Horror, Thrillers, & Suspense

Southland is a 2003 crime novel written by Nina Revoyr. The award-winning novel is her second; her first novel is The Necessary Hunger. Revoyr was born in Tokyo to a Japanese mother and a Polish American father and is known for her engaging prose about aspects of Los Angeles that often go unseen. In Southland, Revoyr addresses themes of racism, redemption, justice, and family while telling the story of a forgotten neighborhood. Revoyr weaves details... Read Southland Summary

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American author Michael Crichton’s thriller novel State of Fear (HarperCollins Publishers, 2004) dramatizes the debate surrounding global warming. Set in the contemporary world, the novel tells the story of a group of characters attempting to thwart eco-terrorist threats. The plot exudes intrigue and action—including shootouts, deadly crocodiles, deceptive agents, and the faked death of George Morton, the man who links the characters together. State of Fear is also a polemic casting doubt on the theory... Read State of Fear Summary

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Strangers on a Train (1950) is a suspense thriller by Patricia Highsmith, based on the premise that two strangers swap murders. The novel has been adapted multiple times, most famously by Alfred Hitchcock in his 1951 film. Highsmith is known for telling stories in which relatable characters are coerced into crime, although in an interview with Diana Cooper-Clark, Highsmith rejected the idea that just anyone can commit murder. On a train from New York to Metcalf... Read Strangers On A Train Summary

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International bestselling book Tell No One by renowned American crime-writer Harlan Coben was first published in 2001. It tells of the lengths that David and Elizabeth Beck will go to be reunited with each other and conversely, the measures taken by their opponents to stop this happening. David and Elizabeth were making their annual visit to Lake Charmaine, a place where they summered as children, when Elizabeth was abducted and killed, and David was left... Read Tell No One Summary

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (published as The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle in Canada and the United Kingdom) is Stuart Turton’s first novel. The novel was first published in 2018 by Harper Collins; this guide references the first Canadian edition. The novel is primarily a mystery, with some elements of science fiction and fantasy. The plot features elements traditionally associated with the murder mystery genre made famous by Agatha Christie, since the... Read The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle Summary

The Atlantis Gene is a technological/science-fiction thriller published in 2013 by the American author A. G. Riddle. Owing a debt to writers like Dan Brown, Michael Crichton, and Tom Clancy, Riddle constructs a labyrinthine plot involving the lost city of Atlantis, the mysteries of human evolution, and a conspiracy dating back thousands of years. The Atlantis Gene is the first book in The Origin Mystery trilogy, followed by The Atlantis Plague and The Atlantis World... Read The Atlantis Gene Summary

In his fantasy/horror novella, The Ballad of Black Tom (2016), Victor LaValle reworks H.P. Lovecraft’s story, “The Horror at Red Hook,” to explore horror tropes from the perspective of an African American protagonist living in a racist world. The novella won the Nebula Award, the Hugo Award, and the World Fantasy Award, among others. LaValle is an award-winning author of science fiction, horror, fantasy, and comic books known for problematizing the racial assumptions inherent in these genres... Read The Ballad of Black Tom Summary

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The Beach is an adventure fiction novel written by Alex Garland and originally published in 1996. Garland wrote the book during his time in the Philippines and was inspired by the landscape there, as well as historical events such as the Vietnam War. It was adapted into a successful major motion picture starring Leonardo DiCaprio and directed by Danny Boyle in 2000, and the novel was included on a BBC list of most-read novels in... Read The Beach Summary

The Beautiful Mystery, published in 2012, is the eighth book in former Canadian journalist Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache series. The Gamache series is known for its recurring cast of characters, psychological depth, and long-term story arcs. Gamache is a longtime member of Québec’s provincial police force, most often known by its French name, the Sûreté du Québec. Gamache’s struggles with police corruption form the main plot of several books, including A Fatal Grace and... Read The Beautiful Mystery Summary

Published in 1939, The Big Sleep by novelist and screenwriter Raymond Chandler is a murder mystery widely regarded as one of the greatest hard-boiled detective stories of the 20th century. The work introduces Philip Marlowe, a fictional private eye with a jaundiced view of humanity but a strong sense of fairness, who appears in seven other novels by Chandler. Hired by a super-rich family to negotiate with a blackmailer, Marlowe encounters murder, mayhem, and a... Read The Big Sleep Summary

The Black Echo (1992) is Michael Connelly’s first novel and the first book in the long-running series featuring Los Angeles police detective Harry Bosch. It won the 1993 Edgar Award for Best First Novel and is now a classic in the modern crime genre. Connelly, who worked as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times while starting his career as a novelist, has written over 37 novels, including 24 featuring Detective Bosch. His works... Read The Black Echo Summary

Not far from Cincinnati in 1830 lies a “great forest” occupied by the scattered homes of early settlers. Among them is an old, neglected cabin with a front door and boarded-up window. For decades, a white-haired man named Murlock has lived there; he looks 70 but is really 50. He lets his yard grow wild and provides for himself by selling animal skins.Murlock is found dead at his cabin, apparently of natural causes. He’s buried... Read The Boarded Window Summary

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