Aleman, Daniel. I Might Be in Trouble. Grand Central. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9781538766347. 336p. $29. THRILLER

Award-winning Aleman moves from YA to adult with this thriller about David Alvarez, an author whose debut novel was a hit, but his second a flop; now he’s desperate to write a third that will make it big. A hot blind date with a great guy ends with his dead body in David’s bed—offering a great plot and a huge misadventure.

Bollen, Christopher. Havoc. Harper. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780063378896. 256p. $30. THRILLER

Bollen (The Lost Americans; A Beautiful Crime) writes a cat-and-mouse psychological thriller set in a sprawling hotel located on the banks of the Nile. The cat might be 81-year-old widow Maggie Burkhardt, a meddlesome fixer. The mouse might be eight-year-old Otto, son of the mournful Tessa. Or it might be the other way around.

Cooper, Helen. My Darling Boy. Putnam. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780593719930. pbk. 336p. $19. THRILLER

Cooper (The Downstairs Neighbor) offers a sinister story set in a close-knit English village, involving broken friendships and murder. Two best friends raised their sons to be best friends as well, but then one son kills the other. As the survivor goes to prison, the village takes sides, and long-simmering secrets bubble up.

Craven, M. W. Nobody’s Hero. (Ben Koenig, bk. 2). Flatiron. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9781250864598. 416p. $29.99. THRILLER

The second in Ben Koenig novel, after Fearless, sees the man who cannot feel fear investigating another case, this time connected to an incident 10 years ago, when Ben helped a woman who held a secret about the safety of the U.S. Now there are bodies on the street, contract killers involved, and the fate of the nation on the line.

Drysdale, Pip. The Close-Up. Gallery. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9781668037928. 352p. $28.99. THRILLER

Bestselling Drysdale (The Sunday Girl; The Next Girl) centers her newest on Zoe Ann Weiss, a struggling novelist with one thriller under her belt. She goes viral when she is seen with her ex, a famous actor. A stalker is not happy and starts to enact Zoe’s violent first book against her.

Hamdy, Adam. Deadbeat. Atria. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9781668031520. 352p. $28.99. THRILLER

Bestselling Hamdy (The Other Side of Night), with two screen adaptations in the works, spins out the story of Peyton Collard, a divorced, damaged single father hired as a hitman. As the bodies pile up, he starts to wonder who hired him—and why.

Kane, Darby. What the Wife Knew. Morrow Paperbacks. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780063351967. pbk. 368p. $18.99. THRILLER

Bestselling Kane (Pretty Little Wife, a Book of the Month pick headed for a TV adaptation) offers another domestic thriller. Addison was married to national hero Richmond Dougherty for 97 days, all the time having a plan to ruin him. But Richmond was killed before Addison got a chance—setting her up as the central suspect. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Porter, Henry. Enigma Girl. Atlantic Monthly. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780802164438. 400p. $27. THRILLER

CWA Dagger winner Porter (Brandenburg Gate) puts disgraced MI5 agent Slim Parsons in the middle of a deep game. Slim’s boss thinks she is too violent but still sends her to infiltrate a media company, which is hacking government databases. The dangers are multifold as Slim’s past and present converge.

Segura, Alex. Alter Ego. Flatiron. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9781250801777. 336p. $28.99. THRILLER

Segura (Secret Identity), a bestselling novelist and comic book author, puts comics at the center of his new thriller. Annie Bustamante is the creator of a hugely lauded superhero comic. She is offered the rights to the superhero Lethal Lynx, a character she has long loved and hoped to write about, but Annie suspects there are strings attached. With a 75K-copy first printing.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Adler-Olsen, Jussi. Locked In. (A Department Q Novel, bk. 10). Dutton. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780593475690. 464p. $30. THRILLER

Andrews, Brian & Jeffrey Wilson. Tom Clancy Defense Protocol. (Jack Ryan, bk. 25). Putnam. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780593717974. 432p. $32. THRILLER

Tallo, Katie. Buried Road. (Gus Monet, bk. 3). Harper Paperbacks. Dec. 2024. ISBN 9780063360716. pbk. 336p. $18.99. THRILLER