20 New Mystery And Thriller Novels Coming Out This Fall

Make it a thriller night with this selection of thrillers and horror/crime anthologies, featuring Muslim, Latinx, Native, and Filipina authors!

1. The Wheel of Doll by Jonathan Ames

Mulholland Books

Release date: September 6  

What it's about: Author Jonathan Ames (screenwriter/creator of the former HBO show Bored to Death) presents a dark urban thriller set in Los Angeles. The more you follow the protagonist, private investigator Happy Doll (yep, that's his birth name), his new client Mary, and his former flame/missing person Ines, the crazier and darker the events get. I think only Happy's dog George stays out of any trouble. This well-written book reminds me of the iconic film Taxi Driver, where a well-meaning loner tries to help out some unlucky ladies.   

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.       

2. Captive by Iris Johansen

Grand Central Publishing

Release date: September 6

What it's about: Jane MacGuire, an artist like her mother, Eve Duncan, is holed up in the Scottish castle of her friend Earl John MacDuff. Even so, her MI6 boyfriend Seth drags her into trouble with his case following a vengeful villain. Jane and Seth flee to the Highlands of Scotland to figure out what secret the villain is after in the midst of warfare between his soldiers, MI6 agents, and the Earl's marines.  

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.     

3. Imposter by Bradeigh Godfrey

Blackstone Publishing

Release date: September 13

What it's about: Lilian's troubled younger sister Rosie comes to town to tell her something important. Their conversation is halted when a mysterious male driver crashes into Rosie's car, leaving her with brain damage. Lily struggles to reconnect with her sister and discover the truth while taking care of her baby and dealing with her controversial leave of absence from work. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.     

4. The Perfect Crime edited by Vaseem Khan

HarperCollins

Release date: September 13

What it's about: Edited by Vaseem Khan and Maxim Jakubowski, The Perfect Crime is an international crime anthology with stories from a diverse set of authors. In "The Yellow Line," Ausma Zehanat Khan writes about the hate crimes committed by a prominent white business man on a Hijabi, as investigated by Detective Esa. In "Sundown," Sheena Kamal writes about mixed Native and Middle Eastern Nora, whose solo road trip to Mexico is interrupted by a possible child trafficking case. Other bestselling authors like Silvia Moreno-Garcia contribute their own short stories set around the world.

Get it from Amazon.    

5. Marple: Twelve New Mysteries by multiple authors

William Morrow & Company

Release date: September 13  

What it's about: If you feel nostalgic, travel back to a simpler time when polite and proper Miss Marple solved crimes. Twelve legendary mystery writers, including Lucey Foley and Karen McManus, present their short stories starring Miss Marple. This includes "Miss Marple's Christmas" by Ruth Ware, where she solves a jewel heist at her friend's Christmas dinner, and "A Deadly Wedding Day" by Dreda Say Mitchell, where Miss Marple arrives as a wedding guest but stays to solve a murder.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.         

6. Valley of Shadows by Rudy Ruiz

Blackstone Publishing

Release date: September 20  

What it's about: Valley of Shadows takes place around the 1870s, when Mexico lost the city of Olvido to Texas. Solitario is a widower, recluse, and a former law enforcement officer who jumps into action to stop the city's crime spree. With the help of his new Apache/Mexican friend Onawa, he fights to stop the killing and kidnapping amid the clashing Mexican, Apache, and Anglo residents. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.         

7. Forsaken Country by Allen Eskens

Mulholland Books

Release date: September 20  

What it's about: Former detective Matt is brought out of reclusive hiding when his neighbor Lyle, also former law enforcement, begs him to find his missing daughter and grandson. Matt confirms what Lyle suspects, that his ex son-in-law Reed kidnapped his grandson. Since the current sheriff won't do anything, Matt follows Reed all the way into the Minnesota wilderness to rescue the boy.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.         

8. Verity by Colleen Hoover

Grand Central Publishing

Release date: September 27   

What it's about: For the few of you who haven't read Verity, now is your chance to buy the beautiful new hardcover collector's edition. For those who have read it, you get to read an exclusive extra chapter and letter from the author. Verity, originally published in 2018, tells the creepy story of ghostwriter Lowen, who is hired to complete the series of a bestselling author. Verity Crawford's husband hires Lowen, since Verity is apparently too injured to work. Lowen comes across Verity's heinous autobiography and struggles with what to do with the information, especially once she falls for the husband. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. 

9. Jackal by Erin E. Adams

Bantam

Release date: October 4

What it's about: If you read one thriller this fall, make it Jackal. Liz reluctantly returns to her small hometown in Pennsylvania to attend her best friend Mel's wedding. Things quickly go from gloomy to nightmarish when Mel's young daughter disappears in the town's infamous and possibly haunted woods. Turns out, Liz witnessed the disappearance of another Black girl in the woods years ago. This time she is determined to rescue her friend's daughter. I don't know what is scarier: a possible monster in the woods, or the violent, relentless racism in the town. Either way, I read this thriller that is Get Out meets The Vanishing Half  in one night.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. 

10. Malice House by Megan Shepherd

Hyperion Avenue

Release date: October 4

What it's about: Malice House is a fun horror thriller published by Disney Worldwide Publishing's adult imprint, Hyperion Avenue. If you loved The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert like I did, then this book is for you. Artist Haven returns to her creepy childhood home near Seattle after her estranged father passes away. Her father had always warned her that his famous stories became a little too real for him. Now Haven understands, once she starts illustrating his stories and creatures and dead bodies start popping up in the woodsy town!

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound.

11. It's News to Me by R.G. Belsky

Oceanview Publishing

Release date: October 4 

What it's about: New York college student Riley is murdered near Washington Square Park. But the story is not really about her — it's about the news editor turned TV anchor Clare who breaks the case. Riley seemed like a perfect student, but then why was she hanging out with a notorious crime boss's son, dating the police chief's son, and maintaining a profile on an escort service? Three-time divorcee Clare juggles a new producer while she digs deeper into the case that the police chief deems a random crime.

Get it from Amazon.

12. Blackmail and Bibingka by Mia P. Manansala

Berkley Books

Release date: October 4

What it's about: Lila is busy running Brew-ha Café, her new coffee shop/bakery (think Rose Apothecary), next to her aunt's famous Filipina restaurant Tita Rosie's Kitchen. Reluctantly, she helps Tita Rosie's son, her estranged cousin Ronnie, with his own business venture when he suddenly pops back into town. Lila ends up helping a lot, since Ronnie is soon blackmailed and accused of murdering his business investor. Although she thinks he's a jerk, Lila digs into the case — her third one to date.   

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm. 

13. The Socialite's Guide to Murder by S.K. Golden

Crooked Lane Books

Release date: October 11

What it's about: The Socialite's Guide to Murder is a fun mystery/romance starring a Cher from Clueless/Miss Marple-type heroine. Evelyn lives in her father's swanky New York hotel with her doggie and gets everything she wants from the staff. Her famous friend visits, and then, suddenly, there's a murder in the hotel. Everyone is a suspect, even Evelyn! Although Evelyn has some PTSD and agoraphobia from her mother's death, she resolves to crack the case. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.

14. Lady Joker, Volume 2 by Kaoru Takamura

Soho Crime

Release date: October 18 

What it's about: Lady Joker is a true-crime novel based on the real-life kidnapping and ransom of a huge food corporation president in Japan in 1984. The crime group signed their ransom notes as "The Monster with 21 Faces." Sounds like the plot of a DC movie, but it actually happened. In Lady Joker, award-winning author Kaoru Takamura (dubbed the Grand Dame of Japanese crime fiction) reimagines the story in the '90s, now with Lady Joker as the crime group's alias. Takamura actually published Lady Joker in the '90s, but this is its first English translation.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.  

15. Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan

Minotaur Books

Release date: November 1 

What it's about: Blackwater Falls is an extremely timely and original thriller about murder in the diverse yet culturally clashing town of Blackwater Falls in Colorado. Detective Inaya Rahman is a member of the Community Response Unit, assigned to solve the disturbing murder of a Syrian refugee girl in town while also investigating the possibly racist activity of the sheriff. Inaya joins forces with attorney Areesha, against her boss's orders, once she finds out two Somali girls have also been missing from the town for a while, although no report or search has been made. A story about crime, Blackwater Falls also starkly examines the pressures Muslim American women face, like getting married and wearing Hijab in public. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.     

16. The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett

Flatiron Books

Release date: November 8

What it's about: The Resemblance is Nossett's fiction debut, set in a frat-heavy college town in Athens, Georgia. Detective Marlitt Kaplan is visiting her professor mother on campus when she almost witnesses the hit and run of a well-known frat boy. Shockingly, witnesses say the driver looked just like the victim. Kaplan's infamous, almost obsessive hatred for frats (who can blame her) threatens her chances of solving the case. However, her determined digging slowly unearths just how dangerous it can be to fit in with a fraternity. Fans of The Likeness will also like The Resemblance.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.   

17. Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger

Park Row

Release date: November 8 

What it's about: Although Lisa Unger is a prolific thriller author, Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six is her first book I've read. Hannah's charismatic brother insists that she and her husband join him and his wife plus one other couple at an ostentatious luxury cabin for a getaway weekend. The trip is tense due to secrets between the wives and their overworked husbands. Tension is added with a creepy rental host and anonymous threatening texts. Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six is a quick read, similar to Harlan Coben's The Match and The Stranger.

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.     

18. Never Name the Dead by D.M. Rowell

Crooked Lane Books

Release date: November 8

What it's about: Never Name the Dead is an emotional #OwnVoices thriller from debut Native Kiowa author D.M. Rowell (Koyh Mi O Boy Dah). Mae (known as Mud in her Kiowa community) leaves her successful Northern California business to help her grandfather James in her hometown of Oklahoma. James is missing when Mae arrives, but a bunch of unwelcome people pop up: frackers, legislators, and museum curators. Mae teams up with her cousin Denny in order to both keep the dead body in James' house a secret from the town and to figure out where their grandfather is. Never Name the Dead weaves a tale of timely Native issues like fracking and poverty with a breathless mystery. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.  

19. Dark Rivers to Cross by Lynne Reeves

Crooked Lane Books

Release date: November 8

What it's about: Lena, mom of two college-age boys, keeps herself busy by working at her secluded lodge in Maine. Now that her adopted sons are in their 20s, she can no longer stop them from finding out where they came from. Luke is fine working at the cabins and with the guests, but he's eventually dragged into the search by his determined brother Jonah. Even Lena realizes the truth will come out once her old friend unexpectedly stops by the inn, but no one is prepared for how dangerous the consequences will be. 

Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie book store via Indiebound. You can also try the audiobook version through Libro.fm.  

20. Doomed Legacy by Matt Coyle

Oceanview Publishing

Release date: November 15

What it's about: Poor Rick Cahill. He is suffering from trauma-induced health issues from his years as a private investigator and cop. Against his wife's wishes, he gets involved in a private investigation involving his client Sara, who was recently murdered. Cahill travels up and down the California coast, from his hometown in San Diego to his wife's parent's home in Santa Barbara, trying to figure out what Sara's employer had to do with her murder. 

Get it from your local indie book store via Indiebound.