The Best Mystery & Thriller Novels of the Last Decade

Tired of the monotony of self-help books and the cliches of overly-sentimental romance novels? Maybe it's time for a change of genre. Maybe it's time for a heart-pounding, blood-racing, edge-of-the-seat kind of a thriller, and we might be able to help you find just the right one. Here is our round-up of the best mystery and thriller novels of the last decade to spice up your reading.

1. Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante (2011)

Jennifer White, our central character, is a retired orthopedic surgeon suffering from debilitating Alzheimer's, she is also the prime suspect in the murder of her best friend. Turn of Mind is a gripping thriller in which we view the world through Jennifer's increasingly muddled perspective; as her mind crumbles, Jennifer struggles to uncover the truth and find out whether she is really guilty of the crime she is being accused of.

2. Defending Jacob by William Landay (2012)

An immersive and intense crime drama written by award-winning novelist William Landay, Defending Jacob tells the story of a family in turmoil. Andy Barber, our main character, is a respected Massachusetts district attorney dealing with the accusation that his 14-year-old son has murdered his classmate. As shocking secrets are laid bare, we discover whether Jacob is actually innocent or if Andy is playing a role in covering up a crime.

3. Vicious by V.E. Schwab (2013)

A tale of two gifted college students, Victor and Eli, and how they accidentally stumble upon the formula to create superhuman abilities through controlled experiments, a shocking discovery that leads them down a collision course against each other. Vicious is a fast-paced tale of vengeance, pitting Victor and Eli against each other and making the reader ponder who the real hero, and who the villain of the story is.

4. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer (2014)

One by one, all eleven expeditions sent into the mysterious Area X have resulted in catastrophe. In Annihilation, we join the twelfth expedition, a group of four women known only by their profession: an anthropologist, a surveyor, a psychologist and our narrator, the biologist, as they enter the netherworld of Area X to map the terrain and discover the mystery behind the failed expeditions. The novel is deeply intriguing and hauntingly eerie, the truth is shrouded in mystery and the narrative keeps you on the edge till the very last page.

5. The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins (2015)

Rachel Watson catches the same train every morning. She sits in the same spot, knows every turn and stop, and she knows the couple she sees every day in one of the houses through her window. She catches glimpses of them, likes to imagine their story, and calls them Jess and Jason. To Rachel, a troubled alcoholic, their life seems perfect. One day on her regular commute, Rachel witnesses something shocking which will change her status as an observer and will embroil her in a missing person's investigation involving the couple, a situation in which Rachel finds herself out of her depth.

6. The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware (2016)

Lo Blacklock is a travel journalist struggling with severe insomnia and symptoms of PTSD after a burglary in her flat in London. When Lo is given the assignment of a lifetime which involves a week-long voyage on-board a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins, she is determined to enjoy the trip. What starts as a pleasant trip soon turns into a nightmare when Lo witnesses a woman being thrown overboard. There is only one problem, all the passengers are accounted for and nobody believes in Lo's testimony. Something is terribly wrong, and Lo wants to investigate; she is sure she heard a scream and the sound of a splash. But can Lou really trust her senses or is this just her paranoia? The mystery only deepens as the story progresses.

7. The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn (2018)

Agoraphobic Anna Fox is a recluse who lives in her New York City home and hardly ventures outside. She spends her time drinking (a bit too much) wine, watching old movies, reminiscing the past and ... spying on the neighbors. Anna's life is thrown into chaos when the Russell family moves into the house across the street and she sees something she shouldn't while keeping tabs on them. Can Anna rely on what she saw? Or is this a result of hallucinations due to her psychological disorder and her excessive drinking?

8. The Institute by Stephen King (2019)

Stephen King's latest novel is a science-fiction horror-thriller about Luke Ellis, a child prodigy with telekinetic abilities who is abducted by a sinister and merciless organization known only as "The Institute". The gut-wrenching story follows Luke's struggle as he enlists the help of other kids with special abilities to escape and destroy the evil organization that has entrapped them.