10 Books Like Sharp Objects That Deliver Psychological Thrills

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Gillian Flynn’s debut novel Sharp Objects follows Camille Preaker, a journalist who’s just completed a brief stay at a psych ward.

When two preteen girls are murdered in her hometown, Camille is asked to cover the story. For years, she has barely spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother, or her beautiful but spoiled 13-year-old sister.

But now, from her childhood home, Camille realizes she must face the psychological puzzle of her own past if she wants to get the story—and survive her homecoming.

While the novel didn’t experience the same level of mega success that Gone Girl has, there was a lot of renewed interest in the title when HBO picked up the rights for a miniseries starring Amy Adams.

Whether you were a fan of the book or the TV adaptation, you may be craving a fresh read that’s as intriguing and twisty as Flynn’s narrative, and we’ve got you covered with this list of books like Sharp Objects.

Books Like Sharp Objects

Here are 10 psychological thriller books like Sharp Objects that will take you on an exhilarating ride.

1. Complicit by Stephanie Kuehn

Cate Henry used to be a nice girl—that is, before she started drinking, stealing, playing weird mind games with other kids, and making sure she always got her way.

Her brother, Jamie, was relieved when his sister was finally sent to juvenile detention for burning down their neighbor’s barn.

But now Cate’s coming home, and she’s coming for Jamie. She’s determined to tell her little brother the truth about their past—a truth she was never supposed to tell.

2. The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel

After her mother’s suicide, 15-year-old Lane Roanoke moves into her grandparents’ sprawling estate in rural Kansas, along with her fireball cousin, Allegra.

But when Lane discovers a dark family secret, she runs fast and far. Eleven years later, she’s in Los Angeles when she gets a call that Allegra is missing.

As she returns to Kansas to help search for her cousin, Lane may have a second chance with the boyfriend she left behind years ago. But she’ll also have to face the secret that sent her packing.

3. You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott

Katie and Eric Knox are dedicated to one cause—doing everything it takes to help their daughter, Devon, reach her full potential as a gymnast and hopefully get to the Olympics.

But when a violent death rocks their close-knit gymnastics community, Katie tries to hold her family together while also finding herself drawn to the crime.

What she discovers about her daughter’s fears, her own marriage, and herself will force Katie to consider whether there’s any price too high for Devon’s dream.

4. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Like Sharp Objects, Big Little Lies got its own successful HBO adaptation with an all-star cast. And also like Sharp Objects, there’s a murder at the center of this novel—but whose?

The more we get to know Madeline, Celeste, and Jane, the more we realize that each of them has a motive, and one of them may be the victim.

5. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

Libby Day was just seven years old when her mother and two sisters were murdered, and it was Libby who famously testified that her 15-year-old brother was the killer.

Now, 25 years later, it’s clear that Libby is still not past her trauma. As she finds herself out of money and starting to doubt her memory of that night, Libby sets out to find the true killer. But will she be so lucky as to survive a second time?

6. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

This 1962 gothic tale follows Mary Katherine “Merricat” Blackwood and her sister Constance as they continue to live in their creepy, dilapidated mansion after the rest of their family dies under strange circumstances.

A struggle ensues when a cousin arrives at their estate and begins to make references to the money the sisters keep locked in their father’s safe.

7. Promise Not to Tell by Jennifer McMahon

On the night that school nurse Kate Cypher returns home to care for her mother, a young girl is murdered. The horrific crime is eerily similar to another from Kate’s childhood.

Thirty years earlier, her dirt-poor friend Del—who was shunned and bullied by her classmates—was also brutally killed. Del’s murderer was never found, but as this new case draws Kate in, her past and present collide in terrifying, unexpected ways.

8. The Secret Place by Tana French

One year after a boy was found murdered at a girls’ boarding school, the case still hasn’t been solved.

Detective Stephen Moran has been waiting for his chance to join Dublin’s Murder Squad. When 16-year-old Holly Mackey shows him a photo of the boy with the caption: “I KNOW WHO KILLED HIM,” Stephen teams up with Detective Antoinette Conway to reopen the case, under the watchful eye of Holly’s father, Detective Frank Mackey.

When the clues seem to lead back to Holly’s close-knit group of friends and their rival clique, Stephen finds himself navigating the underworld of teenage girls.

9. Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh

Eileen Dunlop is an unassuming, disturbed young woman stuck caring for her alcoholic father and working as a secretary in a boys’ prison.

When the vivacious Rebecca Saint John begins working as the new counselor at the juvenile detention center, Eileen is unable to resist what appears to be a quickly budding friendship. But her affection for Rebecca ultimately makes her complicit in a crime that surpasses her wildest imagination.

10. Doctor Glass by Louise Worthington

Clinical psychologist Emma-Jane Glass works too hard for her own good. She hasn’t taken a vacation in years. Her desire to help a grieving mother out of a downward spiral borders on professional obsession.

And when she publishes an insensitive article in defense of mothers who commit filicide, she begins to receive threatening letters.

Doctor Glass soon finds herself at the mercy of a sociopath. But as a doctor of the mind, she feels an urge to help, even if it shatters her sanity—and quite possibly, her life.

Is There a Sequel to Sharp Objects?

There is no sequel to Sharp Objects. However, if you’re a fan of Gillian Flynn’s work, you should definitely read her other bestsellers, including Gone Girl and Dark Places.

Fans of the book should also check out the award-winning HBO miniseries adaptation starring Amy Adams.

Do you have a favorite psychological thriller like Sharp Objects? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

 

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