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Welcome to March, thriller fans!
After an awesome batch of new releases in February, bookstores are reloading for another month full of must-read new titles. As always, to help highlight a few of our favorite new books, we’ve chosen a couple of mysteries and thrillers that we’re especially excited about, and this month’s featured Selections are The Dark Time by Nick Petrie and Everyone in This Bank Is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson. I’m also excited to announce that my second Alex Hawke thriller, Ted Bell’s Warmonger, comes out on the 31st, and that one of my favorite debut novels of 2026 is being released mid-month.
To find out more about those titles and everything else hitting stores this month, and to see all of my reviews, check out our full March 2026 Reading Guide below!
The Tree of Light and Flowers by Thoas Perry
Release Date: March 3
Jane Whitefield is used to protecting vulnerable people, but after she gives birth, the fugitives she must rescue are her own family.
A violent car crash brings on the premature birth of the baby that Jane Whitefield and her husband have hoped for, but it also shatters the period of calm in their lives like an earthquake triggering a tectonic shift.
Within weeks, Jane’s peaceful time as a new mother in a safe, harmonious home starts to revert to her harrowing previous life. She had spent over a decade rescuing and sheltering people from dangerous foes, taking them to new locations, and teaching them to live under new identities. It was something that she’d hoped to never have to do again.
Nearly simultaneously, as though the events were connected, people who are thousands of miles apart in vastly different circumstances start to move. Some of them are in terrible need of help finding a route to safety. Some are dedicated to serving justice. Others are determined to capture the woman who makes people disappear so they can force her to reveal where their potential victims are now. All of these travelers are soon on their way to the old house in western New York.
Suddenly the people requiring Jane’s special skills include not only multiple fugitives, but also Jane herself, her husband, and their newborn, as the danger she faces comes from people who know how to find her. She’ll need to use everything she’s ever learned in order to survive.
Strangers in the Villa by Robyn Harding
Release Date: March 3
From the international bestselling author of The Drowning Woman, a psychological thriller about a couple rocked by infidelity who moves to a villa in Spain’s Costa Brava to rebuild their relationship, only to welcome a pair of visitors who have no intention of leaving.
Sydney Lowe’s life in New York is shattered when her husband, Curtis, admits to a meaningless affair with a client. Begging for forgiveness and vowing to prove his devotion, Curtis suggests the couple retreat to a remote hilltop house in Spain to repair their marriage.
High above the Mediterranean, Sydney and Curtis are working on the isolated property and their relationship when a pair of Australian travelers turns up at their door in dire need of help. Lonely for companionship and desperate for free labor, Sydney and Curtis invite the attractive young couple to stay. But as the days pass, dark secrets come to light, the Lowes’ bond is tested, and not everyone will leave the villa alive.
“Robyn Harding is probably among the writers I most recommend, and once again she has excelled herself with damaged and damaging characters wreaking havoc on each other. I loved every page! When can I read the next one?” ―Liz Nugent, internationally bestselling author of Strange Sally Diamond
The Harvey Girl by Dana Stabenow
Release Date: March 3
From the award-winning author of the Kate Shugak Mysteries, a thrilling new detective series set during America’s wild boom time of the nineteenth century.
WELCOME TO THE GILDED AGE. WHERE NOT EVERYTHING GLITTERS.
1890. The New Mexico Territory is a lawless frontier where criminals steal money and land alike with impunity. Everyone wears a six-gun and is ready and willing to draw it.
In the new city of Montaña Roja, Fred Harvey’s growing empire is threatened by the robberies plaguing his newest Harvey House restaurant. To get justice, he needs a skilled detective to go undercover and procure answers to questions the law will not ask.
The assignment falls to Clare Wright, a young Pinkerton agent. Disguised as one of Harvey’s famous hostesses, Clare travels west where she risks being exposed at every step of her investigation. To get answers – and to get out alive – there are only two things she can trust: her instincts, and her derringer.
The Secret Lives of Murderers’ Wives by Elizabeth Arnott
Release Date: March 3
A remarkable trio whose lives have been cracked wide open by their husbands’ crimes unite to catch a serial killer in this dazzlingly captivating novel.
Beverley, Elsie, and Margot are not your average housewives. They are all wives of convicted killers. During the sun-drenched summer of 1966, the three women form an unlikely friendship after the discoveries of their husbands’ brutal crimes. With their exes—some of California’s most infamous murderers—dead or behind bars, they are attempting to forge a new future for themselves.
Headstrong Beverley tries compulsively to maintain control of everything around her, all while raising two children. Bookish Elsie fights to make a name for herself in the newsroom, working among men who sneer at her career goals. Glamorous Margot prefers partying to homemaking and devotes all her energy to upholding the appearance that everything is fine—anything to quell the shame from her husband’s deceit.
They know people look at them and think only one thing: How could they not have known what their husbands were doing? How much are they to blame? And yet when a string of local killings hits the news, the three women—underestimated, overlooked, shrewd—decide to get to work. After all, who better to catch a killer than those who have shared their lives and homes with one?
At once a riveting portrayal of shattered trust and a story of gripping suspense, The Secret Lives of Murderers’ Wives is a testament to the intricacies of women’s lives and how the deep bonds of female friendship can empower, uplift, and lead us to endure.
A Ghastly Catastrophe by Deanna Raybourn
Release Date: March 3
Veronica and Stoker are practically dying for a new adventure, but when their wish is granted, they find themselves up against a secret society and a darkly seductive duo in this landmark historical mystery from beloved New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn.
When the corpse of an entitled young man is found entirely drained of blood in a carriage next to Highgate Cemetery, Veronica’s interest is piqued. And then a second victim is found, his death made to look like a suicide—and Veronica and her intrepid beau Stoker know the hunt is on. The two men share one link: they were both members of a society so secretive that only a singular mention of it can be found anywhere.
Thirsty for more clues, Veronica and Stoker hear that a young Romany boy may know more about their first victim, and the only way to the boy is through an old acquaintance of Stoker’s, Lady Julia Brisbane. Lady Julia and her dashing husband, Nicholas, occasionally track down murderers and are only too happy to help. But as it becomes clear that the secret society is a dangerous sect looking to entice immortality seekers, Veronica and Stoker find themselves ensnared by a decidedly more sinister couple.
The professed leader of the society claims to be a creature of the night; his partner practices witchcraft and they both fancy themselves emissaries of the otherworldly. Just as Veronica and Stoker get closer to learning the true purpose of the society and unraveling this macabre mystery, another body turns up, and they quickly discover they’ve gone from being the hunters to the hunted. . .
The Only One Who Knows by Lisa M. Matlin
Release Date: March 3
A disgraced TV news reporter returns to her violent hometown to investigate a series of deadly shark attacks in this nail-biting suspense novel from the author of The Stranger Upstairs.
“A gothic coastal noir about generational violence and the cyclical nature of predation, The Only One Who Knows is visceral, haunting, and impossible to look away from.”—Carter Wilson, USA Today bestselling author of Tell Me What You Did
Something is lurking below the surface . . . and it’s hungry.
With her polished persona as a morning show co-host, Minnow Greenwood seems to have it all. But behind the camera, something’s about to break. When a public meltdown shatters her facade, Minnow flees back to Kangaroo Bay—a grimy fishing town on Australia’s southern coast, where locals vanish and something deadly hunts in the water.
On her first night back, a horrifying shark attack rocks the town, adding another body to the unsettling list of deaths and disappearances. Then a former colleague arrives to investigate, so she reluctantly teams up with him to find answers for herself and keep her own dark secrets buried.
But with danger closing in, Minnow must unearth her town’s deadly past—and face the darkness festering inside her—before she becomes the next to disappear.
Release Date: March 10th
At the suggestion of his girlfriend, June, Peter Ash rides to the aid of an investigative reporter who may have stumbled on a story more explosive than even he can handle in this propulsive new thriller from the bestselling and award-winning series.
Katelyn Thorsen, known as KT to her friends and enemies, is an independent journalist who receives a very specific death threat. Fortunately, Peter Ash has arrived in town to protect KT at the request of his girlfriend, June Cassidy. From the moment of his arrival, he’s thrown into a maelstrom of violence trying to protect KT and her daughter and discover the source of the death threat.
Even after June and Peter’s best friend Lewis arrive in Seattle to help, this challenge may be too much for them – with enormous consequences should they fail.
Served Him Right by Lisa Unger
Release Date: March 10th
“A twisty and pacy thriller.” —Nita Prose, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid series
A woman’s brunch with friends quickly turns dark in this gripping thriller from New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger
Ana Blacksmith has gathered her closest friends and sister Vera for a brunch to celebrate her recent breakup from her boyfriend Paul. But when shocking news about Paul arrives, all eyes are on Ana, the angry ex with a bad reputation. Suspicions only intensify when Ana’s best friend falls deathly ill after the brunch.
But Ana is not the only one who had a score to settle with Paul. As the investigation unfolds, rumors of a secret network that uses ancient methods to obtain justice begin to emerge. Vengeance is sweet, but it can also be deadly. Ana and Vera are determined to find the truth before Ana takes the fall and their own long-buried history comes to light.
This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum
Release Date: March 10th
Best friends Benny and Joy like to say they’ve been saving each other’s lives since the moment they met. Until the day Joy disappears and Benny is suspected of murder . . .
Benny Abbott and Joy Moore host one of the most beloved podcasts in the world. Each week, they delight listeners with a different “against all odds” survival story, gleefully finding the weird, life-affirming humor in near-death experiences. Since their first episode on Joy’s experience with severe narcolepsy, they’ve been the best friends everyone wants to befriend―and thanks to the meticulous management of Joy’s husband, Xander, they’ve built a lucrative empire.
The problem is, their next survival story may be their own. When Benny arrives at Joy and Xander’s one morning to record, he finds shattered glass and an empty house. The one clue shedding light on the couple’s disappearance is the incomplete, previously unseen first draft of Joy’s memoir. Benny is desperate to find them, even when the police soon zero in on him as their prime suspect.
Millions of devoted listeners think they know the “real” Benny and Joy. But as the hours tick by, and the odds seem increasingly stacked against Joy and Xander being found alive, not even the most devoted fans could guess the terrible secrets their favorite famous BFFs have hidden from the world―and from each other.
A Day of Judgment by Charles Todd
Release Date: March 17th
Inspector Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard travels to England’s windswept coastline to investigate a murder in a place where, several years after the end of WWI, the memory of the war still runs strong . . .
July, 1921: England is suffering a heatwave and the coast of Northumberland, just across the border from Scotland, is filled with holiday-makers bird watching and enjoying the beaches. Pilgrims also come to visit the home of Saints Cuthbert and Aiden―the founders of Christianity in England―located on the “Holy Island” of Lindisfarne, accessible by a causeway at low tide.
When the murdered body of a local man washes ashore just south of Lindisfarne, the government and the Church of England are concerned about protecting both the reputation of the Church and the sacred sites that are a destination for hundreds of pilgrims at this time of year. With his ability to move in the highest social and political circles, Rutledge is sent by Scotland Yard to solve this crime and dispel any association with the Church.
Upon arrival, Rutledge finds himself pulled between two coastal fishing villages, scarred by home front battles and coastal bombardment from the German Navy, where animosity towards Germany still runs high even years after the war. This, combined with a constabulary in the process of being consolidated to form a countywide police force, with local militias still wielding a great deal of power, means Rutledge must tread with care.
Facing a puzzling case and a cast of locals that don’t take kindly to outsiders, the newly promoted Rutledge meets one of the most challenging cases of his career. To solve it, he’ll also have to confront his own demons left over from his time in the war.
The Hiding Season by Ava Glass
Release Date: March 17th
In this page-turning, atmospheric thriller, a broken woman’s new beginning is upended when she becomes the only witness to a deadly crime . . . making her the next target.
“Impossible to put down!” —Gilly Macmillan, New York Times bestselling author of What She Knew
After a painful divorce, Maya Landry is in desperate need of a fresh start, which she finds deep in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. Maya’s relieved when she’s hired as a summer keeper of billionaire-owned ski lodges left empty after snow season ends, and her new life of peace and isolation is going exactly as hoped . . . until she stumbles across a dead body on the living room floor of one of the lodges. There’s no cell service on the resort, and by the time she’s able to find a signal and call the police, the body is gone. In fact, there’s no evidence a body was ever there at all.
The police think Maya is unstable, and she’s not convinced they are wrong. But later that night, a stranger walks up to her and tells her that someone knows she was up on the mountain that day, someone willing to kill to keep their secrets. She’s not sure whether to believe him . . . until the killers come for her in the dead of night. Maya narrowly escapes, only to find that same mysterious man waiting to rush her away. But can she trust him? Can she trust anyone?
Only one thing is certain: The people who committed the murder are coming for her. Maya is the only person alive who might reveal what happened up on the mountain. And they want her gone.
Release Date: March 17th
#1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown delivers a new signature sexy suspense about a detective seeking justice for his murdered wife with the help of a psychotherapist…while fighting an undeniable attraction to her.
Two years ago, Detective Mitch Haskell lost his wife to a vicious act of retribution, and, since, has attributed her murder to two men: Roland Malone and the unidentified mastermind of the crime known only as Oz. Malone, a ruthless executioner and drug dealer who fronts as a restaurant owner, neutralizes so cleanly that he doesn’t leave a trace. And he performs his handiwork at the biddings of Oz, the faceless kingpin of a drug trafficking operation whose name alone evokes terror.
Obsessively vowing to avenge his late wife’s murder, Mitch has been on a downward spiral jeopardizing his closest relationships and drinking excessively to numb his pain. After going one step too far, Detective John Bowie, his former best friend and now his boss, has forced Mitch to get therapy to sort himself out.
Dr. Dylan Reede is immediately empathetic to the pain she senses beneath Mitch’s cavalier attitude and wisecracking. She’s determined to make the most of his mandated sessions with her, regardless of his reluctance and attempted distractions. But from the moment Mitch breezes into her office—seeing straight through her aloof exterior and getting under her skin in unprecedented ways—Dylan finds it a struggle to maintain the professional and personal boundaries that keep her own tragic past at a safe distance.
As Mitch begins to close in on Oz and Malone’s operation, they’re prepared to stop him by any means necessary. And when it’s revealed that Dylan might hold the key to bringing them to justice, Mitch and Dylan’s irresistible attraction to each other may not only compromise both of them professionally, but place them in Oz’s bullseye.
The Antique Hunter’s Murder at the Castle by C.L. Miller
Release Date: March 17th
The third novel in the “delightful, page-turning” (Tom Ryan, USA TODAY bestselling author) Antique Hunter Series finds Freya, Aunt Carole, and friends searching for a missing colleague in picturesque Scotland.
Hot on the heels of an art forger, a member of the Lockwood Antique Hunter’s Agency disappears while investigating an isolated castle deep in Scottish countryside. Freya and Aunt Carole race to her last known location and arrive in the wintry, snow-covered Scottish Borders.
At the castle, they discover that a murdered laird in the vegetable garden and his priceless collection of silverware has been stolen. Local police believe Freya’s missing team member was involved with the robbery and murder…but where is she now?
As a snowstorm descends on the castle, Freya and Carole call in back-up to help uncover what happened that fateful night. As each question is met with more mystery, the clock is ticking to find their friend and the murderer before they are cut off from the outside world.
Another delightfully gripping and endearing mystery, the Antique Hunter’s Series provides “great characters, great story, and you’re always eager for the next one” (Ian Moore, author of Death and Croissants).
You Did Nothing Wrong by CG Drews
Release Date: March 17th
Domestic suspense meets haunted house horror in this adult debut from the New York Times bestselling author of Don’t Let the Forest In.
The walls are closing in on her perfect new life.
Single mother Elodie’s life has become a fairy tale. She’s met Bren, equal parts Golden-retriever-devoted and sinfully handsome. He’s whisked her and her autistic son, Jude, to the crumbling family house he’s renovating. She has a new husband, a new house, and a new baby on the way. Everything is perfect.
Until Jude claims he can hear voices in the walls. He says their renovations are “hurting” the house. Even Elodie can’t ignore it―something strange is going on.
The question is, Is it with the house, or with her son?
And what is Elodie hiding?
Royal Diamonds by Jack MacTavish
Release Date: March 17th
“A swashbuckling modern thriller, Royal Diamonds blends history, espionage, and high-seas adventure into a nonstop thrill ride. Think Jack Carr meets Clive Cussler—with a heart as big as its action.” — Ryan Steck, The Real Book Spy and author of Ted Bell’s Warmonger
Some treasures are worth killing for. Some secrets refuse to die.
Oxford historian and former U.S. Marine Dr. Jake Stede has always chased the past—but when he sets sail for the Caribbean to uncover his family’s rumored pirate legacy, he finds himself in the crosshairs of something far deadlier than buried gold.
A priceless blood diamond, stolen from the British government, has gone missing—and Jake’s hunt for history collides with a ruthless criminal empire determined to reclaim it. Teaming up with his reckless best friend Mike Diaz, the fiery historian Olivia “Harper” Calhoun, and Lady Lauren Abigail “Abby” Mountbatten, a British royal desperate to restore her family’s honor, Jake is thrust into a perilous race across oceans and continents.
From Charleston’s cobblestone streets to storm-lashed Caribbean islands, what begins as a search for treasure soon becomes a fight for survival, where loyalty is fragile, history bleeds into the present, and every secret comes with a price.
Royal Diamonds is a globe-trotting action thriller of history, espionage, and redemption—perfect for fans of Jack Carr, Clive Cussler, and Ted Bell.
Everyone in This Bank Is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson
Release Date: March 17th
Ten suspects. Ten heists. A puzzle only Ernest Cunningham can solve in this delightfully clever and twisty new novel in Benjamin Stevenson’s bestselling series—perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Anthony Horowitz.
I’ve spent the last few years solving murders. But a bank heist is a new one, even for me. I’ve never been a hostage before.
The doors are chained shut. No one in or out. Which means that when someone in the bank is murdered, everyone is a suspect.
THE BANK ROBBER
THE MANAGER
THE SECURITY GUARD
THE KID
THE FILM PRODUCER
THE PRIEST
THE RECEPTIONIST
THE PATIENT
THE CAREGIVER
ME
Turns out, more than one person planned to rob the bank today. You can steal more from a bank than just money.
Who is stealing what? Are they willing to kill for it? And can I solve the crime before the police kick down the door and rescue us?
Release Date: March 24th
A hijacked New York subway train, an anonymous killer, and a young man trapped by his hidden past converge in a breathless, breathtaking thriller
Do not turn off your phone
Do not get off the train
I know who you really are
Fired and walked out by security on his first day at his new job in New York City, Ben Cross thought his day couldn’t get worse. But he couldn’t be more wrong. Getting on the 1 train headed uptown, Ben starts receiving text messages from an anonymous killer, showing that they’ve already killed someone, then pointedly killing another as they got off the train to prove they aren’t bluffing and to ensure Ben follows orders. But Ben wasn’t picked at random―he has a history that no one is supposed to know.
At the same time, A NYPD detective, Kelly Hendricks, is on punishment duty with the transit police. The first one on the scene after the first murder, she gets on the train to find out what is really going on.
Switching rapidly between Cross and Hendricks, as the hijacked 1 train heads from South Ferry to 181st, the secret to the killer lies in Ben’s own history―why he’s been targeted and punished.
Release Date: March 24th
A blackout, a derailment, a flood―when disasters align with a mysterious countdown, Theo Cray, Jessica Blackwood, Brad Trasker, and Sloan McPherson hunt the engineer who scripts chaos.
A train derails in Idaho, nearly causing a nuclear disaster. An inferno at a battery facility in Florida disrupts the electrical grid for days. A potentially devastating failure is discovered at Virginia’s Mud River Dam. To computational biologist Theo Cray, these aren’t mere infrastructure accidents. They are virtually undetectable acts of sabotage.
Theo sees a mathematical pattern to the madness that few others can comprehend―except for his associates: rogue FBI agent Jessica Blackwood, private security specialist Brad Trasker, and Florida underwater investigator Sloan McPherson. If Theo’s intuition and calculations are correct, the disasters are just a warm-up. The worst is yet to come―a catastrophe that could trigger the deaths of millions across the country.
Now Theo and his team are on the hunt for a mysterious saboteur whose only motive is to spread panic and chaos. And with every tick of the clock, his unthinkable endgame is getting closer to becoming a terrifying reality.
A Murder in Eight Cocktails by Kelly Mullen
Release Date: March 26th
‘As fun as murder gets!’ Stacey Halls
Mix one old flame with a splash of suspicion for the perfect. . . murder.
In the seaside haven of Carmel-by-the-Sea, Willa Keane’s marriage is in a rut. As a retired interior-designer-turned-influencer, she’s sure life begins at fifty-five, whereas her husband, Marty, is more interested in watching his beloved birds.
So when Willa is invited to the opening of the chicest new cocktail bar in town, she hopes the evening will rekindle their flame. But arriving at the party, Willa is shaken to discover it’s being hosted by her charming ex-husband, Paul.
The night is thrown into even deeper chaos when the bar’s enigmatic owner is found dead on the rocks below. A suicide message suggests there’s no foul play, but Willa’s heightened senses aren’t so sure. Now she must solve the mystery together with her husband…and her ex-husband.
Can they find the killer before another victim is served their last cocktail?
Ted Bell’s Warmonger by Ryan Steck
Release Date: March 31st
Lord Alexander Hawke is used to going after big game, but his pursuit of a mysterious figure code-named Warmonger brings him up against his most deadly foe—Vladimir Putin—in the latest entry in this New York Times bestselling series.
Lord Alexander Hawke’s hunt for the Warmonger—a shadowy figure orchestrating chaos across the globe—is put on hold so that he may undertake an urgent mission for the Crown. His assignment: Travel to Russia, escorting the lovely Dr. Ariadne Silk; confront his archnemesis, Vladimir Putin; and recover a secret document that threatens to shake the British monarchy to its core.
While Hawke makes a perilous journey across Europe, his good friend Ambrose Congreve’s routine investigation of a bizarre murder takes a deadly turn, pulling him into a cat-and-mouse game with Silence, a cold-blooded assassin who may be targeting Hawke himself.
Hawke will soon discover that he is a pawn in the Warmonger’s Byzantine plot to bring the world to the brink of total war and resurrect a fallen empire.
Killing Me Softly by Sandie Jones
Release Date: March 31st
What do you do when love turns deadly?
THE PERFECT COUPLE
Charlie and Freya used to be the picture-perfect couple. Happy and in love, Freya enjoyed a rewarding job heading up a charity’s fundraising efforts, and Charlie was fast becoming one-to-watch on the London culinary scene―if you couldn’t be them, you wanted to be with them.
A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY
They had it all . . . until one night a devastating accident tears their lives apart, and they’re awoken by police at their door, asking whether they are aware that their car had been involved in a hit and run.
A BITTER FEUD
Torn apart by accusations and guilt, the trust that Freya and Charlie once shared is shattered as they turn on each other, looking for someone to blame for the fallout. Told from both Freya and Charlie’s perspectives, a cat and mouse game ensues, both of them desperate to have someone to point the finger at. But is it more important to be right, or to win? Can Freya stay one step ahead of the man who knows her best? Or will Charlie’s stoic conviction to get what he wants be the death of her?
Sandie Jones’s next addictive novel is a wickedly twisty tale of obsession, and the deadly consequences of loving someone too much.
Release Date: March 31st
From the iconic crime writer who “inspires cultic devotion in readers” (The New Yorker) and has been called “incandescent” by Stephen King, “absolutely mesmerizing” by Gillian Flynn, and “unputdownable” (People), comes the third and final book in the million-copy-bestselling Cal Hooper trilogy.
On a cold night in the remote Irish village of Ardnakelty, a girl goes missing. Sweet, loving Rachel Holohan was about to be engaged to the son of the local big shot. Instead, she’s dead in the river.
In a close-knit small town, a death like this isn’t simple. It comes wrapped in generations-old grudges and power struggles, and it splits the townland in two. Retired Chicago detective Cal Hooper has friends here now, and he owes them loyalty, but his fiancée Lena wants nothing to do with Ardnakelty’s tangles. As the feud becomes more vicious, their settled peace starts to crack apart. And when they uncover a scheme that casts a new light on Rachel’s death and threatens the whole village, they find themselves in the firing line.
“One of the greatest crime novelists writing today” (Vox) crafts a masterwork of atmospheric suspense that brings the story of one of her most beloved characters to a spellbinding conclusion.