The most recommended FBI books

Who picked these books? Meet our 168 experts.

168 authors created a book list connected to the FBI, and here are their favorite FBI books.
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Book cover of You Can Hide

Staci Troilo Author Of A Fathomless Affair

From Staci's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Multi-genre author Proud mom and nana Recreational cook and baker History and science fan Art and music lover

Staci's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Staci Troilo Why did Staci love this book?

Iā€™m a mystery-first person, but I enjoy romantic entanglements because thatā€™s life.

Mix both in a believable (but elevated for dramatic effect) way, Iā€™m probably going to enjoy it. Zanetti did just that with Laurel Snow and Huck Rivers. I applaud their professional dedication and relate to their personal dalliances when time (and crime) donā€™t take priority.

This is a serial killer story, so thereā€™s bound to be violence and mental games. This story has both, and as Iā€™m a sucker for both, that was great. Of special note is Abigail, Laurelā€™s twisted half-sister who steals the show. Love to hate her/hate to love herā€¦ sheā€™s my favorite part of the book.

The setting is a character itself, and the peripheral characters are delightful. This one ticks all the boxes. 

By Rebecca Zanetti,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked You Can Hide as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Perfect for fans of Laura Griffin and Kat Martin, the New York Times bestselling authorā€™s thrilling suspense series follows an FBI Special Agent as she strives to navigate her complicated family life when her newly discovered sociopathic half-sister becomes the target of a dangerous killer. The Blacklist meets The Profiler in this fast, page-turning novel that will have readers guessing until the very end!

What do you do when a sociopath loves you? Rising star FBI profiler Laurel Snow is about to find out ā€¦

Calling Laurel Snowā€™s relationship with her newly discovered half-sister challenging is an understatement. Not onlyā€¦


Book cover of The Ransomware Hunting Team: A Band of Misfits' Improbable Crusade to Save the World from Cybercrime

Leslie Shannon Author Of Interconnected Realities: How the Metaverse Will Transform Our Relationship with Technology Forever

From my list on when hot new technology meets reality.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™m the Head of Trend and Innovation Scouting for Nokia, and Iā€™ve been with the company since the glory days of Nokia mobile phone world dominance. I know first-hand what happens when a company focuses exclusively on the technology, not the humans that use it, and how quickly that can lead to disaster. One of the lessons that I see repeated continuously in the field of innovation is that a huge amount of attention gets paid to the new technology, and not nearly enough on how the technology will interact with our existing systems, beliefs, attitudes, and culture. Learning from the mistakes is the best way to make sure that the future doesnā€™t repeat them!

Leslie's book list on when hot new technology meets reality

Leslie Shannon Why did Leslie love this book?

Stepping away from the topic of immersive technology, The Ransomware Hunting Team instead looks at the realities of cybercrime in the US, and why especially our government infrastructure has such a hard time fighting it effectively. 

Like all the other books on my list, itā€™s an examination of what happens when the rubber meets the road with a new technology, and how we humans often just arenā€™t very good at adapting to change.  

Part of the key problem is that hackers ā€“ including the white hat hackers that you want on your side to bring down the bad guys ā€“ tend not to be social animals, and our official organizations are far happier hiring a smiling guy in a suit than a scowling nerd who would rather work from his dark bedroom at home.  (Apologies for the stereotypes, but ā€“ this really is a problem!) 

This book is an absorbingā€¦

By Renee Dudley, Daniel Golden,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Ransomware Hunting Team as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Scattered across the world, an elite team of code-cracking techies is working tirelessly on your behalf to thwart the most notorious cyber scourge of our time. You've probably never heard of them. But if you work for a school, a business, a hospital, or a municipal government, especially if its cybersecurity is imperfect, chances are that you're painfully familiar with the group's sworn enemy: ransomware. Again and again, these ordinary people, mostly self-taught and often struggling to make ends meet, have outwitted the shadowy networks of hackers and criminal gangs that lock computer networks and extort huge payments in returnā€¦


Book cover of Dead Mountain

Joan Hall Author Of Cold Dark Night: Legends of Madeira

From my list on mystery and suspenseā€¦with a bit of legends and folklore.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve always enjoyed mystery and suspense storiesā€”Agatha Christie and Mary Higgins Clark being two of my all-time favorite authors. Throw in some legends and folklore, and Iā€™m hooked. I like well-crafted stories that keep me turning the pages. Those that stump me in figuring out the mystery are a plus for me. I love books with descriptive settings that place me, as the reader, in the heart of the action.

Joan's book list on mystery and suspenseā€¦with a bit of legends and folklore

Joan Hall Why did Joan love this book?

Real-life mysteries intrigue me, and one of the strangest unsolved cases involved a group of nine Soviet hikers in the area known as Dyatlov Pass. Preston and Child took this story, set it in the mountains of New Mexico, and weaved an enticing tale that kept me turning the pages and guessing right up to the end.

This is the fourth book of their Nora Kelly series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone. 

By Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Dead Mountain as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In 2008, nine mountaineers failed to return from a winter backpacking trip in the New Mexico mountains. At their last campsite, searchers found a bizarre scene: something had appeared at the door of their tent so terrifying that it impelled them to slash their way out and flee barefoot to certain death in a blizzard. Despite a diligent search, only six bodies were found, three violently crushed and missing eyes and tongues. The case, given the code name ā€œDead Mountainā€ by the FBI, was never solved.
 
Now, two more bodies from the lost expedition are unexpectedly discovered in a cave,ā€¦


Book cover of The House Guest

Caryl Janis Author Of To Sketch a Killer

From Caryl's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Musician History fan Theater lover Museum enthusiast Reader

Caryl's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Caryl Janis Why did Caryl love this book?

This story begins simply, and I loved how it soon takes flight after two women meet by chance, one reaching out with a spontaneous gesture of kindness.

The plot spirals from there with a gathering momentum that left me breathless as events hurtled from seemingly innocent coincidences to more complex and deadly ones. It was easy to sympathize with the heroine as she rides a roller coaster of emotions after being recently ditched by her rich and powerful husband ā€“ ultimately questioning who and what she can trust, including her own perceptions of everything and everyone.

A top-notch thriller ā€“ and one I couldnā€™t put down.

By Hank Phillippi Ryan,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The House Guest as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Library Journal * Starred review "Bingeworthy!"
Publishers Weekly "Ryan is a master of suspense!"
GOODREADS  A Most Anticipated Thriller 0f 2023
BOOKBUB  A Most Anticipated Thriller 0f 2023
CRIME READS  A Most Anticipated Thriller 0f 2023
The House Guest is another diabolical cat-and-mouse thriller from USA Today bestselling author Hank Phillippi Ryanā€•but which character is the cat, and which character is the mouse?

After every divorce, one spouse gets all the friends. What does the other one get? If they're smart, they get the benefits. Alyssa Macallan is terrified when she's dumped by her wealthy and powerful husband. With aā€¦


Book cover of G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century

Mark G. Pomar Author Of Cold War Radio: The Russian Broadcasts of the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

From Mark's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Cold War veteran Historian Classical music fan

Mark's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Mark G. Pomar Why did Mark love this book?

Drawing on declassified documents, Beverly Gage weaves a fascinating story about a complex man who was loved and idolized by many Americans and reviled by others.

Rather than opting for a one-sided portrait, Gages paints a multifaceted portrait that includes Hooverā€™s achievements and flaws. Here was a law-and-order man who fought criminals and communists and espoused Christianity and yet had a secret homosexual life. As the director of the FBI for nearly 50 years, he shaped an important American institution and left a lasting impact on the lives of all Americans.

To read this book, which I loved, is to understand our contemporary society.   

By Beverly Gage,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked G-Man as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Biography 2023
Winner of the 2022 National Book Critics Circle Award in Biography
Winner of the 2023 Bancroft Prize in American History and Diplomacy
Winner of the American History Book Prize
Shortlisted for the 2023 PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography

When he became director of the FBI in 1924, J. Edgar Hoover was a dazzling wunderkind buzzing with big ideas for reform.

He transformed a failing law-enforcement backwater, riddled with scandal, into a modern machine. He believed in the power of the federal government to do great things for the nation and itsā€¦


Book cover of In the Twinkling of an Eye: A Novel of Biological Terror and Espionage

Kenneth Dekleva Author Of The Negotiator's Cross

From my list on espionage/spy thrillers that tell very human stories.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a psychiatrist and former American diplomat, who served overseas in Europe, Russia, Mexico, and India. My regional diplomatic travels took me to over 70 countries over several decades. I have always loved spy thrillers because they highlight the intrigue, drama, psychology, and history of different cultures, which brings out the humanity, courage, and tragedy of the characters therein. Good spy thrillers also capture a sense of place, culture, and history, and possess an authenticity that gives them a broader, universal appeal.

Kenneth's book list on espionage/spy thrillers that tell very human stories

Kenneth Dekleva Why did Kenneth love this book?

I loved this work!  And its realism truly frightened me. 

James Lawler, a legendary CIA officer, has followed his brilliant debut novel (Living Lies: A Novel of the Iranian Nuclear Weapons Program) with a very frightening and all-too-contemporary thriller about bioweapons. This is not science fiction, and the fields of bioweapons and neuro weapons - think ā€˜Havana Syndromeā€™ or lethal viruses such as COVID and EBOLA - have been extensively studied by Americaā€™s adversaries.

Jim has told a gripping, taut, and exciting tale of Russiaā€™s and North Koreaā€™s collaboration in the development of such bioweapons. The characters are fascinating and believable, as is the plot line.  Lawlerā€™s novel combines espionage, mystery, and science fiction ā€“ or not! ā€“ in a terrifying, real-world, 21st-century mystery thriller.

By James Lawler,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked In the Twinkling of an Eye as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"In the Twinkling of an Eye" is a story about espionage, family love, and loyalty, focused on a Russian-North Korean conspiracy to develop a devastating biological weapon for assassination, terror and genocide, as written by a senior CIA operations officer whose career was devoted to battling the spread of weapons of mass destruction. This is the second book in the thrilling Guild Series!

In 1986, a Ukrainian teenager loses his father and his own left eye to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, but he escapes and becomes a top-notch genetics engineer at Moscow State University. There, he is seduced into joiningā€¦


Book cover of Fatal Witness

Amber Daulton Author Of Mistletoe in the City

From Amber's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Book cover designer Historian Vegetarian Cat lover

Amber's 3 favorite reads in 2023

Amber Daulton Why did Amber love this book?

Iā€™ve always loved romantic suspense books, so I was eager to read this one. It turned out to be more thriller than romance, but it was so compelling with interesting, flawed characters that I didnā€™t mind.

Jessica and Jon, the main protagonists, are trying to outwit a serial killer, but the bad guy is always one step ahead. I couldnā€™t put the book down. The mystery, the danger, the fearā€”it jumped off the page and dragged me in.

By Michelle Godard-Richer,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Fatal Witness as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Jessica opens her bedroom window in the middle of the night to catch a breeze, but instead, she witnesses something that will change the course of her life forever-her neighbor, David, loading his wife's body onto the back of his truck. She soon learns David knows what she saw and will stop at nothing to eliminate the only witness to his crime. With her young son Bryce in tow, Jessica flees across the border to Montana. She discovers her first love, Jon Kent, is back in town after an early retirement from the FBI. But he isn't the only oneā€¦


Book cover of Capitol Gains

John J. Jessop Author Of Murder by Road Trip

From John's 3 favorite reads in 2023.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Pharmacologist Murder mystery enthusiast Absurdist Car guy Sci-fi guy

John's 3 favorite reads in 2023

John J. Jessop Why did John love this book?

I loved the clever plot and subtle humor.

If you suspect that the federal government is broken, you will want to read this book. A lobbyist decides to try to climb to the top of his profession, and his imaginative and disturbing plan/scam kept me reading and laughing until the end. I enjoyed it immensely and am hoping Spees does it again.

By Rick Spees,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Capitol Gains as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

RICHARD BREWSTER IS A FAST RISING WASHINGTON LOBBYIST in a large law firm with a bright future. But what if he wants to short-circuit the long climb to the top of the profession by creating a made-up client that has a phony problem? What if he uses that client to embarrass the president, to pass irrelevant legislation and arrange Congressional show hearings with professional wrestlers as witnesses? What if he charges the fictional clients hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees that the banks use to loan his law firm vast sums of money? Can he stay one step aheadā€¦


Book cover of Long Shadows

L.C. Blackwell Author Of Ready Aim MURDER: A Peter Dumas Mystery, Book 2

From my list on mysteries to take you places youā€™d like to visit.

Why am I passionate about this?

Puzzles intrigued me since I was a three-year-old. Puzzle pieces that fit into pre-sized spaces. Then, disassembling and reassembling small 3-D animal shapes. Crosswords were next. Finally, Nancy Drew entered my life. I was addicted. Sherlock and Agatha became my mentors. But I loved to paint as well, so art was my first major at Michigan State University. Changed it to advertising in my senior year. Shortly after, Leo Burnett hired me to write print and radio media for Buster Brown shoes. Television was next. I solved many advertising puzzles at Foote, Cone & Belding, but after retiring, mystery re-entered my life when I wrote my first book.

L.C.'s book list on mysteries to take you places youā€™d like to visit

L.C. Blackwell Why did L.C. love this book?

The plight of a single mom is an unusual state of being for a former cop who is dragged into a murder investigation.

Technological secrets open the door to an acute realization of how easy it is to reach into someoneā€™s past and learn that anyoneā€™s life is most certainly an open book. Baldacci writes it with an understanding of tech, an honest representation of a mom with a mind that wonā€™t stop, and murder by one who refuses to forget.

His characters are never cookie-cutter, that's why I read his books.

By David Baldacci,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Long Shadows as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Baldacci is the master' Jeffery Archer

As darkness falls, evil comes to light...

Memory man FBI agent, Amos Decker, returns in this action-packed thriller to investigate the mysterious and brutal murder of a federal judge and her bodyguard at her home in an exclusive, gated community in Florida from international bestselling author David Baldacci.

Things are changing for Decker. He's in crisis following the suicide of a close friend and receipt of a letter concerning a personal issue which could change his life forever. Together with the prospect of working with a new partner, Frederica White, Amos knows that thisā€¦


Book cover of Shadowman: An Elusive Psycho Killer and the Birth of FBI Profiling

Katherine Ramsland Author Of The Serial Killer's Apprentice: The True Story of How Houstonā€™s Deadliest Murderer Turned a Kid into a Killing Machine

From my list on true crime books that teach you about the minds of murderers.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™ve been fascinated with true crime since a serial killer operated in my hometown when I was a kid. Iā€™m now an expert on criminal psychology, which I teach at DeSales University. Iā€™ve appeared in more than 200 crime documentaries and was an executive producer on Murder House Flip (my idea) and A&Eā€™s Confession of a Serial Killer: BTK. Iā€™ve published more than 72 books, and over the past 12 years, Iā€™ve penned a blog on the dark side of the human psyche for Psychology Today. Currently, Iā€™m writing a fiction series based on a female forensic psychologist who runs a PI agency and consults on unique death investigations. 

Katherine's book list on true crime books that teach you about the minds of murderers

Katherine Ramsland Why did Katherine love this book?

Most people donā€™t know the surprising story of the first FBI profile, but I think itā€™s one of the best examples of how the method works.

I love that the FBIā€™s Behavioral Science Unitā€™s founders, Howard Teten and Patrick Mullaney, get their due since theyā€™ve been eclipsed by other profilersā€™ books.

For the first time, we get the full story of a deadly kidnapping in Montana, told by someone who grew up in the area. I find Ron Franscellā€™s true crime books to have literary qualities that others lack while also delivering a solid story. In addition, the kidnapper turned out to be a truly shocking individual.

By Ron Franscell,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Shadowman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Mindhunter crossed with American Gothic. This chilling story has the ghostly unease of a nightmare." (Michael Cannell, author of Incendiary: The Psychiatrist, the Mad Bomber and the Invention of Criminal Profiling)

The pulse-pounding account of the first time in history that the FBIā€™s Behavioral Science Unit created a psychological profile to catch a serial killer.

On June 25, 1973, a seven-year-old girl went missing from the Montana campground where her family was vacationing. Somebody had slit open the back of their tent and snatched her from under their noses. None of them saw or heard anything. Susie Jaeger had vanishedā€¦


Book cover of You Can Hide
Book cover of The Ransomware Hunting Team: A Band of Misfits' Improbable Crusade to Save the World from Cybercrime
Book cover of Dead Mountain

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