Thriller Books
recommended by thriller writers
Last updated: April 30, 2025
The Best Thrillers of 2021, recommended by Tosca Lee
Looking for a fantastic new thriller to read? We asked Tosca Lee, the bestselling author, to talk us through the International Thriller Writers 2021 shortlist. With their amazing characters, palpable tension, unique voices and incredible plot twists these thrillers achieve what every reader is looking for: a book they can’t put down.
Jeffrey Archer on Bestsellers
The best books are the ones that tell great stories, says bestselling author and former British politician Jeffrey Archer. Here, he shares some of his favourites, popular novels that went down well with readers but are sometimes still looked down on by the literary establishment.
The Best Whodunnits, recommended by Simon Brett
When it comes to whodunnits, the latest ones aren’t always the best. Veteran crime writer Simon Brett talks us through some of his all-time favourites, of which the most recent was published nearly four decades ago.
The Best Thrillers of 2020, recommended by Anthony Franze
Every year, the International Thriller Writers awards highlight the best new thrillers of the previous year. Anthony Franze, administrator of the awards and an acclaimed thriller author in his own right, talks us through their 2020 shortlist for the best new thriller published in hardback.
The Best Anti-Communist Thrillers, recommended by Peter Hitchens
Right-wing journalist and political commentator Peter Hitchens says the Left has been liberated by the fall of the Berlin Wall and that speech is probably freer in modern Russia than it is in Britain. He recommends some great anti-Communist thrillers.
The Best Forgotten Cold War Thrillers, recommended by Jeremy Duns
Author Jeremy Duns says Maksim Isaev was a kind of Soviet James Bond and when they rerun the old black and white TV shows the Russian crime rate drops because everyone is indoors watching them
The Best Chase Stories, recommended by Louise Bagshawe
Everyone’s on the run from something in their life. Bestselling author Louise Bagshawe recommends some of her favourite chase stories, a world of jailbreaks, secret documents, beautiful heroines, honour, revenge, death and glory.
The best books on Espionage, recommended by Charles Cumming
Leading British spy writer Charles Cumming found his vocation at 25 after he was approached by MI6. He says that experience, brief but interesting, was crying out to be dramatised
The best books on Horror, recommended by Kim Newman
Which are the best horror books ever written? Novelist and horror expert Kim Newman, author of Anno Dracula, talks us through his top five and reveals which of the classics is, for him, the greatest of them all.
The Best Thrillers of 2019, recommended by Anthony Franze
Looking for a pacy, suspenseful thriller that keeps you racing through the pages? Look no further. Anthony Franze, author and coordinator of the International Thriller Writers’ annual awards, talks us through some of the books that made the shortlist for the best thrillers of 2019.