87 Books Like Absolute Friends

I spent several of my teen years living in Iran, so had a personal interest in what happened to Americans during and after the Shah’s removal from power. Although Follett is best known for his epic Kingsbridge Series and thrillers such as Eye of the Needle, this non-fiction piece is as tense and engaging as much of his fiction. It details the efforts of a team assembled by Ross Perot to rescue two of his top EDS executives from Iranian captivity after a series of diplomatic efforts fail. Though this isn’t Follett’s finest prose and does seem to lionize Ross Perot, it is a great example of how factual tales of courage and ingenuity can be as engaging as the best thriller fiction. The descriptions of Tehran and the Iran/Turkish frontier are spot-on.

“The man with ten minutes to live was laughing.” Thus begins one of the greatest war novels by one of the greatest living writers of espionage thrillers. 

Frederick Forsyth’s epic story of the Persian Gulf War mingles fact with fiction, and never lets up its humming current of suspense. Incidentally, that laughing man was Gerald Vincent Bull, a real historical figure who invented a super-gun for Saddam Hussein. Not exactly the safest line of work. 

His assassination triggered a Rube Goldberg series of events that only Forsyth would have the… well… foresight to use as the first sentence in this violent, epochal tale. 

It’s too easy when reading Ludlum to get caught up in the Bourne Trilogy and overlook the author’s other great political thrillers. For me, The Matarese Circle best captures a theme that appears in most of Ludlum’s work – “We shouldn’t always trust our own intelligence community.”  

In The Matarese Circle, two disaffected covert agents—one American and one Soviet—team up to identify members of an international league of assassins bent on achieving world domination to promote commercial gain. This corpse-laden, globetrotting chase is one of Ludlum’s finest. 

Graham Greene is another master craftsman of thriller novels that explore political, moral, and ethical ambiguities in a way that both entertains and provokes. Better known for Our Man in Havana, Greene was sufficiently uncomfortable with The Confidential Agent that he wanted it published under a pseudonym. Yet I agree with critics that this tale of a foreign agent’s covert efforts to buy British coal to fuel a European civil war is among his best. Greene reputedly wrote it in six weeks, assisted by a diet of amphetamines and an affair with his landlady’s daughter, giving the novel a pace and rawness that reflect its creation.  

Terry Fallis makes politics fun. No really. Okay, this isn’t a whodunit as in murder. But the ending is very surprising. Angus McLintock is a crusty old engineering professor who will do anything to avoid teaching English to engineers. The university will give him leave to let his name stand in the election. So, he does; no need to campaign; he is certain to lose. He wants to lose. This campaign had me in stitches. Sometimes you have to branch out from your chosen genre. I did, and I not only learnt a lot, I laughed a lot.

I’m recommending this book because my book is part of the Cocky Hero World and is based on Stuck-Up Suit.

Long before my submission was accepted, I’d read Stuck-Up Suit and loved Soraya’s resilience and determination. She stood up for herself and her beliefs. We always knew her moods by her hair color, which was a great quirk to make her even more memorable and to always give the reader insight into her feelings.

Graham Morgan was a sexy billionaire with a traumatic past. As we got to know him, we realized he’s not stuck up but closed off because of emotional pain. We root for Graham to find happiness with the fiery Soraya, an everyday girl with an extraordinary personality.

This book made me angry with the main characters while wishing them the best. They're two sides of the same coin, and I love seeing the familiarity and deep bond form throughout the story.

Watching the two main characters slowly fall for each other and eventually fight for their love was satisfying.

JS Scott writes the best billionaires. Every time she releases a new book or series, I gobble them up. This series is no different.

First, Dante is a tortured romance hero that is easy to love. His guilt over the death of his partner and his injury make me want to hug him close – which is exactly what Sarah Baxter wants to do! Except she can’t because she’s his doctor and she lives by her ethics. I love the connection the two of them have and how they have to help one another in their love. This book is sizzling and steamy with romance and intrigue to keep the pages turning!

Though last on this list, Roarke is by no means “last” in anything. Powerful, confident, insanely wealthy, and oh-so-sexy, Roarke is the epitome of the swoon-worthy alpha male.

Seeing his love for his lieutenant, Eve, I fell in love—and fell hard. I was hooked after book one, and 60 books later, I still can’t get enough.

I’m not only a mystery/suspense writer but also a fan of the genre, as I read or listen to about forty whodunnits a year, just under one a week. I tend to read these books with one eye toward the superficial story, yes, but I also study them from a technical standpoint, saying to myself, “Oh, I see what the author did there,” “Man, that was a nice way to frame that conflict,” or, “What the hell? I think the author wrote that chapter by getting drunk and taping crayons to their feet.” The point I’m trying to make is that the plot devices and metaphors tend to blur together after a while. 

But this book? Man, it stood out. I mean, Kat Rosenfield had me hook, line, and sinkers with the book’s opening line, “My name is Lizzie Ouellette, and if you’re reading this, I’m already dead.” It's… show more.