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The 36 Books With the Biggest Plot Twists

By September 28, 2015Discussion and Recommendations

Who doesn’t love a good old plot twist right at the end? Half the time we’re reading we’re trying to work out where the story is going and a violent twist that gets you startled in your chair is only a good thing. That’s what we think anyway so we want to know the books you thought had the biggest plot twist and a staggering 1,300 of you suggested titles. From those replies we have a list of 36 books with the biggest plot twist, which should offer a nice long reading list for anyone!

The first ten are featured with the rest in list format at the bottom of the blog. We hope we offer some good suggestions for you!

Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn

Less twists more an absolute rollercoaster of a novel where the path is rarely straight for long. Gone Girl is Marmite and previous polls on site have shown that you either love it a lot, or absolutely hate it. However you felt, you felt it was the novel with the biggest plot twists with almost one hundred of you voting for it!

Gone Girl US
Gone Girl UK

Gone Girl Review

We Were Liars – E. Lockhart

Amazon Best Young Adult Book of the Month upon its release, We Were Liars is highly applauded both for adults and young adults alike and takes clear second place in our poll.

We Were Liars US
We Were Liars UK

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My Sister’s Keeper – Jodi Picoult

Another that features heavily in many of our polls is Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper, and we’re sure its no coincidence it also ranked highly in our poll for books you hated the ending of. We think this ending is more than a little unexpected and it takes third place here!

My Sister’s Keeper US
My Sister’s Keeper UK

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Harry Potter – J. K Rowling

Although we’ve added the votes for the series together, it was mainly The Prisoner of Azkaban and The Deathly Hallows that received the most votes, giving Harry Potter fourth place in our polls results.

Harry Potter US
Harry Potter UK

Review of the Prisoner of Azkaban

And Then There Were None – Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie was the queen of suspense and the best selling author of all time, so we’re not surprised to find And Then There Were None in sixth place in our poll.

And Then There Were None US
And Then There Were None UK

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Allegiant (Divergent) – Veronica Roth

The Divergent series is hugely popular and is often mentioned on site and over on our Facebook page, but many of you didn’t see the end coming, giving it seventh place in our poll.

Divergent Trilogy US
Divergent Trilogy UK

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She’s Come Undone – Wally Lamb

An Oprah Book Club selection, She’s Come Undone is a hugely popular debut novel, but it surprised many people with its twists and turns giving it eighth place in our poll.

She’s Come Undone US
She’s Come Undone UK

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The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins

I read this last year and ended up wanting to throttle all the characters, while simultaneously not being able to put the book down, but like many who read it, I could never have predicted the twist.

Girl on the Train US
Girl on the Train UK

Review of Girl on the Train

Life of Pi – Yann Martel

I’m not sure I’d call what happens in Life of Pi a twist but many of you voted for it and so it makes the final of the top ten places in this poll.

Life of Pi US
Life of Pi UK

Review of Life of Pi

As so many were interested in this poll and excited to see the final results I wanted to include as many books as possible as a kind of ‘book with a twist reading list’ so I’ve extended the list past the usual top ten, or even top twenty. Here are, according to your votes the next 26 books on the list making 36 books with the biggest plot twist in total.

Red Queen – Victoria Avyard
The Fault in our Stars – John Green
Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card
The Thirteenth Tale – Diane Setterfield
Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier
Inferno – Dan Brown
Looking for Alaska – John Green
Atonement – Ian McEwan
Fight Club – Chuck Palahniuk
Desperation – Stephen King
The Secret Keeper – Kate Morton
I Let You Go – Clare Mackintosh
Leaving Time – Jodi Picoult
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd – Agatha Christie
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas – John Boyne
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
We Need to Talk About Kevin – Lionel Shriver
Tell me Your Dreams – Sidney Sheldon
The Mortal Instruments – Cassandra Clare
The Pact – Jodi Picoult
Shutter Island – Dennis Lehane
The Wasp Factory – Ian Banks
Dark Tower Series – Stephen King
Mistborn Trilogy – Brandon Sanderson
Sharp Objects – Gillian Flynn
Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Angels and Demons – Dan Brown

Leave your vote

4 Comments

  • Sociopathy123 says:

    I fail to see any of the Sherlock Holmes novels by Sir Author Conan Doyle. While most stories were quite short, it’s difficult to dispute that many of the endings were surprising.

  • Lori C says:

    Joy Fielding’s Whispers and Lies.

  • Nancy Motto says:

    Defending Jacob, The Luckiest Girl Alive

  • Debbie says:

    Sheri S. Tepper “The Family Tree” I actually said “Holy Crap” out loud in the break room a work.

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