In this blog, we will briefly describe the five best suspense books of all time. Suspense books are popular with the readers and generally suspense novels are moving, gripping, and involve a state of excitement. Also, there will certainly be a criminal who has a defined objective and the audience is excited and anticipates that something is about to happen soon.
Suspense clubs with surprise and inquisitiveness, and these two keep the readers moving ahead, busy, and flipping the pages. Suspense is a more natural word that can include murder, death, fear, action, and adventure.
What Is Suspense and What Makes These Books Popular Among Readers?
Any event in a story that makes the readers mentally unsure about what is going to happen soon, is known as suspense. How suspense keeps the readers interested, in knowing how things can or will end, one will realize that suspense is multi-faceted.
It’s a point to realize that suspense in a story operates on at least two fronts:
- Moving closer to an unseen outcome what the characters feel.
- How readers experience, in a similar manner.
Top 5 Suspense Books
1) That Night: Four Friends, Twenty Years by Nidhi Upadhyay
‘That Night’ is a thrilling suspense book published in 2021 and authored by Nidhi Upadhyay.
Four best friends in the college- Natasha, Riya, Anjali, and Katherine each unique from one another yet bosom friends cannot forget that night. It has been nearly two decades since that dreadful night which led to the death of Sania.
The night starts with a bottle of whiskey and a game of Ouija but ends with the death of Sania, their abhorrent hostel chummy. The friends promise each other that they will keep the death of their friend a secret and continue with this statehood for the last twenty years. But now someone is up to mischief and wants to make known what happened that fearful night.
The friends are doubtful about who is it, if it’s her ghost or someone else up to this trick. This makes the four friends group together again to solve this mystery to find out who is behind this evil act.
This suspense novel depicts a tale of friendship, love, revenge, anxiety, and betrayal.
2) The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle
Published in 2024 by Kimberly Belle this is a suspense cum mystery novel
published by Park Row.
Upon meeting Adam Stella is of the opinion that she is lucky to find a guy of her type, a pleasant change from her ex-boyfriend and her dangerous traveling lifestyle with him. But as soon as Adam vanishes in an explosion in the public square, she is torn apart. Unable to be near him, she finds herself in panic.
Upon investigation by the French police, they came to know that Adam was on the lookout for scarce and stolen artifacts with a long list of criminal gangs. Feeling shocked about this news, Stella is adamant about leaving Paris until she has known the full story. Is Adam a selected individual or target of the explosion? And why someone is secretly following Stella on the streets of Paris?
An overpowering, action-packed novel set in some of Europe’s most charming locales, The Paris Widow looks into how ominous secrets of the past act with us no matter how much ahead we move.
3) The Guest List by Lucy Foley May 2020
This evil vicious and atmospheric thriller reminds me of Agatha Christie’s fiction, which starts with a wedding celebration that turns fatal. Written by author Lucy Foley who is also famous for the New York Times bestselling writer of ‘The Hunting Party.’
The story is set in Ireland on a remote island when two people cherish their fond memories of uniting to celebrate a special occasion. Among the two people, the groom ‘William Slater’ is a pleasing and handsome prominent television star and the other the bride is an aspiring and smart magazine publisher, Julia Keegan. Slowly other people are invited to join the celebration and on the night of the wedding a storm comes and causes a blackout.
When light comes, a waitress finds a dead body and when no one is able to recognize the dead body, people assume it to be a murder. Between William’s old boarding school familiar and Jules’s close allies and relatives, plenty of secrets and plots come into circulation. As old secrets are uncovered, everyone wants an answer to the question, who did it and why?
4) The Maid by Nita Prose
Published in January 2022 by author Nita Prose this is a suspense mystery novel and has been awarded the Goodreads Choice Award of 2022.
Twenty-five-year-old Molly was brought up by her beloved grandmother, who untimely passed away a few months ago. Besides feeling a little lost, she loves to carry on with her job and her daily routine at home. It was her desire to be a maid, and Molly prides herself in working at The Grand Regency Hotel.
She is regular to work and keeps her uniform clean and safely in her locker. A colleague Rodney, the bartender is friendly with Molly and she is very happy to have him as a friend. She is quick in answering his requests for favors. She finds it hard to realize that not everyone is as frank and honest as she is.
Molly’s world changes totally when she enters Mr. Black’s room and discovers that he is dead. She is full of shock and faints on the spot. When she wakes up, she calls for help, explaining how she found Mr. Black. She thinks herself of having committed the murder of Mr. Black and there is indication that she may be guilty!
Lead detective Spark is quick and suspects Molly, who is young and has to learn a lot. What unfolds later and how Molly proves her innocence is worthy and full of surprises.
5) Girl Who Knew Too Much by Vikrant Khanna
Published by Penguin House India in 2017, and written by author Vikrant Khanna this is a suspense romantic novel.
The book is about Akshara, a 13-year-old youthful female, who is yet to recover from her mother’s death, a loss which she finds difficult to handle. One day, as she is sobbing a young man Harvinder (Harry) approaches her. They soon become friends and later he shares an unusual story with her.
A story about a supernatural reunion of a young woman with her boyfriend who is no more which relieves her from some pain. The story makes Akshara hopeful that she can perhaps see her dead mother again.
But she soon realizes that Harry isn’t what he seems to be. Even the story which he tells her and the characters in his story seem uncertain, almost unreal. So what is he hiding? And why?
In this darkly romantic suspense mystery, Akshara has to face the truth all by herself and the book is bound to keep one on the edge.
Conclusion
Suspense books are full of stories that stimulate enjoyable captivation and keep the readers with fear and excitement. The aim of suspense is to build tension and keep the readers interested in the story till the end.
