This is our last Jolabokaflod post for 2025!
We hope you’ve been enjoying all the books and you’re ready to curl up and celebrate with your favorite hot drink and snacks and a great new read. So here’s the last entry for the holiday in Mystery/Thriller reads!
There’s something irresistibly gripping about apocalyptic and suspense fiction. From the eerie silence of Bird Box to the global chaos of The Walking Dead, these stories pull readers into worlds on the brink—worlds that feel unsettlingly close to our own. Readers love dystopian and apocalyptic books because they offer both escape and reflection, merging thrilling survival tales with thought-provoking “what if” scenarios that mirror real-world fears. They give us a chance to test ourselves, and believe we would survive.
Here are 5 FREE thrillers for you to find new favorite authors and new series to binge!
Exploited Blood by R.S. Merritt
FREE in Kindle Unlimited
If you’re into high-stakes apocalyptic thrillers, Exploited Blood is a must-read. In The Onslaught series, the world is unraveling because of synchronized bio-bombs hidden deep within our bloodstream. This series features the pulse-racing mix of zombies, conspiracies, and mankind pushed to the brink, wrapped up in a deeply personal journey of transformation. What makes it especially compelling is watching an ordinary guy, Chris, evolve from a frazzled twenty-something into a key player in a war that could decide humanity’s fate. It’s not just chaos and destruction—there’s heart, mystery, and a haunting question: who’s really pulling the strings behind all this death? This is the first of 6 books in the Onslaught series!
Forget Me Not by Kristen Middleton
If you’re into psychological thrillers with creeping dread, shady small-town secrets, and high-stakes stalking games, Forget Me Not will scratch that itch. In this book, single mom Amanda Schultz — trying to start fresh for herself and her young son — inherits a cabin and moves back to a small town, only to discover she’s being targeted by a deranged lunatic. What makes it especially gripping is the slow-burn suspense: the danger doesn’t hit you all at once — it ratchets up gradually until you realize there’s no turning back. This is the first installment of the “Summit Lake” series.
Malevolent by Jana DeLeon
If you’re into psychological thrillers layered with stalking, trauma, secrets, and tense investigations, Malevolent is a strong pick. In this book, former nurse Emma Frederick — who once killed her abusive husband — finds herself stalked and terrorized, despite being “safe.” The odd threats, sinister stalking, and cryptic warnings slowly unravel into something far more disturbing than a simple revenge story. As private-investigator Shaye Archer — a woman with a mysterious, traumatic past (she lost 15 years of her memory before becoming a PI)—digs into Emma’s case, the danger escalates, and the novel becomes a chilling “cat and mouse” game where trust is fragile and the past may come back to destroy everything. Malevolent is the first book in the Shaye Archer Series.
The Hunted by AJ Scudiere
If you’re into high-tension apocalyptic thrillers, The Hunted by A.J. Scudiere delivers everything you want — monsters in the night, survival against all odds, and characters you’ll root for. Joule and Cage Mazur are just trying to protect their family when something vicious begins stalking the streets after dark. Readers will love its pulse-pounding suspense, as every moment feels dangerous and uncertain — the locks won’t hold forever, and the desperation grows as the “Night Hunters” pick off people one by one. If you like your fiction gritty, emotionally charged, and full of moral dilemmas — friends turning to threats, trust breaking, courage in the face of darkness — this is one you’ll stay up late finishing. The Black Carbon series is complete with 7 full novels!
🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦
In a world filled with uncertainty, these stories give readers a sense of control and catharsis. Characters facing pandemics, environmental collapse, or total societal breakdown show resilience and courage—qualities we all hope we’d have if the world fell apart. The tension and high stakes keep the pages turning, while the underlying humanity grounds the horror in emotion. Books with these themes of new monsters and triumph over change also appeal to our curiosity about human nature. What happens when rules vanish? Who do we become when survival is the only goal? These questions drive the heart of apocalyptic fiction. Readers are drawn to the tension between despair and hope, between destruction and rebirth.
For fans of dystopian novels, the genre delivers not just adrenaline but it can also dig deeper into meaning. It allows readers to confront fear and explore dark possibilities without leaving their couch. Whether it’s zombies, invisible monsters, or a shattered government, the best dystopian books remind us that even in ruin, humanity’s spirit endures.
Pull the curtains closed and keep the lights on! Happy reading.