11 Grown-Up Thrillers Full Of Action and Adventure

If you're looking for exciting thrillers full of action and suspense, you've come to the right place. The eleven books listed here will have you hooked fast and keep you on the edge of your seat with unexpected twists and turns. Featuring daring heroes, powerful secret organizations, and sinister conspiracies, they're sure to hold your interest from start to finish. This video was made with Ezvid Wikimaker.

Exciting Thrillers: Our 11 Picks

Title Author(s)
1. Roselli's Gold Michael Parker
2. Rogue Mission Jeffrey S. Stephens
3. Ready to Serve Simon M. Gray
4. The Quantum Spy David Ignatius
5. End of the Road L.S. Hawker
6. Stone of Fire J.F. Penn
7. Ethan Justice: Origins Simon Jenner
8. The Chimera Sequence Elliott Garber
9. The Himalayan Codex Bill Schutt & J.R. Finch
10. Strike Force Dale Brown
11. The Ark Boyd Morrison

8 Great Thriller Movies

  1. Munich (2005)
  2. The Departed (2006)
  3. The Bourne Identity (2002)
  4. Heat (1995)
  5. Spy Game (2001)
  6. Black Swan (2010)
  7. Se7en (1995)
  8. Taken (2008)

The History of Thriller Films

In Depth

When it comes to excitement, a good thriller novel can offer as much as an action movie. Packed with drama and tension, these books keep readers hooked from the very first page to the explosive climax. Here, in no particular order, are eleven thrillers that will make your pulse race.

At #1 is "Roselli's Gold" by Michael Parker. During Captain Miles Roselli's service in World War II, he concealed three dead soldiers, a vast quantity of Vatican gold, and a mysterious book in the mountains of the Sahara. Twenty years later, a gold dealer in London is killed and the secret of Roselli's treasure is revealed. Now the captain is in a race against both the mafia and the Vatican. The mobsters want the loot and Rome wants the book, which contains a secret capable of damaging the Church's credibility. Getting to the stash first isn't going to be easy.

Taking the #2 spot is "Rogue Mission" by Jeffrey S. Stephens. CIA agent Jordan Sandor is back in action on a mission that will take him from the United Kingdom to Iraq. When terrorists kidnap a humanitarian group bringing supplies to refugees, Sandor is called in to help. He, in turn, calls on Beth Sharrow, a CIA analyst and his ex-lover. As the plot grows ever more complicated and the stakes get higher, Sandor and Sharrow find themselves fighting to save the lives of thousands.

When terrorists kidnap a humanitarian group bringing supplies to refugees, Sandor is called in to help.

At #3 is "Ready to Serve" by Simon M. Gray. A small country in Central America becomes the site of an Islamist uprising. Mike Huntley's famous brother Craig goes to report on it, and is kidnapped by the leader, a French ex-soldier who calls himself the Mahdi. When a media campaign fails to secure Craig's release, Mike decides to go and rescue his brother himself. On the way, he meets Leah Fash, a beautiful charter boat pilot, and Brent Winterton, an SAS operative looking to kill the uprising's leader. These three companions set off to save Craig.

At #4 is "The Quantum Spy" by David Ignatius. In the digital world, a quantum computer is a very valuable weapon. Capable of decrypting anything with amazing speed, this hypothetical device would ensure absolute technological domination for whoever builds it first. When the U.S.'s quantum labs are infiltrated by a Chinese mole, CIA agent Harris Chang is ordered to find and apprehend him. The chase leads him from Singapore to Mexico, through a world of illusions and double-crosses where nothing is as it seems.

At #5 is "End of the Road" by L.S. Hawker. After Jade Veverka creates a device to communicate with her nonverbal autistic sister, she is quickly contacted by a startup company interested in looking into other potential applications. Jade moves to the small Kansas town where the company is located, but soon notices some odd things about it. There are no children, or people over the age of forty, anywhere in the town. When Jade finds her lab and home full of armed guards, she is forced to confront the truth that something sinister is afoot.

Jade moves to the small Kansas town where the company is located, but soon notices some odd things about it.

In the #6 place is "Stone of Fire" by J.F. Penn, the first entry in the "Arkane" series. The Pentecost stones are strange artifacts of the early Christian church, created from the blood of martyrs. They have been hidden by generations of Keepers, who kept them a close secret. Now, however, the Keepers are being killed and the stones stolen. Oxford psychologist Morgan Sierra teams up with Jake Timber, an operative of the British government agency called ARKANE, to hunt down the stones and prevent what could be a global catastrophe.

At #7 is "Ethan Justice: Origins" by Simon Jenner. John Smith wakes up next to a prostitute, Savannah Jones, and is unable to pay her fee. Smith and Jones go to borrow money from Smith's friend Mark, only to discover that Mark has been stabbed to death. Further investigation into the murder leads the pair to a crazed ex-SAS officer on a quest for revenge, and rumors of a deadly secret weapon that may have been invented by Mark himself. Ultimately, the adventure will lead to John Smith's personal transformation into private detective Ethan Justice.

At #8 is Elliott Garber's "The Chimera Sequence." Veterinarian Cole McBride is looking into a virus that's killing off gorillas in central Africa, when he discovers that the disease is transmittable to humans as well. Soon Cole realizes that there is a plot in place to release the pathogen at a vast Washington, D.C. Fourth of July celebration. Now the race is on as Cole fights to prevent a pandemic of worldwide proportions.

Now the race is on as Cole fights to prevent a pandemic of worldwide proportions.

Taking the #9 spot is Bill Schutt and J.R. Finch's "The Himalayan Codex." The year is 1946. After an adventure in the Brazilian jungle, Captain R.J. MacCready is ready for a relaxing assignment in the Himalayas, studying mammoth bones. When he arrives, however, he discovers that the bones were a front. He's actually there because of an ancient text that purports to describe a new species of human, one with the ability to speed up evolution. MacCready's mission is to find this mystery race, somewhere in the mountains of Tibet.

At #10 is "Strike Force" by Dale Brown. When Iranian General Hesarak al-Kan Buzhazi's attempted insurgency lands him in trouble with the Iranian government, he goes to Air Force Lieutenant-General Patrick McLanahan in search of aid. McLanahan is equipped with a fleet of high-tech space planes called the Black Stallions, led by astronaut Hunter Noble. As Noble focuses on the war in Iran, McLanahan must direct his attentions to battles closer to home. Many people in the U.S. Government are less than happy about the activity of the Black Stallions, and are determined to shut the program down.

And finally, at #11 is "The Ark" by Boyd Morrison. Archaeologist Dilara Kenner witnesses a friend's death, and goes to former Army combat engineer Tyler Locke for help. She claims that she has discovered a clue to the location of Noah's Ark, and that there is a sprawling conspiracy out to prevent her from finding it. Locke is initially skeptical, but repeated assassination attempts on Kenner persuade him that she's telling the truth. The two set off to find the Ark, despite the many dangers that lie along the way.