Book picks similar to
The Lost Boy by Margaret Murphy


psychological
read-loved
crime
psychological-thriller

A Girl's Best Friend


Jules Wake - 2018
    She certainly doesn't want a four-legged house guest or have anything to do with village life. Unfortunately, the inhabitants of Wilsgrave have other ideas and before long she finds herself re-evaluating everything she thought she wanted out of life - with the help of her new furry best friend...

The Wave


L.E. Luttrell - 2020
    When they meet in Phuket in December 2004 and share their troubles, the future begins to look more promising. Lucy devises a plan to help Kelly escape from her controlling and violent partner. But a tsunami sweeps through the resort causing tragedy and chaos.After recovering from her injuries, Lucy, whose husband died in the tsunami, travels to Llandudno in Wales to visit her in-laws. Thirteen years later, still in Llandudno and having established a successful business there, an unexpected visitor turns up on Lucy’s doorstep who turns her whole world upside down. She then has to consider how far she will go to protect all she holds dear.The Wave is a psychological thriller set in: Phuket, Thailand; Melbourne, Australia and Llandudno, Wales.

Moorlands Murders


Oliver Davies - 2020
    The York police call it a suicide, so it's up to Mitchell to clear his dead friend's name. Little does he realize that, in this sleepy town, lies a web of deceit, blackmail, and murder, one that now endangers him and everyone he cares about.

Her One Mistake


Heidi Perks - 2018
    It all started at the school fair…Charlotte was supposed to be looking after the children, and she swears she was. She only took her eyes off of them for one second. But when her three kids are all safe and sound at the school fair, and Alice, her best friend Harriet’s daughter, is nowhere to be found, Charlotte panics. Frantically searching everywhere, Charlotte knows she must find the courage to tell Harriet that her beloved only child is missing. And admit that she has only herself to blame.Harriet, devastated by this unthinkable, unbearable loss, can no longer bring herself to speak to Charlotte again, much less trust her. Now more isolated than ever and struggling to keep her marriage afloat, Harriet believes nothing and no one. But as the police bear down on both women trying to piece together the puzzle of what happened to this little girl, dark secrets begin to surface—and Harriet discovers that confiding in Charlotte again may be the only thing that will reunite her with her daughter....This breathless and fast-paced debut—perfect for fans of Big Little Lies and The Couple Next Door—takes you on a chilling journey that will keep you guessing until the very last page.

A Wicked Snow


Gregg Olsen - 2007
    She still remembers the flames reflected against the newly fallen snow and the bodies the police dug up--one of them her mother's. The killer was never found. . ..Twenty years later Hannah is a talented CSI investigating a case of child abuse when the past comes hurtling back. A killer with unfinished business is on the hunt. And an anonymous message turns Hannah's blood cold: Your Mom called. . . "A TAUT THRILLER." --Seattle Post-Intelligencer "AN IRRESISTIBLE PAGE-TURNER." --Kevin O'Brien"WILL KEEP FANS OF CRIME FICTION HOOKED." --Publishers WeeklyIncludes a bonus excerpt from Gregg Olsen's newest thriller!

The Paramedic's Daughter


Tara Lyons - 2019
        Everyone has something to lose.  Everyone is trying to protect themselves.  Everyone is broken. But what lengths will they go to in order to stop the truth from being exposed? Tara Lyons is the bestselling author of The DI Hamilton Series. The Paramedic's Daughter is a shocking, unmissable psychological thriller which is set to be one of 2019's stand-out reads. Perfect for readers of domestic noir, it will appeal to fans of authors like Louise Jensen, Shalini Boland and Cara Hunter.

The Girl in the Letter


Emily Gunnis - 2018
    A girl locked away. A mystery to be solved.1956. When Ivy Jenkins falls pregnant she is sent in disgrace to St Margaret's, a dark, brooding house for unmarried mothers. Her baby is adopted against her will. Ivy will never leave.Present day. Samantha Harper is a journalist desperate for a break. When she stumbles on a letter from the past, the contents shock and move her. The letter is from a young mother, begging to be rescued from St Margaret's. Before it is too late.Sam is pulled into the tragic story and discovers a spate of unexplained deaths surrounding the woman and her child. With St Margaret's set for demolition, Sam has only hours to piece together a sixty-year-old mystery before the truth, which lies disturbingly close to home, is lost forever ...Read her letter. Remember her story ...

I'll Know Me When I Find Me


Helen J. Darling - 2018
    That's the problem. Jane Desmond feels like a failure. Sure, she has a good job and a roof over her head, but nothing else seems to ever go her way. Unwanted attention from an infatuated coworker and meddlesome matchmaking from her mother has her professional and social life in tatters. When her best friend Thea loses her job a few days after purchasing her dream home, Jane steps in to help. But when her good intentions backfire, she realizes she’ll need to make a few sacrifices to find happiness for both of them. Before Jane can follow her dreams, she may just need to risk everything she knows… I’ll Know Me When I Find Me is a novel for the modern, career-minded woman. If you like well-rounded characters, relatable situations, and energetic prose, then you’ll love this women’s fiction tale of self-discovery from Helen J. Darling.

Death In Paradise


J.E. Trent - 2018
    When she saw the cops, Jessica knew why they were there. As a LA Detective, she’d been on the other side of the door plenty of times.Someone she loved was dead.Time slowed. Her heart sank. They knew she knew.Before they could get to the news, her mind raced. Growing up in Hawaii, half of her family in law enforcement and the other half gang members, she’d known the darker side of life.As the detectives explained why they’d come, Jessica was only partly listening until they said it was her father who’d died……in a plane wreck.And in that moment, the instinct to grieve was gone. He was meticulous in his maintenance. She didn’t believe it was an accident.Who murdered her father?Jessica was going home to Hawaii.You’ll love this gripping thriller with a taste of romance, because of the twists, turns, and complex characters.

Don't Wake Up


Liz Lawler - 2017
    Ostracised by her colleagues, her family and her partner, she begins to wonder if she really is losing her mind.And then she meets the next victim.So compulsive you can't stop reading.So chilling you won't stop talking about it.A pitch-black and devastatingly original psychological thriller.

Last Seen Alive


Claire Douglas - 2017
    But after she saves the children in her care from a fire, she finds herself headline news. And horrified by the attention. It all reminds her of what happened nine years ago. The last time she saw her best friend alive.The SwapWhich is why the house swap is such a godsend. Libby and her husband Jamie exchange their flat in Bath for a beautiful, secluded house in Cornwall. It's a chance to heal their marriage - to stop its secrets tearing them apart.The HideawayBut this stylish Cornish home isn't the getaway they'd hoped for. They make odd, even disturbing, discoveries in the house. It's so isolated-yet Libby doesn't feel entirely alone. As if she's being watched.Is Libby being paranoid? What is her husband hiding? And. As the secrets and lies come tumbling out, is the past about to catch up with them?

A Life Without You


Shari Low - 2017
     Dee and Jen have been best friends since their days of teenage crushes, bad 90's make-up and huge hair. They’ve passed every milestone of their lives together and now in their thirties own a successful boutique, sharing a bond that is as strong as the closest of sisters.Until one day everything changes. Dee is gone, killed by a reckless driver, leaving Jen to face the harsh reality of a world without her. Jen vows to honour Dee’s dreams and take care of everything and everyone she loved. Until she realises that sometimes the only way forward is to let go of the past.

Tell Me A Secret


Samantha Hayes - 2018
    morning run to the strict 60-minute counselling sessions she gives. It’s the only way she can deal with the terrible secret she carries. When a new client arrives for his first appointment, Lorna feels her perfect life unravel in a matter of seconds. It’s Andrew, the man she’s spent the last year desperately trying to forget. It seems he can’t forget her either… Against her better judgement she anonymously contacts him on a dating site. Messaging him could mean the end of her marriage and her career, but she needs to know if his motives are genuine. When Andrew is found dead in his home, grief quickly turns to fear when messages from him continue to arrive on Lorna’s phone. Somebody knows her secret and wants to use it to destroy everything she has. Will she risk her family and her sanity to keep her secret? Will she risk her life…?

Then He Was Gone


Stephen Edger - 2017
    But while they are shopping in the hypermarket, three year-old Noah wanders off. A frantic search ensues. He can’t have gone far. The French police launch their emergency response to abductions, sharing Noah’s image on television, radio and social media. They’ve never failed to locate a missing child within 48 hours. But as the hours become days, the chances of finding Noah alive diminish. When a former soldier contacts Becky, and tells her Noah is being held by someone seeking revenge against Jess’s dead husband, she learns there is far more at stake than just the safe return of little Noah. THEN HE WAS GONE is a gripping psychological thriller tapping into every parent’s worst nightmare: what if you can’t protect your children against unseen threats?

Girl Unknown


Karen Perry - 2016
    . .'When first-year student Zoë Barry walks into Professor David Connolly's office and tentatively says these words, he is left reeling. But it is the lives of his family - particularly his wife Caroline - which are turned upside down by the arrival of this stranger.A daughter, a sister, a friend . . . an enemy?Though no one knows quite who Zoë is, she is soon entangled in their lives. Yet her stories don't ring true and Caroline is determined to learn if the girl is the unlucky innocent she claims to be or someone with a far darker agenda.A deadly cuckoo in the nest . . .Because by letting Zoë in, David and Caroline aren't just leaving themselves vulnerable. They're risking the most precious thing in the world - the lives of their children . . .