8 Thriller Books for People Who Loved Netflix's 'Mindhunter'
Something to tide you over during the long wait for Season 2.
David Fincher’s Netflix series Mindhunter pushed all the right buttons. It’s a classy, psychology-driven throwback drama series with great acting and no small amount of grizzly murder. What could be an exploitative parade of serial killer name drops never feels cheap and gives a great look into the early days of psychological profiling. While we wait for Season Two, here are some books that should sate the true crime or left-field murder mystery fans in all of us.
8. The Snowman
The book that launched a thousand memes thanks to the spectacular failure of its movie adaptation and, perhaps more significantly, it’s expensive ad campaign. Still, there’s a reason this book was adapted in the first place: The Snowman is not your average Scandinavian thriller, nor is The Snowman your average killer. That’s all I’ll say. [Amazon, $8.98]
7. In Cold Blood
Truman Capote’s disturbingly empathetic look at real-life murderers blurs the line between an author and a participant. It’s chilling, violent, and, as you’d expect with Capote, just beautifully written. [Amazon, $12.80]
6. Mindhunter (the book)
The book that started it all (the TV series, that is.) [Amazon, $7.99]
5. Whoever Fights Monsters: My Twenty Years Tracking Serial Killers for the FBI
Before Mindhunter there was Robert K. Ressler, the inspiration for one of the fictional agents actually presented in the show. Here, he gives first-hand insight into the skills you gain from twenty-years of criminal profiling. And, of course, the toll it takes. [Amazon, $8.99]
4. The Secret Place
Quite simply one of the best murder mystery books of our time. Tana French has made a name for herself combining intriguing, unpredictable mystery tropes with straight-up beautiful writing, and other genre influences ranging from comedy to outright horror. The Secret Place is the finest entry in her near-flawless Dublin Murder Squad series, which, don’t worry, can be enjoyed separately. You’ll want to pick them all up after reading this one, anyway. [Amazon, $8.99]
3. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
That is, if you haven’t read this cold, twisted, outrageously popular mystery novel already. [Amazon $9.99]
2. Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders
With the 50-year anniversary of the Manson Family murders approaching, there’s never been a better time to brush up on the story of one of the most disturbing, high-profile serial killers of all time. [Amazon, $11.52]
1. Libra
A fascinating, fictional retelling of Lee Harvey Oswald’s assassination of President John F. Kennedy. While (almost certainly) a completely fabricated narrative, author Don DeLillo delivers a fascinating deep-dive into the mind of the kind of man who would attempt, let alone pull off, one of the most horrible, brazen crimes in American history. [Amazon, $8.99]
