10 Thrillers & Mysteries to Curl Up With This Fall
Fall isn’t just pumpkin spice and decorative gourds—it’s peak reading season. The air gets crisp, the blankets come out, and suddenly thrillers, mysteries, and creepy page-turners just hit different. Forget the apple orchard selfies—let’s talk books that will make you want to cancel plans, brew a vat of tea, and read until your eyeballs beg for mercy.
The True-Crime Chill Pick: The Idaho Four by James Patterson & Vicky Ward
Based on the tragic and haunting real-life murders in Idaho, this one digs into the shocking details and aftermath. It’s raw, gripping, and the kind of book you read with all the lights on.
The murders of four innocent college students attending the University of Idaho left us all with so many questions. Now, after more than 300 interviews, James Patterson and prize-winning journalist Vicky Ward finally have the answers.
We know what it was like to live in Moscow, Idaho, on November 13, 2022, the day of the cold-blooded killings. We know what the local police and FBI did right. And what they did wrong. We’ve learned so much about the four heartbroken families—the Mogens, Goncalveses, Kernodles, and Chapins. And we have the backstory for Bryan Kohberger, brilliant grad student, loner, apparent incel.
Now you are the jury. The evidence is in.
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The Devilishly Dark Pick: The Devil at His Elbow by Valerie Baurlein
Family drama meets sinister undercurrents. This story twists betrayal, power, and the darker side of human nature—perfect for when you want your fall nights served with a side of goosebumps.
Power, privilege, and blood—this is the true story of Alex Murdaugh’s violent downfall, from a veteran Wall Street Journal reporter who has become an authority on the case.
Alex Murdaugh was a benevolent dictator—the president of the South Carolina trial lawyers’ association, a political boss, a part-time prosecutor, and a partner in his family’s law firm. He was always ready with a favor, a drink, and an invitation to Moselle, his family’s 1,700-acre hunting estate. The Murdaugh name ignited respect—and fear—for a hundred miles.
When he murdered his wife, Maggie, and son Paul at Moselle on a dark summer night, the fragile façade of Alex’s world could no longer hold. His forefathers had covered up a midnight suicide at a remote railroad crossing, a bootlegging ring run from a courthouse, and the attempted murder of a pregnant lover.
Alex, too, almost walked away from his unspeakable crimes with his reputation intact, but his downfall was secured by a twist of fate, some stray mistakes, and a fateful decision by an old friend who’d finally seen enough.
Why would a man who had everything kill his wife and grown son?
To unwind the roots of Alex’s ruin, award-winning journalist Valerie Bauerlein reported not just from the courthouse every day but also along the backroads and through the tidal marshes of South Carolina’s Lowcountry. When the jurors made their pilgrimage to the crime scene, trying to envision Maggie and Paul’s last moments, she walked right behind them, sensing the ghosts that haunt the Murdaughs’ now-shattered legacy.
Through masterful research and cinematic writing, The Devil at His Elbow is a transporting journey through Alex’s life, the night of the murders, and the investigation that culminated in a trial that held tens of millions spellbound. With her stunning insights and fearless instinct for the truth, Bauerlein uncovers layers of the Murdaugh murder case that have not been told.
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The Twisty Domestic Pick: She Didn’t See It Coming by Shari Lapena
Lapena is the queen of “one more chapter before bed”… which always turns into 2 a.m. Her newest is a fast-paced domestic thriller about trust, deception, and the danger lurking right under your nose.
Bryden and Sam have it all: thriving careers, a smart apartment in a luxury condominium, supportive friends and a cherished daughter. The perfect life for the perfect couple.
Then Sam receives a call at his office. Bryden – working from home that day – has failed to collect their daughter from daycare.
Arriving home with their little girl, he finds his wife’s car in the underground garage. Upstairs in their apartment her laptop is open on the table, her cell phone nearby, her keys in their usual place in the hall.
Except Bryden is nowhere to be seen. It’s as if she just walked out.
How can she have disappeared from her own home? And did she even leave the building at all?
With every minute that passes – and as questions swirl around their community – Bryden and Sam’s past seems a little less perfect, their condominium less safe, their friends, neighbors and relatives no longer quite so reliable . . .
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The High-Stakes Suspense Pick: With a Vengeance by Riley Sager
Sager never fails to deliver an atmospheric page-turner. This one cranks up the paranoia, with characters who are never quite safe and a pace that leaves you breathless—basically fall reading gold.
One train. No stops. A deadly game of survival and revenge.
In 1942, six people destroyed Anna Matheson’s family. Twelve years later, she’s ready for retribution.
Under false pretenses, Anna has lured those responsible for her family’s downfall onto a luxury train from Philadelphia to Chicago, an overnight journey of thirteen hours.
Her goal? Confront the people who’ve wronged her, get them to confess their crimes, and deliver them into the hands of authorities waiting at the end of the line. Justice will at last be served.
But Anna’s plan is quickly derailed by the murder of one of the passengers. As the train barrels through the night, it becomes clear that someone else on board is enacting their own form of revenge—and that they won’t stop until everyone else is dead.
With time running out before the train reaches its destination, Anna is forced to hunt the killer in their midst while protecting the people she hates the most. In order to destroy her enemies, she must first save them—even though it means putting her own life at risk.
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The Conspiracy Pick: The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown
Ancient mysteries, shadowy organizations, and a ticking clock? Classic Dan Brown. If fall has you craving cerebral puzzles mixed with nail-biting suspense, this will scratch that itch. This is book 6 of the Da Vinci Code Series.
Robert Langdon, esteemed professor of symbology, travels to Prague to attend a groundbreaking lecture by Katherine Solomon—a prominent noetic scientist with whom he has recently begun a relationship. Katherine is on the verge of publishing an explosive book that contains startling discoveries about the nature of human consciousness and threatens to disrupt centuries of established belief. But a brutal murder catapults the trip into chaos, and Katherine suddenly disappears along with her manuscript. Langdon finds himself targeted by a powerful organization and hunted by a chilling assailant sprung from Prague’s most ancient mythology. As the plot expands into London and New York, Langdon desperately searches for Katherine . . . and for answers. In a thrilling race through the dual worlds of futuristic science and mystical lore, he uncovers a shocking truth about a secret project that will forever change the way we think about the human mind.
(Via Amazon) Available September 9, 2025
The Star-Power Suspense Pick: Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon & Harlan Coben
Yes, you read that right—Witherspoon teams up with Coben for a slick, emotional, and twisty thriller. I don’t know if you are as excited as I am, but think sharp writing, layered characters, and the kind of plot you’ll want to talk about immediately after finishing.
An unforgettable suspense novel that combines the storytelling talents of Academy Award-winning actor Reese Witherspoon and internationally bestselling author Harlan Coben, Gone Before Goodbye is the story of a woman trapped in a deadly conspiracy—where uncovering the truth could cost her everything.
Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan…until it wasn’t.
Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion.
Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is…
(Via Amazon) Available October 14, 2025
The Fast & Funny Pick: Now or Never by Janet Evanovich
No one does zany, high-stakes hijinks quite like Evanovich. This one blends crime, comedy, and chaos—perfect if you want your fall reads with more fun than fear. This is number 31 in her Stephanie Plum series.
She said yes to Morelli. She said yes to Ranger. Now Stephanie Plum has two fiancés and no idea what to do about it. But the way things are going, she might not live long enough to marry anyone.
While Stephanie stalls for time, she buries herself in her work as a bounty hunter, tracking down an unusually varied assortment of fugitives from justice.
There’s Eugene Fleck, a seemingly sweet online influencer who might also be YouTube star Robin Hoodie, masked hero to the homeless, who hijacks delivery trucks and distributes their contents to the needy.
She’s also on the trail of Bruno Jug, a wealthy and connected man in the wholesale produce business who is rumored to traffic young girls alongside lettuce and tomatoes. Most terrifying of all is Zoran—a laundromat manager by day and self-proclaimed vampire by night with a taste for the blood of pretty girls. When he shows up on Stephanie’s doorstep, it’s not for the meatloaf dinner.
With timely assists from her stalwart supporters Lula, Connie, and Grandma Mazur, Stephanie uses every trick in the book to reel in these men. But only she can decide what to do about the two men she actually loves. She can’t hold Ranger and Morelli at bay for long, and she’s keeping a secret from them that is the biggest bombshell of all. Now or never, she’s got to make the decision of a lifetime.
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The Creepy Comeback Pick: Return of the Spider by James Patterson
Oh Holy Shi… uhhh… Smokes!!! I know that I have done a lot of James Pattersons books lately… I mean, this is the second on this very list. But the first one in this series, Along Came a Spider was a book and a movie that has stuck with me for years! Infact, this is THE James Patterson book that made me fall in love with him.
In this installment, Patterson revives one of his creepiest villains, and the result is a web of suspense you won’t want to escape from. Dark, sinister, and tailor-made for late-night reading sessions.
The suspense classic Along Came a Spider introduced an unsurpassed rivalry:
Detective Alex Cross; the “human superhero” (New York Times) versus Gary Soneji; the “most deliciously wicked character since Hannibal Lecter” (Lexington Herald-Leader).
But that wasn’t their first meeting…
Police discover that Soneji kept a murder book, Profiles in Homicidal Genius, detailing his transformation from substitute teacher to hardened serial killer—including clues that imply missteps that Alex Cross may have made a rookie homicide detective.
Now, Alex must retrace the steps of that long-ago investigation and face…the Return of the Spider.
(Via Amazon) Available November 17,, 2025
The Small-Town Mystery Pick: All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers
If true crime podcasts are your fall vibe, this one hits the sweet spot. Small town gossip, long-buried secrets, and a journalist determined to peel back every layer.
You can’t ever know for sure what happens behind closed doors.
Everyone from Wakarusa, Indiana, remembers the infamous case of January Jacobs, who was discovered in a ditch hours after her family awoke to find her gone. Margot Davies was six at the time, the same age as January—and they were next-door neighbors.
In the twenty years since, Margot has grown up, moved away, and become a big-city journalist. But she’s always been haunted by the feeling that it could’ve been her. And the worst part is, January’s killer has never been brought to justice.
When Margot returns home to help care for her uncle after he is diagnosed with early-onset dementia, she feels like she’s walked into a time capsule. Wakarusa is exactly how she remembers—genial, stifled, secretive.
Then news breaks about five-year-old Natalie Clark from the next town over, who’s gone missing under circumstances eerily similar to January’s. With all the old feelings rushing back, Margot vows to find Natalie and to solve January’s murder once and for all.
But the police, Natalie’s family, the townspeople—they all seem to be hiding something. And the deeper Margot digs into Natalie’s disappearance, the more resistance she encounters, and the colder January’s case feels. Could January’s killer still be out there? Is it the same person who took Natalie? And what will it cost to finally discover what truly happened that night twenty years ago?
Twisty, chilling, and intense, All Good People Here is a searing tale that asks: What are your neighbors capable of when they think no one is watching?
(Via Amazon) Available Now
The Hauntingly Perfect Pick: The Widowmaker by Hannah Morrissey
Police procedural meets gothic family drama. Dark houses, darker secrets, and a mystery that practically drips with fall atmosphere.
A wealthy family shrouded in scandal; a detective tasked with solving an impossible cold case; and a woman with a dark past collide in Hannah Morrissey’s stunning new Black Harbor mystery, The Widowmaker.
Ever since business mogul Clive Reynolds disappeared twenty years ago, the name “Reynolds” has become synonymous with “murder” and “mystery.” And now, lured by a cryptic note, down-on-her-luck photographer Morgan Mori returns home to Black Harbor and into the web of their family secrets and double lives.
The same night she photographs the Reynolds holiday get-together, Morgan becomes witness to a homicide of a cop that triggers the discovery of a long-buried clue.
This could finally be the thing to crack open the chilling cold case, and Investigator Ryan Hudson has a chance to prove himself as lead detective. If only he could stop letting his need to solve his partner’s recent murder distract him. But as Morgan exposes her own dark demons, could her sordid history be the key to unlocking more than one mystery?
(Via Amazon) Available Now
Wrap-Up
So there you have it—ten books that pair well with chilly nights, oversized hoodies, and ignoring the fact that your to-be-read pile is now taller than your Halloween skeleton décor. Which one are you grabbing first?
Until next time my bookish besties, keep it brash, keep it bookish and keep it true to you!
