Top 100 Mysteries & Thrillers on Goodreads

Posted by Hayley on March 15, 2018
Culprits, spies, bad guys, and women with vendettas: There's something so very satisfying about spending your time with the criminal element. And by that, we mean following the clues and solving the capers when you sit down with a great mystery or thriller. Always in search of a great book, Goodreads recently set out to uncover your 100 most-loved thrillers and mysteries.

There are, of course, rules to this game. Namely, every one of these books has at least a 4.0 rating from the Goodreads community. That means it's a bit of a popularity contest; for example Gone Girl is represented with a 4.04 rating, but another girl—Girl on a Train—just misses the list at 3.89. Then there are the usual suspects you won't find on this list: The Maltese Falcon (3.92), Angels & Demons (3.87), and Strangers on a Train (3.81) among others. It may seem brutal, but the readers have spoken.

Of course, many of your favorite writers have stayed with a character for a while, so in the cases of serialized mysteries and thrillers, we picked the books that, again, are over 4.0 and have the largest number of ratings.

It's time to unveil the top 100 Mysteries & Thrillers on Goodreads, arranged in alphabetical order. How many have you read? Tell us in the comments.








































































































Tell us how many you've read in the comments!

Check out the complete coverage of Mystery & Thriller Week:
Spring's Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers
'My Favorite Murder' Podcast Hosts Share Their Favorite True-Crime Reads
The Best Mystery & Thriller Adaptations Since Gone Girl


Comments Showing 201-250 of 949 (949 new)


message 201: by Alana (new)

Alana 26


message 202: by Rachel (new)

Rachel 34


message 203: by Bob (new)

Bob Neumann I’ve only read 38 of these books. 9 of them twice.
Every day it seems Goodreads sends me a notification that I have finished a book. Most I have in my library, but I’ve never read them. Never even started them. But several I’ve never heard of. I’ve had to add books to the goodreads lists because they are too new. I really like it when I’m one of the first 5 reviews.


message 204: by Barbara (new)

Barbara Kellogg I've read 49


message 205: by Shirlee (new)

Shirlee 38


message 206: by Kruemi (new)

Kruemi 32


message 207: by Nancy (new)

Nancy Taylor 52 and maybe a few more of the older ones, I can't remember


message 208: by Marilyn (new)

Marilyn Singer 42, but I have re-read Sherlock Holmes and Laurie R. King's "The Beekeepers Apprentice".


message 209: by William (new)

William Peterson 25 confirmed, 3 probable. Hard to believe "The Maltese Falcon" failed to make the cut.


message 210: by Kathryn (new)

Kathryn Gioffre 30


message 211: by Melanie (new)

Melanie 13 read and several more in my queue.


message 212: by Sally (new)

Sally Channing 23


message 213: by Carol (new)

Carol 18 at least - loved all of them!


message 214: by Stacy (new)

Stacy Only 16:(


message 215: by Anne (new)

Anne Goldsmith 45


message 216: by Cyndy (new)

Cyndy 37 --


message 217: by Alf (new)

Alf Goodall Read 8 and seen some movie adaptations.


message 218: by Nancy (new)

Nancy Have read 46


message 219: by Adrienne (new)

Adrienne 56


message 220: by Kathleen (new)

Kathleen Milsark 39. And lots of new ideas.


message 221: by Matthew (new)

Matthew at least 26 and I think some more but cant recall


message 222: by Lonny (new)

Lonny Johnson 23, maybe a couple more. Couldn't decide if I read the book or just saw the movie.


message 223: by LynnB (new)

LynnB About 30, I haven't been keeping track. Thanks for the good ideas!


message 224: by Peggy (new)

Peggy 25


message 225: by Judy (new)

Judy I love that Crocodile on the Sandbank is on here, but nothing by Ruth Rendell?!?


message 226: by Paul (new)

Paul 25


message 227: by Lee (new)

Lee Goodridge 22 with a lot on my Want to Read list


message 228: by Georgina (new)

Georgina Arrieta Solo he leído 3, tengo mucho material para intentar descubrir al culpable


message 229: by Susan (new)

Susan Ras 26


message 230: by Thomas (new)

Thomas Fitzsimmons I've read at least 25, probably more. Some of these authors I gave up on years ago and don't remember which one of their books I read. Some of my favorites on this list.


message 231: by Sherry (new)

Sherry Howard 40 read over the years


message 232: by Bryan (new)

Bryan 20


message 233: by Ian (new)

Ian Reay 42 to date....


message 234: by Iris Ellwood (new)

Iris Ellwood I have read 12


message 235: by Anne (new)

Anne 24


message 236: by Bernadette (new)

Bernadette 35 read and loved most of them. Biggest disappointment was Gone Girl. Anything by Louise Penny is the best.


message 237: by June (new)

June Andrews 43


message 238: by Peter (new)

Peter I'm surprised that I've read 15 of these books, because I'm not really a fan of the genre. But I'm very happy to see "The devotion of suspect X" on the list: the exception that confirms the rule that there are 13 thrillers in a dozen. ;o)


message 239: by Shikha (new)

Shikha Mehta 14


message 240: by Carmela (new)

Carmela 19. And many more to read


message 241: by Jackie (new)

Jackie 26 read and a few more on my TBR list.


message 242: by Lisa (new)

Lisa I have read 40!


message 243: by Kim (new)

Kim Rumrey 42 read


message 244: by Laura (new)

Laura 27!


message 245: by Patti (new)

Patti Moore OK, I must be missing something. In the top 100 mysteries/ thrillers, there is not a single Mitch Rapp (Vince Flynn) book? That can't be right! Every single one of those books scores well past 4 on the 1-5 scale. Ditto Daniel Silva, Jeffrey Deaver, Nelson deMille, Brad Thor, etc. etc. etc.
There must be a separate category for these books (although they are typically all categorized as mysteries/thrillers).
Hopefully you'll reply, and then I'll go through and figure out how many of the books currently classified as mystery/thriller I've read.


message 246: by Kristen (new)

Kristen I have read 40.


message 247: by John (new)

John McDermott 31


message 248: by Sally Lounsbury (new)

Sally Lounsbury 43


message 249: by Deb Page (new)

Deb Page 20


message 250: by iain (new)

iain  finlayson Just 18 for me


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