10 Survival Thrillers That Test Human Endurance

The Beach is like the younger sibling of Lord of the Flies, sharing themes of isolation, conflict, and tension. It follows Richard’s adventure in Thailand with a fellow traveler, “Daffy Duck,” as they discover a supposedly self-sufficient society on a remote island. However, they soon realize the community is hiding a dark secret, and their bonds begin to erode as human nature takes over. Richard fears for his life in this backpacking trip gone wrong.

Set against the backdrop of two real maritime disasters, the Titanic and the Britannic, this book combines supernatural threats and natural threats where the characters are forced to demonstrate resilience to navigate the imminent dangers. In this book, Annie, a stewardess who survives the Titanic, starts experiencing apparitions. Years later, as a nurse on the Britannic, similar events occur, forcing her to confront her past to survive.

Friends Winifred, Rachel, Pia, and Sandra decide to go on a white-water rafting adventure in Maine. The trip quickly goes downhill as the women are separated from their knowledgeable guide, forcing them to survive against the wild waves, animals, and other natural elements. The four friends need to tap into their power of friendship as much as their will to survive.

For a trip into the speculative, this book taps into the post-apocalyptic setting of a world that has collapsed after a deadly zombie outbreak. We follow Mark, a civilian volunteer who is part of a group known as the “Sweepers,” who is tasked with battling zombies in Manhattan, aka Zone One. Not only is the presence of zombies still a constant threat, but Mark’s real-life trauma continues to add layers working against his survival in this world.

Harper taps into the age-old struggle of man v. nature and man v. man conflict in this book. Set in remote Australia, agent Aaron Falk is hired to investigate the disappearance of Alice Russell, who went missing during a corporate team-building retreat with the rest of the employees from BaileyTennants. When they dig deeper, Falk becomes suspicious that something more is going on, especially among their male colleagues. As the group begins to dismantle from within, the stakes for survival escalate.

This book takes on another aspect of “survival,” using Japan as the setting and the world of the yakuza as the threat. After Yayoi murders her deadbeat, abusive husband, she enlists the help of two co-workers to cover it up. Yayoi and her friends are pulled into the dark, underground world as they evade police suspicion and the yakuza. Yayoi is desperate to survive, not just physically but also emotionally, as she fights to keep herself and her accomplices safe.

When nine-year-old Trisha gets lost in the woods, she begins hallucinating conversations with her idol, Red Sox pitcher Tom Gordon, as a way to cope with her fear. She continues to experience the typical survival challenges, such as lack of food and water, but also psychological challenges as her hallucinations intensify and she’s forced to make more drastic decisions to survive.

For another psychological thriller angle, Sydney is a Brooklyn native who is disheartened to see all the changes made to her neighborhood. All of her close friends and neighbors have decided to move out to the suburbs, only to be replaced by wealthy and well-to-do individuals and families. Sydney and new neighbor Theo do a deep dive into the neighborhood’s history and stumble upon disturbing information that is too much of a coincidence to ignore. They may be coming for Sydney next.

For a book that teeters into wilderness horror, four friends, Dylan, Clay, Sylvia, and Dylan, set off to explore a newly discovered cliff site in Kentucky. Three bodies are later found — mangled and decaying — on the side of the road. Dylan’s body, however, is nowhere to be seen. Told in different POVs, we start to piece together what really happened. And, um, this book is also inspired by the Dyatlov Pass Incident…so we know this can’t end well.

Bug leads a seemingly normal life: he has a steady job as a mechanic and is surrounded by a loving family. However, unknown to most, he used to be the top getaway driver on the East Coast. Bug is determined to live an honest life, but when a former associate offers him a role in the heist of a lifetime at a jewelry store, he finds it hard to resist. As he tries to keep his family safe, Bug is thrown into life-threatening situations involving high-speed chases and the dangerous criminal underworld.