“There’s something disturbing about recalling a warm memory and feeling utterly cold.”
Books like Gone Girl are dark, full of shocking twists and turns and amp up the suspense to a heart-stopping level. Gillian Flynn’s international bestseller follows the story of Amy and Nick Dunne, a married couple who appear to have it all on the surface. However, on the morning of their fifth anniversary, Amy suddenly disappears. The police suspect Nick. Investigations into his computer reveal a series of bizarre searches. His mobile phone is constantly ringing. Amy’s friends reveal that she had been hiding multiple secrets from him and that she had been terrified of her husband during the span of their marriage. But what really happened to Nick’s beautiful wife? If you loved Gillian Flynn’s iconic mystery-thriller, join us at What We Reading as we run through some of our favourite books like Gone Girl! These readalikes are all gripping, layered and jam-packed full of jaw-dropping secrets!
Sharp Objects – Gillian Flynn
Where else to begin a list of the best books like Gone Girl than another one of Gillian Flynn’s best stories? Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, reporter Camille Preaker has a troubling investigation: return to her small hometown and cover the unsolved murder of a preteen and the disappearance of another.
Camille hasn’t spoken to her hypochondriac mother for years. Nor has she spoken to the half-sister she barely knows, a thirteen-year-old girl with a seemingly bizarre grip on the town. Back in her family’s old Victorian mansion, Camille begins to find herself identifying with the young victims more than she bargained for. To get to the truth of the story and survive this unsettling homecoming, she must overcome her demons and unravel the psychological puzzle that is her past.
The Kind Worth Killing (Henry Kimball/Lily Kintner #1) – Peter Swanson
On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the enigmatic and mysterious Lily Kintner. Through too many martinis, the pair play a game of truth or dare, revealing very intimate details about themselves. Ted begins to talk about his wife, Miranda. The pair were a mismatched couple from the get-go, their marriage has gone stale and he is now convinced the artistic, free-spirited Miranda is cheating on him.
However, this game takes a dark turn when, after he jokingly says that he could kill Miranda for what she has done, Lily says that she would ‘like to help’. Landing back in Boston, the pair’s twisted bond grows stronger as they begin their plot. But there are plenty of secrets about Lily’s past that she has kept hidden from Ted that will ensure they both can’t survive the cat-and-mouse affair they’ve found themselves embroiled in. With messy marriages and a thrilling, albeit potentially deadly, game of chase, Peter Swanson’s The Kind Worth Killing is a must-read for any fans of Gone Girl!
The Silent Patient – Alex Michaelides
Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A successful painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in an affluent London neighbourhood with big windows overlooking a park. One evening her husband, Gabriel, returns home from a shoot. Alicia shoots him five times, and then never says another word again. Alicia’s refusal to talk immediately turns into a mystery that captures the public’s fascination, and the attention of psychotherapist, Theo Faber.
The price of Alicia’s work skyrockets, and she is sent away from the tabloids to the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London. Theo has been waiting for the opportunity to speak to Alicia and gets a position working in the Grove where he begins a series of sessions with her. But, like Gone Girl, Alex Michaelides’ The Silent Patient follows Theo’s determination to unravel the mystery behind why this woman would shoot her husband soon leads to a twisty path into his motivations – a search that threatens to overwhelm him.
Check Out The Best Books Like The Silent Patient
The Good Samaritan – John Marrs
The people who call End of the Line need hope. They need assurances that life is worth sticking with. However, some callers are unlucky enough to reach Laura. Laura doesn’t want them to have hope. She wants them to die.
Laura hasn’t had it easy. She’s survived sickness and a difficult marriage, only to find herself on the cusp of forty bitter and angry. But now she also finds herself with someone on to her. Ryan’s world falls apart when his pregnant wife decides to take her own life, going out and holding hands with a total stranger. Who was this man? Why did they decide to die together? If the web of lies spun by Amy Dunne in Gone Girl hooked your attention, John Marrs’ The Good Samaritan is the perfect follow-up read for your TBR list!
Big Little Lies – Liane Moriarity
Madeline is a force to be reckoned with. She’s funny, passionate and sharp-tongued; she remembers everything and forgives no one. Celeste is the sort of beautiful woman the entire world seemingly stops and stares at, but is paying the price for the illusion of perfection. Jane is new to town and is such a young single mother most confuse her for a babysitter or older sibling; she comes with a murky past and grief well beyond her years. These three women all find themselves at different crossroads, but all find themselves in the same shocking place.
One of the best books like Gone Girl, Liane Moriarity’s New York Times bestseller Big Little Lies is a gripping take on husbands, wives, mothers, daughters, schoolyard scandals and the little lies that come with the potential of becoming deadly.
The Last Thing He Told Me – Laura Dave
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he smuggles a note to his wife that only says one thing: protect her. Despite her fear and confusion, Hannah Hall knows who he is referring to: his sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey, who lost her mother as a child and now wants nothing to do with her new stepmother.
As Hannah’s attempts to reach Owen become more and more desperate, as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss, and a federal marshal arrives unexpectedly at her Sausalito home, she quickly begins to realise Owen isn’t who he says he is. And Bailey may be the crucial key to unlocking his real identity, and why he disappeared. With a missing spouse acting as the main plot device in Laura Dave’s Goodreads Choice Award-winning The Last The Thing He Told Me, it’s no wonder so many consider it one of the best mysteries similar to Gone Girl.
Check Out These Mystery Books Like The Last Thing He Told Me
The Girl On The Train – Paula Hawkins
Another Goodreads Choice Award-nominated mystery similar to Gone Girl, Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on the Train introduces readers to Rachel. Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even begun to feel like she knows the people living in one of the gardens. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life, as she sees it, appears to be perfect.
Until one day when she sees something shocking. It only appears for a moment before the train moves on, but it is enough. Suddenly, everything’s changed. Rachel now has a chance to be a part of the lives she has only watched from afar, and they soon learn that she is far more than just a girl on a train.
Watch Me Disappear – Janelle Brown
It’s been twelve months since Billie Flanagan, a beautiful and charismatic Berkeley mom went on a solo hike in Desolation Wilderness and vanished from the trail. The only thing that has been recovered is a hiking boot. Billie’s husband and teenage daughter cope with her disappearance the best they can: Jonathan drinks and Olive becomes distant.
Then Olive begins having waking dreams that her mother is still alive. Her father worries about Olive’s emotional stability, until he starts unearthing hidden secrets from his wife’s past that throws everything he thought he knew about Billie into question. Together, Jonathan and Olive start on a journey to find the truth about Billie, their family and the lies we tell ourselves about the people we love. One of the best books like Gone Girl for readers looking for another disappearance story, Janelle Brown’s Watch Me Disappear is a gripping 2017 mystery thriller.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
