Brilliant New Voices in Crime Thriller You Need to Read

If you’re a fan of Freida McFadden, Alice Feeney and Tarryn Fisher, listen up because Jade Lee Wright’s debut is killer! This twisty, completely addictive psychological thriller tells the story of Darcy and Alex who are expectant parents. After joining an antenatal class, they unknowingly open up to someone in the group who is plotting to steal their baby…

This book is every parent’s nightmare, with many readers talking about that final twist. Jade Lee Wright is certainly a new author to watch out for!

The Woman in Ward 9 is one of the most chilling, compelling and unforgettable books I’ve read in 2025, with a killer twist that will steal the breath from your lungs.

When Laura Winters is admitted to a psychiatric facility after being found covered in blood that wasn’t her own, it’s psychologist Emma Best’s job to extract the truth and her memories through a series of therapy sessions. But what she discovers is so far from what she could have ever imagined. It’s nightmarish. It’s gloriously dark, atmospheric, and as deceptive as they come.

I think I’ll always remember this book as it was the first ever audiobook I listened to! It’s dark, it’s horrific, but so addictive, a book I longed to dive into in every waking moment. And as a massive fan of Dexter, this really was my kind of read!

When Jess Pendle agrees to attend a support group to meet other women who have suffered domestic abuse, she doesn’t expect much. The group has been set up for like-minded women to come together, but when their therapist leaves, they close the blinds and find a new, and altogether more deadly way to support each other… Not the first book by this author, but the first under his pen name, D.B. Stephens.

A woman covered in blood clutching a baseball bat walks silently into a London police station, but she refuses to speak. She isn’t injured and the blood on the bat isn’t hers. What has she done, and is she a victim or not?

As Leah and Randle start their inquiry, a man is found battered to death in a nearby park. Journalist Odie Reid receives a tip off and is determined to solve the case first, trying to link this death to the woman held in custody. This cat and mouse game quickly becomes personal… It’s a clever, twisty and original debut thriller novel filled with suspense.

Jay wants to move to a quiet town where no one knows him, to start again. But when a threatening note makes its way into the hostel he calls home, his hope for a fresh start seems much further away. Jay fears that the secret he went to prison to protect might finally come out…

Flat 401 is perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Paula Hawkins and Mark Billingham. It’s a tense, character-driven, thought-provoking thriller. A brilliant new voice in crime fiction.

Fifteen years ago, five vulnerable teenagers took part in a life-changing study of OCD. Now, their psychologist has been brutally stabbed and left for dead. When there is another attack, this time a former patient, DCI Liz Field is pulled deeper into the case, and into her own past.

No Safe Place dominated Bookstagram around its publication in July 2025. Perfect for fans of Nadine Matheson, Sam Holland, and Helen Fields, this dark and twisty crime thriller is an impressive debut you need to get your hands on!