The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins
A commuter who watches a couple from her train window is drawn in when the woman goes missing.
All books-like lists
Books like Gone Girl
Gone Girl follows a husband under suspicion after his wife vanishes on their anniversary, told in two alternating voices. These seven psychological thrillers bring suspense, secrets and the unease of ordinary homes.
Books to read next
The Silent Patient
Alex Michaelides
A painter shoots her husband and then stops speaking altogether, and a therapist is determined to learn why.
Big Little Lies
Liane Moriarty
Parents at a seaside school near Sydney head toward a death at a trivia night, with plenty of wry humor on the way.
Sharp Objects
Gillian Flynn
A reporter returns to her small Missouri hometown to cover the murders of young girls, in the author's darker debut that includes self-harm.
Behind Closed Doors
B.A. Paris
A successful lawyer and his wife look like the perfect couple, in a disturbing story of domestic abuse.
Before I Go to Sleep
S.J. Watson
A woman wakes every morning with no memory of her life and relies on a journal to piece it together.
Rebecca
Daphne du Maurier
A young bride moves into her husband's grand estate, overshadowed by the memory of his first wife, in a slow-burning 1938 gothic.
How to choose
Decide what you want more of. For a fast, plot-driven page-turner, start with The Girl on the Train or Before I Go to Sleep. For a darker, moodier story from Flynn herself, try her debut, Sharp Objects. If you liked the sharp social observation, Big Little Lies has plenty of wry humor. The Silent Patient is built around a single question. Behind Closed Doors deals with domestic abuse and Sharp Objects with self-harm, so check the content notes if those are hard for you. Rebecca is the classic ancestor of the genre: older and slower, and the pick when you want atmosphere over speed. Several of these work best when you know as little as possible, so stick to the jacket copy.
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