Tony Parsons: My 10 favourite thrillers of all time

What makes a good thriller? We’d say a unique premise, flawed but fascinating characters, and a fast-paced plot that never lets up. But such books can be difficult to find, which is why we’ve asked some of our favourite crime authors – from Lee Child to Lisa Jewell – to suggest their all-time favourite reads.

Now, bestselling author Tony Parsons joins the conversation. The creator of the DCI Max Wolfe series – whose latest book, Murder for Busy People, is out now – reveals his all-time favourite thrillers below…

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

A family murder mystery with a twist in the tail that still stuns me every time I think about it. I will read anything with Gillian Flynn’s name on it but Dark Places features her most brilliantly conceived characters – Libby, the girl who survived a massacre by hiding in a closet, and her brother Ben, who was put away for a crime he may not have committed. The fictional equivalent of In Cold Blood.

Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household

It features one of the greatest opening paragraphs of all time: a British huntsman and crack shot has Adolf Hitler in his rifle sights. Then he begins to pull the trigger…Published in 1939, Rogue Male has got a high-concept plot where you already know the outcome – you know he doesn’t actually assassinate Hitler, just as you know Charles de Gaulle does not die in The Day of the Jackal. The thrill – and the tension that never lets up – is all in the chase.

Misery by Stephen King

This always feels like the most personal of King’s books – the beloved author who falls into the hands of his biggest, and maddest, fan. There’s a lot of stuff about the mechanics, and the slog, of the writing life. The humour comes from the fact the author is a romantic novelist, rather than a grand master of the dark arts. Annie Wilkes is King’s greatest female character since Carrie White.

Double Indemnity by James M. Cain

James M. Cain’s main theme was sexual obsession. Both The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity are built around some poor working sap having his head turned by some sultry siren who is inconveniently married. In Double Indemnity, his finest moment, it is an insurance salesman who meets the girl of his dreams only to find his life turning into a nightmare. Cain was the grand master of the murdered husband, and what even the most placid of men will do for love, money and the right femme fatale.