Gillian Flynn is an American author and television critic for Entertainment Weekly. She has so far written three novels, Sharp Objects, for which she won the 2007 Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for the best thriller; Dark Places; and her best-selling third novel Gone Girl.
Her book has received wide praise, including from authors such as Stephen King. The dark plot revolves around a serial killer in a Missouri town, and the reporter who has returned from Chicago to cover the event. Themes include dysfunctional families,violence and self-harm.
In 2007 the novel was shortlisted for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar for Best First Novel by an American Writer, Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie, CWA New Blood and Ian Fleming Steel Daggers, winning in the last two categories.
Flynn, who lives in Chicago, grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. She graduated at the University of Kansas, and qualified for a Master's degree from Northwestern University.
Fox (2025) Joyce Carol Oates "Reading Fox is like being spellbound by a hypnotist who may not wish you well, who leads you, with a deceptively gentle hand, toward that dark forest you fear. Joyce Carol Oates has created a sinister fable all the more chilling for persuading its readers to collude in the unthinkable. Eerie, shocking, provoking, and beautifully written, Fox is yet further proof that Oates is one of the greatest writers among us today."
El Dorado Drive (2025) Megan Abbott "As surprising and electrifying as a summer storm, El Dorado Drive deftly examines hope, need, greed and the complicated angles of sisterhood. It is suspenseful, beautifully written and, quite simply, exquisite."
The Missing Half (2025) Ashley Flowers "A propulsive mystery with excellent writing and a genuine beating heart at its center. Simply a great read!"
I Dreamed of Falling (2024) Julia Dahl "I Dreamed of Falling is one of those rare novels in which you feel the pulse of every single character down to the mail carrier. It's an uncompromising look at love and its complications, and a frank, sometimes burning story about the tricky business of learning how to be a grownup. Oh, and it's all wrapped up in a blistering mystery. With I Dreamed of Falling, Julia Dahl proves she's simply one of the best thriller writers working today."
The Dark We Know (2024) Wen-yi Lee "Wen-yi Lee has crafted a dark and compelling supernatural mystery buoyed by earnestly written, queer-centric characters. I am enthralled!"
Kittentits (2024) Holly Wilson "Molly is one of the greatest young female characters I've had the luck of reading since I picked up Joy Williams's The Quick and the Dead back in 2000 . . . I TRULY LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!"
A Better World (2024) Sarah Langan "Sarah Langan never ceases to amaze: A Better World is terrifying, shocking, sinister . . . and yet heartfelt and often hilarious. Langan has created a United States of the future that feels darkly recognizable - a depository of our current fears about environment, government, health. Her bright, shiny, twisted little town of tomorrow, Plymouth Valley, is a dark, thrilling indictment on the choices we make today."
One of the Good Guys (2024) Araminta Hall "I've been a fan of Araminta's from the start; she is one of the most daring and intriguing writers working today. Her writing is so addictive, her characters so sharply realized. One of the Good Guys is a resonant, razor-laced, and dangerously glittering novel."
Whalefall (2023) Daniel Kraus "Astoundingly great. Whalefall is, quite simply, a beautiful novel - a must-read story of the sea, the nature of awe, and the briny relationships between fathers and sons."
The Centre (2023) Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi "What an absolutely stunning and unique novel! Ayesha has written a book that is not only thrilling, but also deeply thought provoking, a combination that is truly rare. And the voice! It's dazzling."
Small Mercies (2023) Dennis Lehane "Small Mercies is a jaw-dropping thriller, set in the fury of Boston's 1974 school-desegregation crisis, and propelled by a hell-bent woman who's impossible to ignore. Thought-provoking and heart-thumping, it's a resonant, unflinching story written by a novelist who is simply one of the best around."
Scorched Grace (2023) (Sister Holiday Mysteries, book 1) Margot Douaihy "Within five pages, I was in love with this novel. The voice is unique and confident, the sense of place deeply present, and the plotting completely assured: every time I was about to ask a question about Sister Holiday, her background, her drive, the mystery - the answer magically appeared. Sister Holiday is simply a joy of a narrator - and definitely my kind of character: flawed, dark, buoyant, and often laugh-out-loud funny. I feel like she and Camille Preaker from Sharp Objects should go on a road trip together. This novel is so much more than a mystery (which is my favorite kind of mystery), it's an exploration of faith, love, and the worthy struggle to be a better human. I just loved it!"
Sleepwalk (2022) Dan Chaon "To say this is one of the best novels I've read in years is almost not enough. Dan Chaon's Sleepwalk is a thrilling and often hilarious road trip across America in the very near future, told by a winning and murderous narrator. But beneath the zigzag adventure tale is a poignant reminder of the fragile nature of our humanity, an appreciation of the tricky balancing act of living. It's a beautiful, unsettling, and thoughtful novel -- told by one of America's great storytellers"
Afterland (2020) Lauren Beukes "Intriguing... Beukes deals with slightly surreal things in very real ways. I'm all over it."
My Dark Vanessa (2020) Kate Elizabeth Russell "A brilliant and stunning debut, My Dark Vanessa is utterly truth-rattling, humane in its clarity and chilling in its resonance. An absolute must read."
Beneath the Attic (2019) (Dollanganger , book 9) V C Andrews "I will probably be clutching Flowers in the Attic in my gnarled hands on my deathbed."
Bleak Harbor (2018) (Bleak Harbor, book 1) Bryan Gruley "Bryan Gruley’s Bleak Harbor is an electric bolt of suspense, packed with twists and surprises. Gruley’s plot races along, powered by characters—big and small—who truly crackle. A masterful follow-up to his Starvation Lake trilogy."
Don't Let Go (2017) Harlan Coben "Simply one of the all-time greats—pick up any one of his thrillers and you’ll find a riveting, twisty, surprising story with a big, beating heart at its core."
Slade House (2015) David Mitchell "Plants died, milk curdled, and my children went slightly feral as I succumbed to the creepy magic of David Mitchell's Slade House. It's a wildly inventive, chilling, and – for all its other-worldliness – wonderfully human haunted house story. I plan to return to its clutches quite often."
Where They Found Her (2015) Kimberly McCreight "McCreight creates a world that pulls us in completely and genuinely, with characters that can enrage, amuse, and fill us with empathy. It’s a thrilling novel."
Seven for a Secret (2013) (Gods of Gotham, book 2) Lyndsay Faye "This is a series for the ages, it's so spectacular. Amazing."
The Next Time You See Me (2013) Holly Goddard Jones "[A]n astoundingly good novel... Jones writes with authority and a deep generosity... The result is simply mesmerizing."
Sailor Twain (2012) Mark Siegel "Steamboats, romance, and mythology, and a search for love universally-a haunting book."
The Dog Stars (2012) Peter Heller "A dreamy, post-apocalyptic love letter to things of beauty, big and small."