The best crime fiction of 2025

From chilling thrillers to twisty whodunnits and courtroom dramas, crime fiction spans countless sub-genres. With so much choice, it can be tricky deciding which book to devour next. To help, we've compiled a list of the most suspenseful reads of the year so far that will keep you hooked until the final page.

Out of the Dark by Heidi Amsinck

In Heidi Amsinck's "outstanding" new novel, a nine-year-old girl disappears from a playground in Copenhagen, triggering a desperate search across the city led by "tormented" Nordic cop DI Henrik Jungersen, said Joan Smith in The Times. This is "superior" crime fiction; Amsinck "expertly" balances an intriguing plot with a "clear-eyed understanding" of the "anguish" her characters face.

Fair Play by Louise Hegarty

Irish author Louise Hegarty's debut novel kicks off with a group of guests arriving at an Airbnb for a murder-mystery party. Abigail has organised the celebration for her brother Benjamin – but he winds up dead the next morning. "So far, so run-of-the-mill," said Laura Wilson in The Guardian, but the book then begins oscillating between two "engaging" storylines: a "metatextual golden age narrative" and a "heartbreaking account of grief". In all, it's an "ingenious" book that is "undoubtedly the most original crime novel you'll read all year".

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The Mystery of the Crooked Man by Tom Spencer

"Sometimes you know immediately that a book is going to get under your skin and stay there," said Sarah Weinman in The New York Times. Within the first few pages of Tom Spencer's "tart" debut novel, I was hooked. Readers are drawn into the world of Agatha Dorn, an "irritable" archivist and murder mystery addict, who discovers what she believes is a lost manuscript by the legendary Gladden Green. It's not long before the precious pages are revealed to be a hoax and Agatha's ex-lover dies by suicide. "Or did she?"

This Is Not a Game by Kelly Mullen

"Feisty septuagenarian" Mimi and her granddaughter Addie join forces to investigate a murder in a "Cluedo-style" old mansion on Michigan's Mackinac Island, said Wilson in The Guardian. Together they interrogate suspects, discover secret passages and draw on both gaming skills and golden-age mystery knowledge. "The result is fabulous, over-the-top fun."

Paperboy by Callum McSorley

Following his "amazing" debut "Squeaky Clean" in 2023, Callum McSorley is back with another "cavalcade of gruesome violence" and "torrent of fantastically filthy language", said Mark Sanderson in The Times. In this darkly comic follow-up, DCI Ally McCoist has been newly promoted to chief inspector and must try to stay calm as the "bodies mount up" in Glasgow's underworld. "Fizzing with energy and full of heart, it's one of those books that you simply don't want to end."

All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman

This "bitingly sharp" debut novel from Sarah Harman is a "hugely enjoyable, addictive ride", said Daisy Lester in The Independent. "Razor-sharp" in its probing of school culture, it's little wonder it's already been "snapped up" by Disney for a TV adaptation. The action follows single mother Florence Grimes, whose world is turned upside down when her 10-year-old son's bully vanishes on a school trip. "Funny and full of twists, it's a real page-turner."

Sleeper Beach by Nick Harkaway

Nick Harkaway's "genre-bending" book follows Cal Sounder, a detective investigating the murder of a young woman while "struggling" to adjust to his life as a "medically enhanced" Titan, said Anna Bonet in The i Paper. Gradually we're introduced to a town full of "simmering tensions" and a cast of characters who "aren't who they say they are". It makes for a "gripping" read.