There’s nothing that grabs the reader’s attention in a thriller more than a main character who is ready to save the day, whatever it takes. These kinds of characters appear in nearly every suspenseful novel, though. What we rarely see, though, are autistic characters in the genre. This is why this selection of novels is refreshingly good. These five books are led by badass autistic characters, who tackle political dangers, investigate murders, solve crimes or face daunting threats, making them the heroes of their stories.
The Gaugin Connection by Estelle Ryan
Doctor Genevieve Lenard is an investigator — of insurance claims, not murder. When she’s asked to look into the death of an artist, she isn’t ready to dive into the unfamiliar world of forgeries, art crime and suspicious deaths. After all, her background is in psychology, with a specialization in nonverbal communication and behavior — something she doesn’t realize will come in handy as she sleuths around the underbelly of the art world. Dr. Genevieve is let into the hidden world of stolen weapons, money laundering, and abuse of power that she never imagined she would encounter. Soon, she is thrown onto a team determined to catch the killer before they strike again. This character-driven novel will captivate any mystery fans as they follow Genevieve’s investigation — the first of many in this 15-part series.
Osprey by M.L. Buchman
In the 13th installment of ML Buchman’s Miranda Chase series, Miranda is taking a much-needed vacation with her girlfriend. Then, a crisis erupts over the distant, frigid waters of the North Sea. After a routine Russian resupply mission gets diverted to shadow an American Osprey, disaster strikes and the two aircraft plummet into the depths. But who is to blame for the incident? The Russian pilot turns out to be the daughter of the head of the Russian FSB intelligence service, and the threat of a major international incident rises exponentially. With only hours to act, both Russian and American government officials scramble to find answers and avert World War III. The top intelligence of both rival nations seeks the one person who can provide the answers they need: Miranda Chase, the preeminent specialist in military aircraft accidents. This crisis unravels Miranda’s past and threatens to crush her team in the ultimate grinder of East vs. West. (Read the review here and check out the interview with the author.)
Rubbernecker by Belinda Bauer
Patrick Fort’s professor said that speaking to the dead is impossible. But the body Patrick has been examining in anatomy class has been talking to him, trying to tell him things. The only thing is, nobody in Patrick’s class will listen to him or believes that what he claims is true. Being a medical student has his challenges, but solving a murder is the last thing he needed — but how can he prove that this cadaver has been murdered, or a crime has taken place? On his own, he has to uncover the truth based on what the dead man tells him. And that truth might be uglier than he ever imagined, unearthing darkness from his own past that he isn’t quite ready to face.
On the Edge of Gone by Corinne Duyvis
This thrilling, thought-provoking YA science fiction novel focuses on a young woman grappling with an apocalyptic prediction. On January 29, 2035, a comet is scheduled to hit Earth, wiping out the planet. Denise, her little sister Iris and her drug-addicted mother are struggling to make it to the shelter in time when Iris goes missing. Their unexpected detour leads them to a ship, scheduled to leave Earth for new worlds on which they can build a new civilization. But there’s only one problem — each person on the ship has a purpose, and young Denise isn’t so sure how useful she will be to them. Can she find a way to get on the ship with her mother and sister? Will she have to leave them behind to save herself? Duyvis’ novel questions the value of human life with a gripping survival plot.
The Suicide House by Charlie Donlea
Rory Moore and her psychologist partner Lane Phillips are experts in reconstructing cold cases. With the help of their podcast, The Suicide House, they’re ready to tackle the mystery of a strange boarding house with a haunting legacy. At a local boarding school, high school students are known to gather after hours at an abandoned house in the woods beyond the campus. Two years after the deadly killing of two students, the mystery seems solved — but is it? Numerous students who survived the fateful night of the murders have returned to the boarding house to kill themselves. What can Rory and Lane learn as they reconstruct the night of the killings to piece together the answers nobody wants them to uncover? (Check out this interview with author Charlie Donlea.)
