which author is best for suspense?

Question

I am looking for a good suspense book, not like stephen king or dean koontz but more realistic. scary, suspenseful but believable. who is the best of these authors: Tami Hoag, John Saul, Iris Johansen, or Joy Fielding?

Answer 1

Tami Hoag's "A thin red line" was excellent, and Iris Johansen's books are all really good reads as well. I've never heard of Joy Fielding, and I have yet to read any John Saul books, but I work at Borders and we sell a lot of his (Saul's) books so they must be pretty good since they are so popular. I guess though out of them all Iris is my personal favorite. If you enjoy her writing style I would recommend trying some Kay Hooper books when you get a chance. She's almost as good :)

Answer 2

Out of the four you gave I would say Tami Hoag or Iris Johansen. Joy Fielding has a little more romance than suspense. John Saul is a little more horror than suspense. But all four authors are very good. Try these for each author, they were my favorites.

Iris Johansen - The Ugly Duckling (hands down favorite)
Tami Hoag - Cry Wolf or Ashes to Ashes
John Saul - The Unwanted or The Presence
Joy Fielding - Dont' Cry Now or Whispers and Lies

But I think that my favorite suspense/mystery auther would have to be Barbara Michaels/Elizabeth Peters (she writes as both). The Amelia Peabody mysteries are great, keep you on the edge of your seat great (written as Elizabeth Peters). Or Patriot's Dream written as Barbara Michaels. Just can't say enough about this author. Truly wonderful no matter who she is writing as. I am actually going home tonite to start re-reading her Amelia Peabody series again.

Hope this has helped! ;)

Answer 3

I've never read any of them. I do have an Iris Johansen book in my bedroom that I've yet to read though. I really like James Patterson and Stephen White and Patricia Cornwell for suspense type stuff. JP's women's murder club is rather realistic and I loved it. You should check out www.paperbackswap.com if you like to read as much as I do. :) It's a free sit for trading used books. I could ramble on about how it works but I would just go to the website and check it out for all the details.

Answer 4

John Saul for me. I do read King and Koontz as well, and also like the stuff from Jeffrey Deaver.

Jonathan Kellerman, James Patterson, and John Sandford are also pretty good bets for mystery/suspense.

Answer 5

If you read the right Stephen King books, I believe that they are very suspenseful, because he gets into the horrors of the mind. Here are some of my favorites:

The Dark Tower series
The Eyes of the Dragon
The Talisman
Insomnia

Maybe he masks the fears with blood and gore, but I've never read anything as suspenseful as his stories, honestly.

Answer 6

I'm a bit bias; I love horror fiction. I'll say the names F. Paul Wilson and Peter Straub because they're two of my favorites (especially Wilson).

But if you're looking for someone that writes good, believable stories packed with suspense, try Thomas Harris (author of "The Silence of the Lambs" and "Hannibal"). I also like Micheal Crichton pretty good.

Answer 7

If you have any interest at all in medical mystery/suspense - go for Robin Cook. I've been reading his books for about 30 years and he's the best in this field I find.

Answer 8

Try Matthew Reilly or James Clemens. Also might want to try Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. These are the guys who co-wrote RELIC and RELIQUARY as well as the CABINET OF CURIOSITIES and several other really scary but good books.

Answer 9

James Patterson or Stuart Woods

Answer 10

Gotta go with Alfred Hitchcock!!!