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Essential True Crime Books

Added 2025-09-21 · 50 books
A Wilderness of Error
by Errol Morris
“The book is a masterclass in investigative journalism”
Crossed Over: A Murder
by Beverly Lowry
“For reasons author Beverly Lowry did not understand then and does not now, she began visiting convicted murderer Karla Faye Tucker at the Mountain View Unit near Gatesville, TX, in…”
The Ultimate Evil
by Maury Terry
“Terry links The Son of Sam killings to a larger, more sinister conspiracy.”

Top Ten True Crime Books

Added 2025-10-13 · 17 books
Sons of Cain: A History of Serial Killers from the Stone Age to the Present
by Peter Vronsky
“I thought it was super interesting and a pretty quick read.”
Murder by the Book: A Sensational Chapter in Victorian Crime
by Claire Harman
“Claire Harman recounts this grisly tale with a fascinating account of the rise of sensationalism in Victorian literature.”
Mindhunter
by John Douglas and Mark Olshaker, John Douglas
“With the fierce page-turning power of a bestselling novel, yet terrifyingly true, Mindhunter is a true crime classic.”

The 16 Best True Crime Books Of All Time

Added 2025-10-13 · 16 books
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: A Shocking Murder and the Undoing of a Great
by Kate Summerscale
“A must read for fans of mystery fiction that gives insight into the birth of the genre.”
Black Klansman
by Ron Stallworth
“While Black Klansman could sometimes be a bit too straightforward and lacking in tone, what's more important is its content.”
The Dead Girl
by Melanie Thernstrom
“This is not true crime; it is a study in literary gamesmanship.”

Goodreads' Popular True Crime Books

Added 2025-10-15 · 50 books
Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets
by David Simon
“The simple fact is that this book isn't about the glory and drama of police work.”
Deviant: The Shocking True Story of Ed Gein, the Original "Psycho"
by Harold Schechter
“Materialism posits that matter objectively exists independently of whether we subjectively perceive it.”
The Man from the Train: The Solving of a Century-Old Serial Killer Mystery
by Bill James
“Rather than the several crimes most ascribe to the killer, James posits that the man from the train began his cross-country murder spree as late as 1911.”

Most Recommended Books

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Beloved

Beloved

by Toni Morrison On 8 lists
“The characters are complex.”
★ 4.38 / 5 Literary Fiction
In Cold Blood

In Cold Blood

by Truman Capote On 8 lists
“If the moral clash between Herb Clutter and his killers lies at the core of In Cold Blood, a clash of a cultural kind lay behind its writing.”
★ 4.44 / 5 True Crime
The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games

by Suzanne Collins On 7 lists
“This is my favorite dystopian read.”
One Hundred Years of Solitude

One Hundred Years of Solitude

by Gabriel García Márquez, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gabriel García Márquez, translated by Gregory Rabassa On 6 lists
“One Hundred Years of Solitude is a masterpiece of magical realism that transcends cultural and linguistic barriers.”
★ 4.36 / 5 Magical Realism
The Night Circus

The Night Circus

by Erin Morgenstern On 6 lists
“The narrative jumps from past to present to future seamlessly and seemingly magically to give readers a whimsical, realistic, yet ancient-feeling story.”
★ 4.00 / 5 Fantasy