The Best New Crime & Thrillers Books to Read in 2025

Known for his gritty, Southern noir thrillers, S.A. Cosby’s work has redefined the modern crime genre. This summer, he returns with King of Ashes, a Godfather-inspired epic where a man must confront dangerous gangsters and unravel family secrets to save his brother and their business.

Named a New York Times “Best Beach Read of Summer” and a Washington Post “Best Mystery,” this sparkling standalone follows widow-turned-sleuth Mrs. Blossom as her European vacation becomes an art heist thriller. “A rollicking adventure of the highest order,” raved The New York Times.

The latest from the mega-hit author of The Woman in Cabin 10 is a compulsively readable beach bag essential. When a press trip to a Swiss resort takes a sinister turn, a travel writer is drawn into a dangerous chase across Europe.

Make Me Famous introduces us to a French-American pop icon with LA mansions, millions in the bank, and an army of fans. Her perfect facade begins to crack during what should be paradise in the South Pacific. "Maud Ventura has given us an exhilarating and fanciful study of celebrity while questioning the fundamental failings of our time," observed Vanity Fair.

A man settles into a quiet Lisbon apartment to await his wife, only to be consumed by déjà vu, dread, and the sense that something—or someone—is watching. Elegant and spare, this psychological noir is “a harrowing drama of subtleties” (The New Yorker) and “feels like hearing a constant alarm ringing” (NYT Book Review).

A recently unemployed homeowner takes on a tenant to make ends meet—only to find the walls closing in. Another tightly wound, twist-laden stunner from a modern master of psychological suspense.

A murder at a remote resort forces a guest to confront a long-buried history in a cloistered cult. “Michallon masterfully weaves past cult abuse into a taut present-day procedural,” observes Oprah Daily. "Enough terror to make you white-knuckle your beach chair."

When a woman whose sister vanished years ago crosses paths with someone whose sister disappeared the same way, the mystery reignites. Together, they chase answers through small-town secrets and lingering trauma in a novel Booklist calls “impossible to put down” and Gillian Flynn praises for its “genuine beating heart.”

Kirkus called GMA’s March pick a "compelling, tautly plotted book" appealing to both Gone Girl enthusiasts and readers who appreciate "smart, well-crafted fiction." This read-in-one-night thriller follows a compulsive liar whose seemingly harmless deceptions entangle her with a wealthy couple harboring far more sinister secrets.