Books with Irresistible Plot Twists
I love a good plot twist. When I read a book that my mom would classify as “just a nice story,” I find that I’ll still try and solve a mystery or create conflict out of thin air. It does make those stories a little less enjoyable, but only because I’m trying to create something that’s not meant to be there. I just always find myself gravitating back to those book with irresistible plot twists.
I posted a reel on my Instagram, sharing my favorite thrillers. I affectionately called it “My Favorite WTF Just Happened Books”. Reels can be so limiting, and I have so many more favorites, so we’re here.
Books with Irresistible Plot Twists
AKA My Favorite WTF Just Happened Books
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
This was one of those books that I finished and needed to immediately give to someone else so that I could talk about it. None of This is True absolutely knocked me off my feet. I feel like I can’t even say too much about it without giving things away. Just take my word for it that you’ll love this book.
Honestly, you could read anything by Lisa Jewell and love it. Another of hers that I love is The Family Upstairs (great if you like cults).
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
I read this book for the first time soon after a breakup. The dude wasn’t a reader, and I had given that part of my life up for a while. The Good Girl is the book that made me fall back in love with reading. I absolutely devoured it, and bought copies for all of my family and friends so that they would read it too.
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
If you’ve been living under a rock, you might not know that Where the Crawdads Sing is a WTF kind of book. (Spoiler alert: Read the poetry!) The movie does the book a fair bit of justice, but we all know the book is always better.
Defending Jacob by William Landay
This book actually surprised me! It is the first audiobook I have started and finished, so I couldn’t scroll ahead to spoil the ending. I was driving across the country and my jaw DROPPED when I got to the end of the book. Since, I have made my mom read it. I made my book club read it. I’m also trying to force my dad to read it too.
In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware
I have read just about every Ruth Ware book that she has ever written. I picked up In a Dark, Dark Wood on a whim at the airport in San Diego (I was afraid I was going to finish my other book on the flight back home), and it was worth every inflated airport penny.
When You See Me by Lisa Gardner
A friend of mine told me I had to get When You See Me when she saw me raving about my love for Lisa Gardner. (FTR, she can do no wrong. Read all of her books if you can.) It knocked my socks off. I could not put it down, and I read it in just a few days.
Lisa Gardner is another author that you can pick up any of her books and enjoy. I’m a big fan of her newest Frankie Elkin series, especially One Step Too Far.
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
If you have a choice between Michaelides’ novels, choose The Silent Patient. His other books were a massive letdown. However, The Silent Patient has a plot twist that will keep you engaged and interested until the very last page.
Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins
Another surprise! I am OBSESSED with Reckless Girls. I had gotten an ARC from NetGalley, not expecting too much of it. However, I could not put my Kindle down. Since then, I have recommended it to more people than I can count. If you can get past some unrealistic scenarios, it will literally make your jaw drop.
Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman
This is a WTF kind of book for a very different reason. I don’t remember how I came to own Full Tilt but it is one of my favorite books, merely for how creative it is. I would say that the WTF moment comes pretty early on in this one. It’s not much of a thriller or a “keep you guessing” type of book, but it will knock your socks off.
Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney
This book was one that I just grabbed from the library. I have heard great things about Alice Feeney, but hadn’t yet read anything of hers. This book was SO GOOD. I feel like all of the good thrillers take place in London (or the surrounding areas). I absolutely DID NOT see the twist coming, and the little (read: huge) twist at the end was so intriguing. Spoiler alert (a bit): A dog does get abducted, but the dog is not harmed in the book.
The Safe Place by Anna Downes
This was another ARC that was probably a Goodreads win. While I just said most good thrillers take place in London, this one is actually in the south of France. The details around this tremendous and secluded house are just magnificent. It sounds like the perfect job: Come be a nanny/housekeeper/companion, get paid, and live in the south of France. The Safe Place had a plot twist that I kind of saw coming, but not in the way that it was revealed and resolved. Great vacation read.
The Better Liar by Tanen Jones
If it’s possible for a book to smack you in the face, The Better Liar definitely smacked me in the face. This book was another with a plot twist right at the very end. You think that you know exactly where the story is going to lead you, and then it’s just WHAM. Plot twist.
When She Returned by Lucinda Berry
I am so intrigued by cults. (This is not a spoiler.) I also love Lucinda Berry (read anything and everything she has written, she’s a wizard). When I read When She Returned it was the perfect back and forth from present day to flashbacks. It made you feel as if you were living with the characters. Plus, the ending was BAFFLING.
I feel repetitive saying that Lucinda Berry is yet another author who can do no wrong. My new favorite (well, second favorite) of hers? Keep Your Friends Close. Worth every freaking word.
Thirteen by Steve Cavanaugh
This is a book in the middle of a series. Besides a few mentions of previous events, I don’t think I felt that I had a hard time understanding the story. Thirteen is a bit of a different thriller in the sense that it’s more of a criminal procedural book (like Defending Jacob). I’d say this is one of the better books for men (though none of the others are “girly”).
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
We were a house divided on who preferred The Woman in the Window versus The Couple Next Door. You would think that you know where the plot twist is coming from the title of the book, but you do not! I started reading this in my early days of discovering thrillers, and it was amazing.
The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth
This book has a plot twist IN THE VERY LAST CHAPTER. The last few pages. Seriously, it knocked me off my feet. I try and read everything that Sally Hepworth has written, and The Mother-in-Law has been my favorite.
A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham
It takes a lot to surprise me in a good thriller, and Willingham got me! There were some breadcrumbs you thought were leading you in the right direction, and then she just smacked you in the literary face. Can’t wait to read more from her!
Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanagh
Yes, another Steve Cavanagh book! I read this back-to-back with None of This is True (such a good reading week!), and it blew me away in a completely different way. There were so many layers to the twists in this book. It felt like they just kept coming!
I definitely believe that books with these kinds of irresistible plot twists are the gateway for most people to become a reader. These are all books that will keep you engaged. None of them have explicit sex scenes or parts that make you too terribly uncomfortable. They’re going to keep you up late because you won’t want to put them down.
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You MUST try the caraval series by Stephanie Garber. The entire book is about games and not trusting anything or anyone and it’s full of plot twists. My jaw hit the floor when i finished it . It’s dark academia , magical and solving misteries kind of thing. (sorry , english is not my first language) TRUST ME