Mystery/Thriller/Horror Recommendations

[mupt02]

Here is the place for all those mystery/thriller/horror books that you just can't wait to share.

Please add a summary of each book, so those that are interested can find out a little more.  Also, please just add new recommendations and not posts that just say "I agree" and "I like that one too".  It will make it a lot easier for everyone to sort through the posts.

[frugalmommy]

I really enjoyed the book Heartsick by Chelsea Cain.

[4whynot]

Tess Gerritsen's Jane Rizzolia and Maura Isles series!  I loved these books.
The Surgeon,

In her most masterful novel of medical suspense, New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen creates a villain of unforgettable evil--and the one woman who can catch him before he kills again.He slips into their homes at night and walks silently into bedrooms where women lie sleeping, unaware of the horrors they soon will endure. The precision of the killer's methods suggests he is a deranged man of medicine, propelling the Boston newspapers and the frightened public to name him "The Surgeon."The cops' only clue rests with another surgeon, the victim of a nearly identical crime. Two years ago, Dr. Catherine Cordell fought back and killed her attacker before he could complete his assault. Now she hides her fears of intimacy behind a cool and elegant exterior and a well-earned reputation as a top trauma surgeon. Cordell's careful facade is about to crack as this new killer recreates, with chilling accuracy, the details of Cordell's own ordeal. With every new murder he seems to be taunting her, cutting ever closer, from her hospital to her home. Her only comfort comes from Thomas Moore, the detective assigned to the case. But even Moore cannot protect Cordell from a brilliant hunter who somehow understands--and savors--the secret fears of every woman he kills.Filled with the authentic detail that is the trademark of this doctor turned author . . . and peopled with rich and complex characters--from the ER to the squad room to the city morgue--here is a thriller of unprecedented depth and suspense. Exposing the shocking link between those who kill and cure, punish and protect, The Surgeon is Tess Gerritsen's most exciting accomplishment yet.From the Hardcover edition.

The Apprentice

The Sinner
 
Body Double

Boston medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles literally meets her match–and must face a savage serial killer and shattering personal revelations–in the brilliant new novel of suspense by the New York Times bestselling author of The Surgeon and The Sinner. Dr. Maura Isles makes her living dealing with death. As a pathologist in a major metropolitan city, she has seen more than her share of corpses every day–many of them victims of violent murder. But never before has her blood run cold, and never has the grim expression “dead ringer” rung so terrifyingly true. Because never before has the lifeless body on the medical examiner’s table been her own. Yet there can be no denying the mind-reeling evidence before her shocked eyes and those of her colleagues, including Detective Jane Rizzoli: the woman found shot to death outside Maura’s home is the mirror image of Maura, down to the most intimate physical nuances. Even more chilling is the discovery that they share the same birth date and blood type. For the stunned Maura, an only child, there can be just one explanation. And when a DNA test confirms that Maura’s mysterious doppelgänger is in fact her twin sister, an already bizarre murder investigation becomes a disturbing and dangerous excursion into a past full of dark secrets. Searching for answers, Maura is drawn to a seaside town in Maine where other horrifying surprises await. But perhaps more frightening, an unknown murderer is at large on a cross-country killing spree. To stop the massacre and uncover the twisted truth about her own roots, Maura must probe her first living subject: the mother that she never knew . . . an icy and cunning woman who could be responsible for giving Maura life–and who just may have a plan to take it away.

Vanish

The Mephisto Club. 
Evil exists. Evil walks the streets. And evil has spawned a diabolical new disciple in this white-knuckle thriller from New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen. "PECCAVI"The Latin word is scrawled in blood at the scene of a young woman's brutal murder: I HAVE SINNED. It's a chilling Christmas greeting for Boston medical examiner Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, who swiftly link the victim to controversial celebrity psychiatrist Joyce O'Donnell-Jane's professional nemesis and member of a sinister cabal called the Mephisto Club. On top of Beacon Hill, the club's acolytes devote themselves to the analysis of evil: Can it be explained by science? Does it have a physical presence? Do demons walk the earth? Drawing on a wealth of dark historical data and mysterious religious symbolism, the Mephisto scholars aim to prove a startling theory: that Satan himself exists among us. With the grisly appearance of a corpse on their doorstep, it's clear that someone-or something-is indeed prowling the city. The members of the club begin to fear the very subject of their study. Could this maniacal killer be one of their own-or have they inadvertently summoned an evil entity from the darkness? Delving deep into the most baffling and unusual case of their careers, Maura and Jane embark on a terrifying journey to the very heart of evil, where they encounter a malevolent foe more dangerous than any they have ever faced . . . one whose work is only just beginning

[Jes425]

I recently read "Heart Shaped Box" by Joe Hill. It was very good. It was about a man who collected strange things. His assistant draws his attention to a suit on the internet that is supposedly haunted. He bids on it and wins. I won't tell anymore,but it was very very good. Also,I didn't know this until after I read it,but the author is actually Stephen King's son!!

[grandmasix]

HAVE NOT READ ANY MYSTERY OR THRILLERS BUT WILL CHECK SOME OF THESE OUT FOR A GOOD READ.  THXS

[knoxmom96]

I enjoyed Heart Shaped Box, too and I'm on the hold list for his book of short stories. Right now I'm reading the Brock & Kolla mysteries by Barry Maitland (sometimes listed as Kathy & Brock mysteries). Crime thrillers set in England.

[j_l_b]

by captswife320 on Aug. 29, 2007 at 8:56 PM

Anything by Iris Johansen about her "Eve Duncan" character.  She is a strong, vivid character.  She is a forensic sculptor (she puts a face on unidentified skulls that are found), which she became after her own young daughter was kidnapped and presumed killed.  Her daughter was never found, so she tried to give closure to other families through her work.  She is the best in the country at her job, so she gets high profile gigs that often lead to trouble. 

genre:  mystery/suspense

also like Sandra Brown's mystery/suspense novels, and Robert Crais' "Elvis Cole" novels

[j_l_b]

by kgray1396 on Aug. 30, 2007 at 2:28 PM

Here's another series I've read many, many times:

Title:  Stephanie Plum Series

Author: Janet Evanovich

Genre: Mystery/Thriller (Humor)

Brief Summary: Stephanie Plum has lost her job as a department store lingerie buyer and out of desperation, takes on the job as bounty hunter to pay the rent.  She has more luck than skill and hilarious hi-jinks happen.  Her family, especially Grandma Mazur, are highly entertaining as are her co-workers.  The two men in her life are incredibly sexy and irresistable in completely different ways and it's impossible for her to choose between them.

If you're looking for a quick light-hearted read this is it because once you pick one up is nearly impossible to put down till the last page.  I've found myself laughing so hard I woke my husband because the bed was shaking!

[4whynot]

Just finished Quicksand and didn't see the ending coming at all!

Quoting j_l_b:

by captswife320 on Aug. 29, 2007 at 8:56 PM

Anything by Iris Johansen about her "Eve Duncan" character.  She is a strong, vivid character.  She is a forensic sculptor (she puts a face on unidentified skulls that are found), which she became after her own young daughter was kidnapped and presumed killed.  Her daughter was never found, so she tried to give closure to other families through her work.  She is the best in the country at her job, so she gets high profile gigs that often lead to trouble. 

genre:  mystery/suspense

also like Sandra Brown's mystery/suspense novels, and Robert Crais' "Elvis Cole" novels

[4whynot]

Anything by John Sanford.  His Prey series with  Detectivce Lucas Davenport is amazing.  He is one author that is not at all predicable! 

[jlborchers]

I loved Stephen King's "Bag of Bones."  It was surprisingly romantic.  Of course it had supernatural stuff, but  the romance between the middle-age man and the young single mother made the story!