“Gripping Thriller with a Killer Twist you won’t see coming”....

[ComfortablyGlum]

Is anyone else sick to death nearly every crime genre fiction novel being given the above description...? And has anyone ever actually read a book that lives up to it?

The reason it hacks me off is I’m so damn gullible that I buy all these books and NOT ONCE has the book ever been more than mildly interesting and I’ve usually guessed ‘the twist’ by about page 4.

I’d love, for once, to finish a novel I genuinely would call gripping and be totally gobsmacked with a clever plot twist. My kindle is sick of being slammed down in disgust every time I finish yet another disappointing tome. Hit me with your recommendations!

[ZenNudist]

I wouldnt buy anything with this description. Ditto anythubg that describes itself in relation to another previously popular book. It is unlikely to be as good as the book its saying its like.

Its rare to find a decent crime novel / thriller that isnt hackneyed generic and badly written. I love kate atkinsons crime novels and jk rowling / robert gilbraith but presumably you've read those.

I very much enjoyed the Circle by Dave Eggars, it is really compelling. Tech sort of thriller so maybe not your thing.

[HollowTalk]

I've sent you a PM, OP.

That's a bit unfair, though, Zen. The author has no say whatsoever in how their book is marketed. That genre is heavily populated and the marketing departments seem to find it easier to say, "If you like Gone Girl..." etc. It's only like you saying, "I love Kate Atkinson..." in a way.

I agree with the OP, though, that many of the twists can be seen a mile off, but then not all the books are the same. Some are written quickly and not edited well, others are much better.

[Hideandgo]

Yes, one book sticks in my mind. Sister by Rosamund Lupton.

[ZenNudist]

Hollow please share recommendations i love a good thriller but its by and large impossible to find good ones.

[HollowTalk]

I really liked Sister.

People who are doing really well at the moment are Fiona Barton, Shari Lapena and Clare Mackintosh. I liked Sharon Bolton's The Craftsman. Have a look at Holly Seddon and Gillian McAllister. I really liked Sarah Vaughan's Anatomy of a Scandal, too.

[Gladys123]

Oh yes Fiona Barton is fab. She tends to concentrate on the crime and how its solved rather than rambling g on about the detective's/journalist's boring love life or lack thereof. Can't wait for her next one.

[HollowTalk]

I've met her a few times and she's really lovely and very interesting to talk to.

[ourkidmolly]

What's even more annoying is when they have other authors' recommendations. I'm gullible too.

[StealthPolarBear]

Getting on this thread

[tobee]

Yes! Also all the characters are the same. Women who are about 33, have given up jobs in advertising/marketing, to care for young children who are all called Theo/Molly or similar, may or may not have post natal depression, very white middle class lives, but have right on views, don't have a good relationship with their mother, might have gone to oxbridge, have alpha workaholic husbands who they used to have fantastic drunken sex with before kids, now get wine and food from fantastic deli to share with their best friend etc etc. Yawn!

PS I thought Sister was not great too. I listened on audible and the narrator had an irritating voice!

[HollowTalk]

The author of Sister probably didn't have any say on which actress was used on Audible, though. I know that ruins a book, but the author shouldn't be blamed for that.

I don't think you're describing psychological suspense there!

[tobee]

I'm not blaming the author for the choice of narrator!

[tobee]

I meant to write "but then I listened on audible..."

[HollowTalk]

Oh sorry! It's just you see on Audible a poor review when it's the narrator they dislike more than the story.

[tobee]

Hollow

[buttybuttybutthole]

Try Belinda Bauer 😑

[mostdays]

They need to do away with those descriptions entirely, they are very, very irritating (and very, very rarely accurate). Since someone on here explained that the author has no say regarding the stupid taglines, I try really hard not to be put off by them, but tbh I think at times I still am.

My friend says Leila Slimani's books are what you're after. No idea whether or not she's right though!

[Hygge]

Very rarely does a book live up to that kind of description for me.

I either see the 'twist' coming a mile off or the 'twist' has been shoehorned in but doesn't ring true or fit the rest of the book.

I would rather a well written book that fails to surprise than a badly written forced 'Scooby Doo' ending. It was her twin sister all along!

Did we know she had a twin sister? No. Has anything in the book hinted at her having a twin sister? No. Does it feel like the author got stuck and threw in a character they hadn't thought of until they were in the last chapter and desperate? Yes.

Sophie Hannah is top of my list for unbelievable endings that ruin the book, and more recently Ruth Ware has been a disappointment. PJ Delaney is a third. I read his first book (The Girl Before) and won't ever read another by him, it was bloody awful and completely predictable. It was just full of nasty sex and miserable women. I ordered one called Copycat by Alex Lake and it was terrible, not believable at all.

I don't always agree with the "If you liked X you will love Y" for books either.

I avoided The Hunger Games for months because of a sticker on it that said "If you liked Twilight..." I hated Twilight. The Hunger Games is nothing like Twilight.

Authors and books I have liked and who I have found to deliver a good story and enjoyable twists (even if I've guessed some of them) have been:

Jane Harper - Force of Nature.

Gillian McAllister - Anything You Do Say - not so much for the twist as for the Sliding Doors style it's told in. You get to see what happens when the main character dials 999 and what happens when she doesn't.

Mary Torjussen - The Girl I Used To Be & Gone Without A Trace - both very good, and she's a MNer, and we used to email a bit and she's lovely to talk to. I'm already impatiently waiting for her next one.

Nicci French is usually excellent, I'd recommend every book. I've loved the Freida Klein series but I'd like some more stand alone books like in the early days as well.

[Acrasia]

I hate this too, because as soon as I know this I spent the who time guessing the twist! Once you know there is one it is usually obvious.

I really disliked the Shari Lapena boom I read because the narrator was inside the head of one of the characters who was panicking about the opening event (I am trying to be vague enough not to spoiler it) but the twist about a third of the way in was that the character had arranged for it to happen. You know what would have made a more interesting book? One that explored that character’s actual feelings when loved ones around them were panicking, or having Crime & Punishment type paranoia. I really like the premise of a org of her books but am worried that it will be a let down too! On the other hand, I leant the book to my Mum and Step Dad and they both loved it.

[Acrasia]

Boom? Book! I knew I should have previewed the post before posting

[slipperyeel]

Barbara Vine is a good antidote to this

If I see a book described as “perfect for fans of...” it’s probably one to avoid

[lucysnowe]

Oh God yes! why do all the Kindle titles have this godawful subtitle that tbh always puts me off! There's also the ones like 'The Little Cupcake Shop Near the Sea - a heart warming feelgood romance that will warm you toes and make you feel better about life' or similar.

[Kaz2200]

Hi can any give any recommendations on Kindle unlimited as most of these recommendations seem quite expensive.

[Hygge]

The Boy On The Bridge is 99p on Kindle today Kaz.

It's set in the same world as the the one that The Girl With All The Gifts was set in but I'm not sure if you have to have read one to read the other.

It's a sort of post-apocalypse book where a virus has made people zombie-like.

Have you signed up for Kindle deal of the day? If you can be patient a lot of good books come up for 99p if you can wait for them.

[whoami24601]

I can recommend the Malbry trilogy by Joanne Harris. Absolutely brilliantly written