Amazon Editors’ 2026 Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Novels

FRUIT FLY, Josh Silver
BIG LITTLE TRUTHS, Liane Moriarty
A VIOLENT MASTERPIECE, Jordan Harper
NIGHT OBJECTS, Eli Raphael
THE AMATEUR, Chris Bohjalian
THE FRENCH ILLUSION, John Grisham
COOL MACHINE, Colson Whitehead
WHIDBEY, T. Kara Madden
THE INTRIGUE, Silvia Moreno-Garcia
FREYJA, Margret Ann Thors
BEFORE YOU WERE ANNE, Emiko Jean
YESTERYEAR, Caro Claire Burke
THE KEEPER, Tana French
A BAD, BAD PLACE, Frances Crawford
SOMEONE ELSE’S HUSBAND, Kimberly McCreight
FIVE, Ilona Bannister
WE CHASE SHADOWS, Richard Osman
MAD MABEL, Sally Hepworth
THE SECRET DINNER, Raphael Montes
MURDER AT THE GRAND ALPINE HOTEL, Lucy Foley

Amazon Editors’ 2026 Best Series Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Novels

THE TAILOR, Tim Sullivan
BIG LITTLE TRUTHS, Liane Moriarty
OTHER WORLDS THAN THESE, Stephen King
THE SECRETS WE HIDE, Karin Slaughter
WE CHASE SHADOWS, Richard Osman
CHAIN REACTION, Lee Child & Andrew Child
THE FIRST TIME I SAW HIM, Laura Dave
MISS WOLCOTT’S GHOST, Louise Penny
COOL MACHINE, Colson Whitehead
IRONWOOD, Michael Connelly
ALL THE LITTLE SECRETS, May Cobb
THE KEEPER, Tana French
WE WILL SEE YOU BLEED, Ron Currie
OFF THE RESERVATION, Stephen Graham Jones
TRUTH TO POWER: a Luke Cage Marvel Crime Novel, S. A. Cosby

I’m a bit confused by these two lists. At first glance I thought that the first list was standalone novels and the second list series entries, but there are three books on the first list that appear on the second list as well (Moriarty, French and Whitehead).

Overall, many of the titles listed are ones that are appearing on other best of the year lists so the amazon editors have done a better job of the annual lists than they did with their monthly editors’ picks.