! I look forward to reading more by Peter Swanson and I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did.

4. Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

It’s been ten years since Laurels daughter Ellie went missing at fifteen years old. Laurel remains overcome with grief and feels as if she is losing hope when she suddenly meets Floyd- a handsome and charismatic man who treats Laurel like gold. Floyd and Laurel instantly hit it off and it’s looking like it is going to be a whirlwind romance until Floyd introduces Laurel to his daughter, Poppy. Poppy is spitting image of Ellie and the shock of this revelation sends Laurel into a rabbit hole of finding out exactly what happened to her daughter all those years ago.

This story is twisted in every sense of the word. I cannot recommend this one enough!

5. Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

Maggie Holt has suddenly been gifted a haunted house after the death of her father. She was unaware her father even still owned the house her and her family fled from in the middle of the night twenty-five years ago. She has returned to the house to try and renovate and sell it as fast as possible however she can’t help but have questions. She was only five years old when she lived in the now famous house and doesn’t remember much of what happened. Her dad wrote a prominent mystery novel House of Horrors after living in the house and now that she has returned she is determined to find out if what he wrote is in fact, true. Home Before Dark switches back and forth from Maggie's story to chapters from her dad’s novel House of Horrors. I loved how the stories interchanged and how Maggie learns that her dad’s depiction of events may actually be true…or maybe not? You will have to read this crazy ghost story to find out!

I knew I was going to enjoy this one because I love Riley Sager’s eerie writing style. He can easily give a reader full body chills with the way he describes a creepy room.

6. The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

Fiona Sheridan is a small town journalist who is embarking on a new story covering the restoration by an anonymous benefactor of an old 1950’s boarding school named Idlewood for troubled girls. The story hits close to home because Fiona’s sister was found murdered by her boyfriend on the grounds of the school twenty years ago. No matter how much she tries Fiona can’t shake the fact that something doesn’t sit right with the way her sister was murdered. The story flips back in forth from Fiona’s point of view to the 1950’s and reveals the secrets of four teenage roommates at Idlewood until one of the girls mysteriously goes missing. Fiona finds herself tangled in the mystery of the missing girl and instead of writing a story on the school she is solving the mystery of a decades old murder.

It was really hard to summarize this book because it has so many moving parts that I didn’t want to give away. The way this story ends will actually blow your mind. I never would have predicted what happened in the end and I know it will shock you too! This one is a must read.

7. The Better Liar by Tanen Jones

Leslie and Robin Voigt are two sisters who have drifted apart- having not seen each other for over ten years. Leslie took over the role as her father’s caregiver until he passed away. His last dying wish was for his daughters to reunite together in order to receive their inheritance. Leslie packs her bags and heads to Las Vegas to find her estranged sister but unfortunately she is a few hours too late. Leslie found Robin in her apartment dead from an apparent drug overdose. Instead of calling the authorities – she enlists the help of Mary, a stranger who agrees to pose as Robin in order for Leslie to be granted the inheritance money. It seemed so easy- Mary returns to New Mexico with Leslie and meets her husband and newborn son but soon realizes Leslie is hiding something. Leslie becomes wary around Mary because it is evident she has a sordid past of her own. Will the secrets between the two women and the dead sister threaten the entire plan? Read to find out!

This one has a crazy twist at the end that some may be able to predict but I definitely did not imagine the plot going in the direction that it did!

8. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Okay- so I saved the best one for last. If you’re not thrilled by any of the books I’ve listed so far at least try this one out. Trust me.

A sexy elitist couple is about to tie the knot on a gorgeous exclusive island of the coast of Ireland. The groom is a famous television star and the bride is a gorgeous and confident publisher of an online magazine. The wedding guests are boated in and quickly begin drinking the high dollar champagne and whiskey. The more drinks that are poured the more secrets and reminiscing of the past come flowing out of the groomsman. Shocking revelations are made during the wedding night and just when it seems the wedding is coming to an end a body is found. It’s all becoming apparent on why it happened- but who did it?

I had to leave this description ominous because the story is too good to give away all the details. This was an absolute page turner from beginning to end. Get your hands on it!