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Original poster

Favourite Lisa Jewell thrillers and other thriller recommendations?

65 replies

Bobbieiris · 17/07/2026 16:34

Reading 'invisible girl' at the moment and before that read 'dont let him in'. I never read a thriller before having my twins 2 years ago and now I love them, they're just pure escapism! I've read most of Lisa Jewells thrillers now....favourites were 'the night she disappeared" and "watching you'. Wasn't that keen on "and then she was gone' or 'the family upstairs' but still quite enjoyable.
I also really love Ruth Ware.
What are your favourite Lisa jewell thrillers or just thrillers in general? And different authors you would recommend?

OP posts:
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StrawberryMatchaLatte · 29/07/2026 10:49

I love Lisa Jewell, also her earlier works that are more "chicklit" style. Favourites are Ralph's Party, A Friend of the Family and The Family Upstairs and the sequel. Other thriller authors I like are Shari Lapena, Clare Douglas ( a bit wordy and drawn out, but ok), Freida McFadden and TM Logan.

Abracadabra12345 · 27/07/2026 13:15

Have you ever tried the Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths? Ruth is a forensic anthropologist so very different but if you want to stretch your horizons a bit, I’d recommend

Or the brilliant Strike series by Robert Galbraith ( JK Rowling). He’s a private detective, she’s initially his temp admin assistant. Excellent quality writing and engaging whodunnit stories

alwaystiredoftenwired · 26/07/2026 10:51

Any by Jenny blackhurst, dark, twisty, awesome!
strange sally diamond by liz Nugent, so good!
Also any by
tm Logan
kl slater
Fiona Barton
Gillian Flynn
Clare mackintosh
Jp Delaney
Claire McGowan

Original poster
Bobbieiris · 26/07/2026 09:25

Some really great recommendations thank you 😊 my kindle is getting nice and full

OP posts:
LoafofSellotape · 24/07/2026 21:27

ElephantGrey101 · 24/07/2026 20:47

My favourite Lisa Jewel is The House We Grew Up In. It is still very thrilling but a bit different to some of her others as it about a family where the mum has a hoarding disorder ( and very relatable as someone in that situation).

It is lovely to have recommendations for similar books. I have recently read a few by Alice Feeney which I have enjoyed.

Absolutely loved that book.

ElephantGrey101 · 24/07/2026 20:47

My favourite Lisa Jewel is The House We Grew Up In. It is still very thrilling but a bit different to some of her others as it about a family where the mum has a hoarding disorder ( and very relatable as someone in that situation).

It is lovely to have recommendations for similar books. I have recently read a few by Alice Feeney which I have enjoyed.

ZanyMaker · 24/07/2026 19:53

I agree with others who have said ‘None of This is True’ and ‘Then She Was Gone’ by LJ. I’ve also read ‘Invisible Girl’ and ‘Watching You’ which were both decent but not as good as the other two.

My author recommendations of similar ilk are Charlie Donlea and Alex Finlay - both very good.

MagicThanks · 23/07/2026 22:10

Katherine Faulkner and Audrey Audrain are great, also Claire Douglas

MagicThanks · 23/07/2026 22:09

I love Lisa Jewell, my two favourites, apart from the one you already read (Don’t Let Him In) are The House We Grew Up In and The Family Upstairs

Cheese55 · 23/07/2026 21:39

I used to love Nikki French until the psychologist series. She was like a one dimensional character so stopped reading them.

AHGiraffe · 23/07/2026 20:20

Loving this thread for all the recommendations,
OP maybe try Verity if you haven’t already as the film is coming out in October I believe.
I also loved The Vipers by Katy Hays. A good mystery/thriller for summer as set in Capri.

EllaPaella · 20/07/2026 08:14

Have you tried the Nikki French books? All brilliant - not so keen on the series about the psychologist but all the others are great.

LoafofSellotape · 19/07/2026 22:44

Chubbychubber · 19/07/2026 19:32

My mistake apologies.

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I only googled because I got all excited there was a sequel 😂

Chubbychubber · 19/07/2026 19:32

EineReiseDurchDieZeit · 19/07/2026 18:39

@Chubbychubber I didn’t know that the Family Remains was a sequel so thank you

Edited : it’s not a sequel to The House We Grew Up In, it’s the sequel to the Family Upstairs

Edited

My mistake apologies.

LoafofSellotape · 19/07/2026 19:18

Chubbychubber · 19/07/2026 18:34

The House we grew up in and its sequel The Family Renains I loved.
Ive just read 2 KL Slater books. They were good.

The house we grew up in is a stand alone book. Just had to double check as I have read both.

EineReiseDurchDieZeit · 19/07/2026 18:39

@Chubbychubber I didn’t know that the Family Remains was a sequel so thank you

Edited : it’s not a sequel to The House We Grew Up In, it’s the sequel to the Family Upstairs

Chubbychubber · 19/07/2026 18:34

The House we grew up in and its sequel The Family Renains I loved.
Ive just read 2 KL Slater books. They were good.

TourdeCrema · 19/07/2026 18:24

I read the third wife by lLisa Jewell

ive jyst read a Nikki smith book and enjoyed it, the last place you look

istherereallytimeforallthat · 19/07/2026 18:23

@Worriednanof1 If I ever get around to finishing it, I'll let you know!

By the way, should people like thrillers, I would recommend Dick Francis.

Worriednanof1 · 19/07/2026 18:14

istherereallytimeforallthat · 19/07/2026 12:47

The premise is (very) loosely based on something a former work colleague once told me about something that actually happened in real life. It has been quietly lurking in my brain for decades. The murders and the come-uppance are my invention though. 😂

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Sounds interesting!!

istherereallytimeforallthat · 19/07/2026 12:47

Worriednanof1 · 19/07/2026 10:07

I would love to do that! I fear all my ideas would be based on something i had already read, or a combination of books i've read if that makes sense.

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The premise is (very) loosely based on something a former work colleague once told me about something that actually happened in real life. It has been quietly lurking in my brain for decades. The murders and the come-uppance are my invention though. 😂

Worriednanof1 · 19/07/2026 12:04

Noelle Ihli is very good! I can't put hers down. Apologies if already mentioned.

candyfloss06 · 19/07/2026 11:39

Mumofyellows · 19/07/2026 11:31

I love the earlier books too, and love that they were written before smartphones and internet was such a huge part of life, somehow it makes it nostalgic not having references to social media etc.

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Completely agree. No mention of smartphones in the earlier books, the sense of time and place was also top class in these books. Ingenious they way they wrote separate chapters and then sent them to each other to review!

candyfloss06 · 19/07/2026 11:36

Judystilldreamsofhorses · 19/07/2026 10:08

@candyfloss06 i reread all the early Nicci French books a couple of years ago, they were so good and just what I needed at the time.

They are brilliant aren’t they. I have kept all the Nicci French books, but I often go back to the earlier ones for a repeat read and they are excellent.

Mumofyellows · 19/07/2026 11:31

candyfloss06 · 18/07/2026 12:13

Yes, definitely agree, these two writers are excellent. Also really enjoy Nicci French (especially the earlier novels from them)

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I love the earlier books too, and love that they were written before smartphones and internet was such a huge part of life, somehow it makes it nostalgic not having references to social media etc.