20 best thrillers you won’t be able to put down

Those Bones Are Not My Child, by Toni Cade Bambara. The story unfolds with the disappearance of a 12-year-old boy and his mother’s tireless search to find him. Throughout the pages of the novel, Bambara enveloped me into the mindset of a community turned upside-down by violence and grief. From beginning to end, her words simultaneously offered me a heartrending portrayal of a family altered by tragedy and an unflinching excavation of America’s past. It’s a compelling and urgent story about love, justice and loss. – RD Reader Helen Schulz

Tell No One, by Harlan Coben. A doctor’s grief over his wife’s murder transforms into intrigue, then obsession, once he stumbles across the possibility that she might still be alive. The story had one good plot twist after another and I couldn’t put it down, although I had things to do! It messed with my head! – RD Reader Mara Evans

The Black Echo, by Michael Connelly because it’s the first Harry Bosch novel. I thoroughly enjoy these crime thrillers and getting to know the characters. The plots are extremely well crafted and always leave the reader waiting in anticipation for the next novel. – RD Reader Christine Archer

Kill the Father, by Sandrone Dazieri. Best thriller by a mile. The plot is different to the hundreds of thrillers I’ve read. Layered characters, lots of atmosphere, complex plot with no happy-ever-after for the main characters. Loaded ending. – RD Reader Catherine Ramponi

The Great Zoo of China, by Matthew Reilly. This book had me hooked right from the beginning and the pace was so good it was like adrenalin-induced steroids, it kept me that pumped. It took me just over a day to read it and I did not want to put the book down. – RD Reader John Burton

The Day of the Jackal, by Frederick Forsyth. While the entire narrative is thrilling, the climax is unforeseeable because the author Frederick Forsyth turns a simple, everyday cultural act into a game-changer. Brilliant. – RD Reader Lily Basdeo

Rebecca, by Daphne du Maurier. Beautifully written, believable flawed characters and kept me on the edge of my seat until the end. – RD Reader Jacky Burkett

John Le Carré’s spy thriller Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is the best thriller I have ever read. It is so convoluted and kept me guessing right to the end. The movie is but a poor representation of the richness of the novel. – RD Reader Michael Tee

Don’t Say a Word, by Andrew Klavan. It still gives me chills, years later, to think of anyone doing that to my family. It also sent me searching out all of Klavan’s other novels, and he is a master of the emotionally involving thriller, so it introduced me to a lot of good reading. – RD Reader Lorraine Cormack

The Silence of The Lambs, by Thomas Harris. Just the thought of a freak out there living in society chilled my bones. It was a really scary story which had me on the edge of my seat from cover to cover. – RD Reader Deanne Burgoyne