Most Popular Thriller Books of the 1940s

The Shade of Time

David Duncan

Science Fiction · Thriller

1946

Tales of Piracy, Crime and Ghosts

Daniel Defoe

Horror · Short Stories · Mainstream · Thriller

1945

Hercule Poirot #27

The Labors of Hercules

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1947

Hercule Poirot #26

The Hollow

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1946

Hercule Poirot #25

Five Little Pigs

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

May 1, 1942

Hercule Poirot #22

Sad Cypress

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

March 1, 1940

Hercule Poirot #24

Evil Under the Sun

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

June 1, 1941

Hercule Poirot #23

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Short Stories · Mystery · Thriller

November 11, 1940

Hercule Poirot #29

Taken at the Flood

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1948

The Scarf

Robert Bloch

Horror · Psychological Horror · Psychological Thriller · Thriller

1947

Miss Marple #2

The Body in the Library

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · TV Series · Mystery · Thriller

February 1942

The Stranger

Albert Camus

Crime Fiction · Psychological Thriller · Mystery · Thriller

May 19, 1942

Rest and Be Thankful

Helen MacInnes

Historical Fiction · Mystery · Romance · Thriller · Western

January 1, 1949

Inspector Hazlerigg #3

The Doors Open

Michael Gilbert

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1949

Philip Marlowe #5

The Little Sister

Raymond Chandler

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1949

The Madrone Tree

David Duncan

Thriller

1949

The Steel Mirror

Donald Hamilton

Spy Thriller · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1948

Inspector Hazlerigg #2

They Never Looked Inside

Michael Gilbert

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1948

British Library Tales of the Weird #76

The Black Mirror

Johnny Mains, Winifred Duke

Horror · Crime Fiction · Gothic Horror · Historical Fiction · Thriller

1948

Fu Manchu #11

Shadow of Fu Manchu

Sax Rohmer

Fantasy · Thriller

1948

The Road Through the Wall

Shirley Jackson

Thriller

1948

Friends and Lovers

Helen MacInnes

Spy Thriller · Historical Fiction · Mystery · Romance · Thriller

January 1, 1947

Inspector Hazlerigg #1

Close Quarters

Michael Gilbert

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1947

Horizon

Helen MacInnes

Spy Thriller · War & Military · Historical Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1945

While Still We Live

Helen MacInnes

Spy Thriller · War & Military · Adventure · Historical Fiction · Mystery

January 1, 1944

The Misadventures of Sherlock Holmes

Ellery Queen

Crime Fiction · Sherlock Holmes · Historical Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

March 1944

The Ministry of Fear

Graham Greene

Crime Fiction · Spy Thriller · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1943

Philip Marlowe #4

The Lady in the Lake

Raymond Chandler

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1943

Assignment in Brittany

Helen MacInnes

Spy Thriller · War & Military · Adventure · Historical Fiction · Mystery

January 8, 1942

Philip Marlowe #3

The High Window

Raymond Chandler

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

August 17, 1942

Miss Marple #3

The Moving Finger

Agatha Christie

Crime Fiction · TV Series · Mystery · Thriller

July 1942

Above Suspicion

Helen MacInnes

Spy Thriller · War & Military · Adventure · Historical Fiction · Mystery

January 1, 1941

Fu Manchu #10

The Island of Fu Manchu

Sax Rohmer

Fantasy · Thriller

1941

Philip Marlowe #2

Farewell, My Lovely

Raymond Chandler

Crime Fiction · Mystery · Thriller

January 1, 1940

Journey Into Fear

Eric Ambler

Crime Fiction · Spy Thriller · Suspense Thriller · Historical Fiction · Mystery

1940