Top Ten Thriller Reads for 2018
Welcome to the first post in my 'Top 10' series.
If you've been here a while, you'll know that I started this blog way back in 2017. I created a post back then of my favourite thrillers for that summer, but haven't done anything similar since. So, I've gone back through my Goodreads Challenge lists for each year since 2017 and picked out some of my favourites.
In this post, I’m counting down ten of the best thriller books from 2018. In no particular order, these are the ones that kept me up far too late, had me second-guessing every character, and left me thinking about them long after I turned the final page. If you’re looking to add some seriously gripping reads to your TBR, you’re in the right place.
Fiona Cummins - The Collector
Clara, the girl he left behind, dreams of being found. Her mother is falling apart but she will not give up hope.
The Collector has found an apprentice to take over his family’s legacy. But he can’t forget the one that got away and the detective who destroyed his dreams.
DS Etta Fitzroy must hunt him down before his obsession destroys them all.
Perfect for fans of Mo Hayder and Thomas Harris (The Silence of the Lambs).
Lisa Jewell - Then She Was Gone
She had her whole life ahead of her.
And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.
Ten years on, Laurel has never given up hope of finding Ellie. And then she meets a charming and charismatic stranger who sweeps her off her feet.
But what really takes her breath away is when she meets his nine-year-old daughter.
Because his daughter is the image of Ellie.
Now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.
What really happened to Ellie? And who still has secrets to hide?
K.L. Slater - The Visitor
When Holly moves in to Baker Crescent, a quiet suburban street she causes quite a stir. Beautiful, talented, and friendly, it doesn’t take long for her to charm the other residents. But why has she left the bright lights of the big city behind and settled in with Cora, a lonely old lady who is delighted to offer her visitor a place to stay?
The neighbours are fascinated by Holly and watch her from their windows every opportunity they get. Just when Holly has begun to feel at home someone sees something that they shouldn’t – something that’s impossible to ignore.
What is Holly hiding? And are the dark secrets from her past going to put them all into terrible danger?An absolutely unputdownable psychological thriller, from the bestselling author of Blink and The Mistake. Perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train and The Couple Next Door.
Patricia Gibney - The Missing Ones
The child in the middle spoke without turning his head. ‘I wonder which one of us will be next?’
When a woman’s body is discovered in a cathedral and hours later a young man is found hanging from a tree outside his home, Detective Lottie Parker is called in to lead the investigation. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It’s clear the pair are connected, but how?
The trail leads Lottie to St Angela’s, a former children’s home, with a dark connection to her own family history. Suddenly the case just got personal.As Lottie begins to link the current victims to unsolved murders decades old, two teenage boys go missing. She must close in on the killer before they strike again, but in doing so is she putting her own children in terrifying danger?
Lottie is about to come face to face with a twisted soul who has a very warped idea of justice.
Fans of Rachel Abbott, Karin Slaughter and Robert Dugoni will be gripped by this page-turning serial killer thriller, guaranteed to keep you reading late into the night.
Chris Carter - Gallery of the Dead
‘Thirty-seven years in the force, and if I was allowed to choose just one thing to erase from my mind, what’s inside that room would be it.’
That’s what a LAPD Lieutenant tells Detectives Hunter and Garcia of the Ultra Violent Crimes Unit as they arrive at one of the most shocking crime scenes they have ever attended.
In a completely unexpected turn of events, the detectives find themselves joining forces with the FBI to track down a serial killer whose hunting ground sees no borders; a psychopath who loves what he does because to him murder is much more than just killing – it’s an art form.
Welcome to The Gallery of the Dead.
Tim Weaver - You Were Gone
She has no phone and no ID, just a piece of paper that reads 'David Raker'.
She says she's his wife.
She looks just like her.
She knows everything about him.
But David buried his wife eight years ago.
K.L.Slater - Closer
I know my daughter better than I know myself and if there’s one thing I know for sure at this moment: it's that Maisie is not ok.
My ex-husband Shaun and I are still friends.
We would do anything for our beautiful little girl, Maisie.
But now Shaun has moved in with Joanne and suddenly, Maisie has a brand new family.
And there’s something not quite right about it…I know Joanne isn’t everything she says she is. Yet no-one will listen.
I need to discover what she’s hiding.
Because if I don’t, my daughter will be in terrible danger.
Angela Marsons - Silent Scream
Five figures gather round a shallow grave. They had all taken turns to dig. An adult sized hole would have taken longer. An innocent life had been taken but the pact had been made. Their secrets would be buried, bound in blood…
Detective Kim Stone fast realises she’s on the hunt for a twisted individual whose killing spree spans decades. As the body count rises, Kim needs to stop the murderer before they strike again. But to catch the killer, can Kim confront the demons of her own past before it’s too late?
An absolutely gripping and nail-bitingly tense mystery thriller that will keep you racing through the pages long into the night. A Kindle Chart #1, multi-million-copy, international bestseller, Silent Scream turns fans of Karin Slaughter, Val McDermid and Mark Billingham into Angela Marsons addicts.
Years later, a headmistress is found strangled, the first in a spate of gruesome murders which shock the Black Country. But when human remains are discovered at a former children’s home, disturbing secrets are also unearthed.
Katerina Diamond - The Promise
No one can protect you from your past…
Determined to stop the horrific deaths, Imogen is forced to act as bait – but will she get caught in her own trap? As the search for the killer ramps up, attention falls on the strange new boy in town. Why does he watch his neighbours through the windows? And could the truth be closer to home than any of them realise?
When a young woman is found strangled in her own bedroom, DS Imogen Grey and DS Adrian Miles are plunged into an investigation to find a twisted serial killer who likes to date his victims before he kills them.
Fiona Barton - The Suspect
When two eighteen-year-old girls go missing on their gap year in Thailand, their families are thrust into the international spotlight: desperate, bereft and frantic with worry.
Journalist Kate Waters always does everything she can to be first to the story, first with the exclusive, first to discover the truth - and this time is no exception. But she can't help but think of her own son, who she hasn't seen in two years, since he left home to go travelling. This time it's personal.
And as the case of the missing girls unfolds, they will all find that even this far away, danger can lie closer to home than you might think . . .
So that's it! These were my top thriller picks for 2018.
I think the ones that stuck with me most were probably You Were Gone by Tim Weaver and The Collector by Fiona Cummins. The David Raker Series by Tim Weaver is still one of my favourites to this day.
Stay tuned for more posts like this one as I work my way forwards to 2026! Subscribe below if you'd like to keep up to date.
As always, thank you for visiting. I'm sure many of you have read some of these books already, but if not, I hope there are one or two being added to your TBR!
Until next time.
Rachael. x
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