Thriller · Similar reads
Books like The Poet
The best books like The Poet are In Cold Blood, The Devil in the White City, and The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War. The Poet by Michael Connelly is about grief and obsession, serial predation, journalism and truth. If that's what drew you in, here are 12 books that share its DNA — each summarized on Superbook, and ready to chat with in the app.
- In Cold Blood
01
Truman Capote · Memoir
Truman Capote's account of the 1959 murders of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas — and of the investigation, capture, trial, and execution of the killers Perry Smith and Richard Hickock — is the founding document of the true crime genre and one of the most admired works of American nonfiction of the twentieth century.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary → - The Devil in the White City
02
Erik Larson · History
The Devil in the White City tells two stories that unfolded simultaneously in Chicago in 1893.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary → - The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War
03
The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War
Ben Macintyre · History
Ben Macintyre tells the story of Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB officer who became the most important British spy of the Cold War.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary → - Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
04
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
Patrick Radden Keefe · History
Say Nothing opens with a scene that sets its register precisely: Jean McConville, a widowed mother of ten, is dragged from her Belfast flat by a gang of masked strangers in December 1972 and never seen alive again.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary → - Killers of the Flower Moon
05
David Grann · History
In the 1920s, members of the Osage Nation in northeastern Oklahoma were being murdered.
Both dig into institutional failure.
Read the summary → - The Cartel
06
Don Winslow · Thriller
The Cartel is the second installment in Don Winslow's trilogy about the Mexican drug war, picking up years after The Power of the Dog left off.
Both dig into institutional failure.
Read the summary → - The Surgeon
07
Tess Gerritsen · Thriller
The Surgeon is the first book in Tess Gerritsen's Rizzoli & Isles series, though it begins primarily as a Jane Rizzoli solo novel.
Both dig into institutional failure.
Read the summary → - Then She Was Gone
08
Lisa Jewell · Thriller
Ellie Mack disappeared ten years ago, just before her A-level exams.
Both dig into grief and obsession.
Read the summary → - Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq
09
Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq
Thomas E. Ricks · History
Thomas Ricks was the Pentagon correspondent for the Washington Post when he wrote Fiasco, and the book reflects years of direct access to the military officials, planners, and soldiers involved in the Iraq War.
Both dig into institutional failure.
Read the summary → - The Gray Lady Winked
10
Ashley Rindsberg · History
The Gray Lady Winked is a critical history of the New York Times, focused on cases where the paper's reporting was demonstrably wrong, selectively presented, or actively misleading.
Both dig into institutional failure.
Read the summary → - A Time to Kill
11
John Grisham · Thriller
In Clanton, Mississippi, two white men rape and nearly kill ten-year-old Tonya Hailey.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary → - Along Came a Spider
12
James Patterson · Thriller
Along Came a Spider introduces Alex Cross, a Black homicide detective and forensic psychologist working in Washington D.C., in the case that made James Patterson a bestseller.
A kindred thriller read.
Read the summary →
Books like The Poet: quick answers
What are the best books like The Poet?
The best books like The Poet by Michael Connelly are In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben Macintyre, Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe, Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann, plus 7 more below. Each was chosen for themes it shares with The Poet, such as grief and obsession, serial predation, journalism and truth.
What should I read after The Poet?
A natural next read after The Poet is In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. A kindred thriller read. Other strong choices are The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben Macintyre, Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe.
What books are similar to The Poet by Michael Connelly?
The Poet centers on grief and obsession, serial predation, journalism and truth. Books with a similar feel include In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben Macintyre, Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe, Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann, The Cartel by Don Winslow — all free to read and chat with on Superbook.
