Mysteries and thrillers are enjoyable no matter the season, but there's something extra satisfying about curling up in the winter with a warm drink and an all-engrossing read. The 13 (spooked already?) books in this list, recommended by NPR staff and critics, fit the bill: stalkers, witchcraft, missing persons, suburban horror — there's something here for every thrill-seeker. And for more nail-biters, check out Books We Love, our annual year-end reading guide.
All the Other Mothers Hate Me, by Sarah Harman
This book got me out of a reading rut! It's about a mom who is struggling to keep her life together – while simultaneously trying to solve the mystery of her son's missing classmate. It's got fun twists and turns and characters who surprise you. Very plot driven and definitely hard to put down. — Elissa Nadworny, correspondent
Audition, by Katie Kitamura
I guess I could explain the plot to you: An actress meets up with a man who is convinced she's his mother. It turns out she's not. I think? Maybe she is? Or, maybe she's not but actually kind of is? What is a mother? The most impressive thing about this Booker Prize finalist is how Katie Kitamura plays with the narrative and toys with the reader without being overly clever about it all. She's stingy with details and answers, but generous with intrigue and depth. — Andrew Limbong, correspondent, Culture Desk and host, Book of the Day
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, by Stephen Graham Jones
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is many things: a clever nesting doll of narratives, a sanguine revenge thriller stitched inside the corpse of an old vampire yarn, and a fearsome accounting of America's murderous past. Lucky for us, Stephen Graham Jones has bound it all together with a hero (antihero?) for the ages — a man from the Blackfeet tribe, aptly named Good Stab, who is determined to right the wrongs of the past, even if it takes him a few lifetimes. — Cory Turner, correspondent and senior editor, Education
Death of the Author, by Nnedi Okorafor
This book will keep you guessing until the last chapter. The plot jumps back and forth between two connected stories: one about a human author and one about a robot obsessed with human stories. The book tackles some big themes, including fame and immigrant identity. But one of my favorite things about it is that the robot storyline is absolutely gripping. I couldn't put this book down, and thank goodness I didn't, or I would have missed the final twist! — Rebecca Hersher, correspondent, Climate Desk
Elita, by Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum
This absorbing midcentury American take on Nordic noir opens with two men apprehending a seemingly feral girl on Elita, a tiny island in the Puget Sound that for years has been home only to a federal men's prison. Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum elevates the moody mystery with her choice of protagonist – Bernadette Baston, a scholar of child development and single mother, who consults on the girl's case. Bernadette is fascinated by the child's fierce independence in a world that sets stark constraints on the lives of women and girls. She must fight for her own independence in order to uncover the girl's origins in this slow-burn study of insular communities and working motherhood. — Kristen Martin, book critic and author of The Sun Won't Come Out Tomorrow: The Dark History of American Orphanhood
Heartwood, by Amity Gaige
Heartwood is a perfect thriller for people who don't like thrillers (🙋♀). A nurse nicknamed Sparrow who is trying to move past the trauma of working during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic disappears while hiking the Appalachian Trail. The narration alternates among three women: a state game warden leading the search, a lonely retiree who becomes very invested and the missing woman herself, whose plight is told via the journal that keeps her going while lost. Heartwood is equal parts gripping and moving, filled with empathy and hope — not just for Sparrow's safe return but for human connection overall. — Arielle Retting, senior editor, Newsroom
Julie Chan Is Dead, by Liann Zhang
Julie and her estranged twin, Chloe, may look identical, but that's where the similarities end. Julie works at a supermarket, while her sister revels in the love of millions as a social media influencer. But when Chloe dies, Julie realizes she can pass for her twin – if people don't look too closely. What follows is a thrilling, haunting look at the upkeep of pretending to be someone you're not, whether on-screen or in person. As Julie goes to brow-raising lengths to keep up the farce and maintain her newfound audience's love, you'll find yourself asking whether she has a limit. — Hafsa Fathima, assistant producer, Pop Culture Happy Hour
The Naming of the Birds, by Paraic O'Donnell
This Victorian mystery novel is Dickens meets Sherlock Holmes meets La Femme Nikita, and it wears its genre conventions proudly. The heroes: a brilliant, gruff police officer and his bumbling assistant, aided by a plucky lady journalist. The crimes: elaborate serial murders of insignificant elderly men. The killings are connected to the book's prologue, a harrowing tale of mistreated orphans seemingly in training to be assassins. The reader knows this, but the detectives do not, giving the events a frisson of dramatic irony as the body count ticks up. — Holly J. Morris, digital trainer
Old Soul, by Susan Barker
Jake and Mariko meet when they both miss their flight out of Osaka and decide to share a meal. Later, drunk, Mariko tells Jake about how her twin brother died, and Jake is eerily reminded of a beloved friend's strange death. The deceased both began behaving differently shortly before they died, after meeting an exceptionally charming woman, and both had biological oddities discovered during their autopsies. Could it have been the same woman? If so, who is she? And what is she after? If you, too, are a sucker for books that follow a central mystery through the stories of seemingly disparate but ultimately interconnected characters, this one is a must. — Ilana Masad, book critic and author of Beings
The Stalker, by Paula Bomer
The antihero of Paula Bomer's novel is Doughty, a liar, misogynist and dyed-in-the-wool sociopath who manages to fail upward by preying on women who fall for his deceit. The novel chronicles his time in New York City, where he hurts everyone he can, with no semblance of guilt or even basic humanity. This is, in part, a darkly funny novel, and Bomer walks a fine line brilliantly – the moments of humor don't detract from the book's important themes. — Michael Schaub, book critic
The Tokyo Suite, by Giovana Madalosso, translated by Bruna Dantas Lobato
The dual narratives of The Tokyo Suite grip the reader right from the opening chapters, which alternate between the points of view of a mother distracted by her job as an executive and the nanny who kidnaps the exec's daughter. As this two-hander unfolds, Giovana Madalosso plays with the reader's sympathies as both protagonists entangle themselves in the consequences of their bad choices. By the end, you're certain the only path forward is tragedy, but instead you'll be left thinking about what happens beyond the pages long after you close the book. — Leland Cheuk, book critic and author of No Good Very Bad Asian
Vantage Point, by Sara Sligar
A summer mystery with a rich, troubled family and a curse? Sign me up. Vantage Point is set on a secluded island in Maine and reads like a tech thriller with the soul of a gothic dynastic horror story. It's told from the dual perspectives of Clara, the youngest member of the wealthy, politically connected and highly unlucky Wieland family, and Jess, Clara's childhood best friend who's married to Clara's brother, Senate hopeful Teddy. When a series of deepfake videos targets Clara and then Jess, it feels as though the famous Wieland curse has come into the digital age. The book is a rich drama about friendship, class and inherited trauma — all in the package of a propulsive yarn. — Barrie Hardymon, senior editor, Investigations Unit
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, by Grady Hendrix
In the 1970s, young women who got pregnant before marriage were sent to homes to have their babies away from prying eyes. It was like a magic trick — a practice in concealment, disappearance and forgetting. In a state of complete powerlessness, hidden away in the stifling heat of St. Augustine, Fla., Fern — not her real name, never give your real name — meets other young girls like herself. Then a visiting librarian gives Fern a book on witchcraft, and she learns what she is willing to give up in return for that power. — Christina Cala, senior producer, Code Switch
This is just a fraction of the 380+ titles we included in Books We Love this year. Click here to check out this year's titles, or browse nearly 4,000 books from the last 13 years.
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