By Hailey Boehme

Dark turns, mystery, unsolved investigations, self-discovery, confusion, not being able to set the book down. Beware, these thriller novels will have you questioning everything.

Lisa Jewell’s Then She Was Gone

Lisa Jewell’s Then She Was Gone novel is a fast-paced thriller and mystery. In the beginning, the plot is revealed like many other books of this genre.

A young girl has gone missing, her family is struck with grief, and the police are at a loss for what may have happened. After years of investigation, the main character, Laurel Mack, must come to terms with the fact that her daughter, Ellie, has run away.

Everyone in Laurel’s life seems to move on, but she can’t. The effects of this are seen in her failed marriage and distance from her remaining two children.

It seems Laurel will never be the same again when she finally meets a charming man named Floyd at a café. Floyd is a single father of a small child named Poppy.

Laurel is drawn to Poppy, and for a good reason. Poppy reminds her of Ellie, her blonde hair, the way she smells, and other physical features.
Dazed by these realizations, Laurel begins to start an investigation of her own. As she works to uncover facts about Ellie’s disappearance, she is shocked by many chilling discoveries.

The ending was great, and the suspense led up perfectly right until the last page. This book was one that I could not put down and found myself thinking of the characters throughout my day as they seemed to become real people in my mind through the brilliant descriptions.

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys dark turns.

Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn had me questioning everything as my opinions of the characters constantly shifted. The book has an alternating perspective from charming Nick Dunne and his beautiful wife Amy Dunne.

Amy is a New York girl who had her life uprooted when Nick’s mother was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. The couple moved to Nick’s hometown in Missouri with no jobs, no friends, and for Amy, no family.

The scene is set on the Dunne’s fifth anniversary, which also happens to be the day Amy goes missing. When Nick returns home he finds his house a mess, complete with a overturned coffee table.

In the process of the investigation, Nick becomes one of the main suspects. The story develops perfectly, leaving you guessing who was truly innocent.

As the narration shifts from Amy’s diary entries and Nick’s stoic reaction to his missing wife, Gillian Flynn picks apart relationship norms, feminism, misogyny, true love, and revenge.

Even after finishing this novel, my head spun for days – in the best way. I wished for the story to continue but was only left with my imagination to guess how the character’s lives might advance with the dark discoveries that were made.

Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train

Paula Hawkins’ psychological thriller The Girl on the Train was yet again another mind boggling read. As the title states, Rachel is the girl on the train. Every day she commutes from her apartment to the city, passing by tons of houses.

One house in particular always catches her eye though, there is a seemingly perfect couple, typically seen enjoying the morning on their deck.

Rachel feels as though she knows them so well that she names them Jess and Jason.

One day, Rachel witnesses something she is not supposed to – an affair. Shortly after, Jess goes missing.

Unsure what to do with the information she has, Rachel goes to the police. The police, however, have reasons not to trust Rachel’s judgement.

This book will leave you stuck wondering who is reliable. From each perspective of the characters, you will be equally convinced that they are trustworthy, but not everyone can be right in this investigation.

So, who will it be? The drunk girl on the train, the shady husband, the suspicious therapist, the odd neighbor, or an outside job?