In the Northern Hemisphere, we are approaching spring time! I personally have a love-hate relationship with this season. The warm wind, the blooming flowers, the sun - love. The pollen - hate. I hate it so much that during spring cleaning instead of opening my windows to let the fresh and warm breeze in, I latch them tightly to ensure no pollen permeates my safe haven.
Unlike other seasons, where regardless of the weather I am outside, there is a sweet spot in spring where I refuse to leave my home because I know the outside will destroy my sanity via pollen. So what do I do?
Read of course and crochet, sometimes I do both simultaneously. I assume there are others out there who too prefer to stay inside until the pollen stops leaving a filthy layer of yellow on cars and together, we can read a thriller. If you are unsure of what thriller to read, here are 13 thrillers to devour this spring whilst hiding from the pollen.
1 | My Lovely Wife
I received a hardback copy of My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing as a present and it made me squeal. Hardbacks are the best and are the type of book I rarely buy because the paperback is always cheaper so receiving one as a present was wonderful. What was even more wonderful was that I actually enjoyed My Lovely Wife.
This novel contains standard thriller elements but with a bit of spice added in. It is about a relationship between Millicent, the Narrator, and the "fun" games they play. Disgustingly twisted and extremely vile is actually a better way to describe their games and My Lovely Wife explores the dynamics between a married couple and the insatiable desire to kill.
Disclaimer (yippie!): Aster's Book Hour is an Amazon Associate. It earns a small commission from qualifying purchases attached to the Amazon affiliate links in this post.
2 | We Hear Voices
We Hear Voices by Evie Green is a pandemic based thriller. We are currently living in a pandemic and I recommend not choosing this novel as your thriller to read this spring if you do not want a novel that mirrors current day events. We Hear Voices focuses more on the changing environment and human destruction then the pandemic; I think of it as there is a splash of pandemic thrown into the story.
The JX5 virus is the cause of the pandemic but a disastrous side affect of it is that it causes young children who after recovering to hear voices. Voices that tell them to do things no normal child would think of. Violence, murder, and more.
With a reliable protagonist in a mother of a recovered child who hears voices, We Hear Voices is a captivating read and one for those looking to dip their toe back into pandemic reads without being fully overwhelmed by one.
Find the full review | HERE | for We Hear Voices
3 | An Anonymous Girl
Jessica Farris is a participant in a psychology study conducted by Dr. Shields. All Jessica thinks she has to do is answer a few questions and then she is free to go - Jessica is wrong, very very wrong. The questions become more intense, what is required of her becomes more invasive and soon Jessica feels that something is wrong and she can no longer tell what is real or fake.
I found An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen in an Op shop for $2 and I snatched it up. I found myself captivated by this thriller and you will be too. You will not know which way to go or who to trust during this read.
4 | People Like Her
People Like Her by Ellery Lloyd is the perfect easy to read thriller. Emmy Jackson, a social media influencer, coined an "Instamum," is known for telling it as it is.
To her husband, Emmy is creative with the truth. To one of her followers, she is a woman that deserves none of her success. Success that soon begins to crack her marriage and moral guidelines leading you on a dangerous journey of what an influencer would do to remain on top.
People Like Her is not the highest rated thriller compared to the others on this list but who cares. Sometimes you want something a bit less psychologically intense and this is that. People Like Her should be your spring pick if you value "predictable" thrillers.
5 | Big Lies in a Small Town
Big Lies in a Small Town is a slow-burn thriller. Morgan has been incarcerated for a crime she did not commit and her parole lies contingent on restoring a mural in Edenton, North Carolina. Anna Dale is commissioned to paint that mural in 1940 in a town filled with secrets. Secrets she paints into the mural and secrets Morgan begins to uncover during her restoration.
Tying in historical fiction, the past with the present, and an insane mural - Diane Chamberlain created a novel with just a touch of thrill and a beautiful plot waiting to be read this spring.
Find the full review | HERE | for Big Lies in a Small Town
6 | We Begin at the End
We Begin at the End is a 2021 release revolving around a thirteen year-old girl, a cop who gave testimony that imprisoned his best friend, and murder.
Vincent King was the imprisoned and after 30 years has been released from his sentence. With his return he brings trouble and pain back into the hometown where the pained cop and even more pained thirteen year-old reside, both trying to protect the ones they love.
With short sentences and a unique take on a murder, We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker is a different kind of thriller. One where you will find chills creeping up your neck without even realising the story is that intense. A secret thriller is what this should be coined and one you should read!
Find the full review | HERE | for We Begin at the End
7 | Silent Child
In the summer of 2006, Emma Price's son Aiden went missing. The only evidence found was a red coat, no body was ever discovered. It's 2016, and Emma is married, pregnant, and in control until Aiden returns bringing with him the horrifying truth that Aiden didn't drown, Aiden was taken.
Silent Child by Sarah A. Denzel contains a deceptively simple plot that will mess you up. In a good way of course, it is a thriller.
8 | Verity
Verity by Colleen Hoover is a romance thriller for those searching for a cup of passion with their insanity. Lowen Ashleigh has been hired to complete Verity Crawford's last works in a series she can no longer finish. It is suggested to Lowen by Verity's husband, Jeremy, that she stay at their home and go through Verity's notes to help compose the last novels.
Lowen accepts his offer but she didn't expect to find Verity's unpublished autobiography detailing sinister and malicious admissions that would make any parent scream. Lowen hides the manuscript knowing how easily it could break a marriage but as her feelings develop for Jeremy, Lowen realises how powerful the manuscript is. No matter how devoted Jeremy is to his ailing wife, the truth would tear them apart.
I personally steer away from romance and Verity hit my capacity for how much romance I can tolerate and if it were not for the thrills, I would never have read this. But I am glad I did because Verity combines passion, lust and desire with horror, terror, and abhorrent behaviour. A must-read thriller for those searching for something dramatic and romantic this spring.
Find the full review | HERE | for Verity
9 | The Project
The Unity Project is an organisation known for their worldwide charitable works and have won multiple awards for it. The public love The Unity Project, love Lo has been failing to prove for the last six years is unwarranted. There is more to them than meets the eye and Lo should know, the project took her sister and Lo would do anything to get her back.
When a mysterious man shows up at Lo's work claiming the project killed his son, Lo knows her wish has been granted. It is finally time to uncover the truth and save her sister, if only she could tell whose lying.
Courtney Summers, the author of Sadie, does it again with The Project creating a gorgeous and thrill-filled YA novel bound to entice any reader.
Find the full review | HERE | for The Project
10 | The Butterfly Garden
I will add this novel to every single thriller recommendation list I write. It is my favourite thriller and if you have to read only one on this list, pick this one because what I am hoping is that you end up loving it as much as I do and we can gush about it together.
The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison is a graphic and gruesome novel about kidnapped women and their prison. When this isolated and luscious prison is discovered, FBI agents Hanoverian and Eddison bring a survivor in to uncover the mystery behind the walls.
Except, Maya is a bigger mystery than the Gardener and mansion itself bringing with her an intricate and delicate story that unravels what happened to the "butterflies" in the Garden.
I love this novel. I adore this novel. Read this thriller.
11 | Don't Look For Me
The night Molly disappears is the night a family shatters. The police state Molly does not want to be found, thousands of women disappear desperate to start over and the police believe Molly Clarke is one of those women. Is that really what happened?
When a new lead arrives on the closed case, Molly's daughter Nicole begins to wonder what truly happened. Nothing makes sense and she is determined to uncover the truth.
Don't Look For Me by Wendy Walker is a compulsive read that if you decide to tackle this spring is one you will not be able to put down until finished.
Find the full review | HERE | for Don't Look For Me
12 | None Shall Sleep
Its 1982 and the FBI has recruited Emma Lewis and Travis Bell to interview teenage killers and help with cold cases. Lewis and Bell develop a strong working repertoire and soon are cracking cases the FBI can't and when invited to give advice on an active case, they turn to an unlikely ally for help.
With similar vibes to The Silence of the Lambs, None Shall Sleep by Ellie Marney is a YA thriller written to reel you in.
13 | The Burning Girls
CJ Tudor writes thrillers with paranormal incorporation. Her last novel, The Other People, did not woo me away but her other works have and is why this is a must-read thriller for both you and me this spring!
Reverend Jack Brooks and his daughter have recently moved to Chapel Croft, a community on the seaside, for a fresh start. A fresh start that will be hard to find in a community filled with death, disappearances, and mystery. Mystery that the Brooks are soon exposed to in which they soon realise, nobody trusts an outsider, especially ghosts.
13 thrillers to devour this spring, all bound to reel you in and bring you excitement this year. I personally will be tackling The Burning Girls as my spring thriller read and can't wait to share my thoughts on it with you.
Let's have a little bit of a fright whilst the flowers boom around us this year, which thriller will you be reading this spring?
