Anthony Eddolls

If you’ve ever asked yourself where you can discover indie crime thriller authors worth reading, you’re not alone, and you’re not wrong to be skeptical. The self-published crime thriller space is enormous, and in my experience, a significant portion of it doesn’t justify your weekend. I’m sure that you would consider a statement like that nothing more than a lead-in to promote my catalog, but it’s simply a fact. As an indie crime fiction author myself, I’ve spent years studying what separates a well-crafted independent thriller from a file that got uploaded on a Tuesday with a stock cover and zero editorial investment. This guide gives you a working system so you stop gambling with your reading time and start building a queue that actually delivers.

And before I get into it; I’ll ask you to look at this from my perspective for a moment. Afterward, you might think that I’m either insane, or a glutton for punishment. The numbers are absolutely staggering and I find myself constantly reminding myself that I do this for the creative achievement and certainly not to make a living. In the ‘crime fiction’ category on Amazon, there are over 7.5 million titles!! Amazon doesn’t release statistics, such as the number of daily submissions, but it’s mind numbing. A few weeks ago, I noticed that one of my books was ranked around 75,000 on their best-seller list. Trust me – others are often six figures. But I looked closely and the entire group numbered over 7.5 million; my title was in the TOP 1% on the best seller list – but 75,000 other books and nearly as many authors, stood in front of me. Not much of an ego boost, but that’s what we face in a world of self-publishing for Dummies, DIY costs are nearly O, AI authorship or assisted books have flooded the platform, have not just flooded the marketplace – these factors have blown it up.

On the topic of AI, I have to share my opinion: I use AI strictly for editing. I don’t use it while I’m writing, only afterward and only for what’s called Developmental editing: pacing, continuity, and then Grammar and structural. AI never inserts changes to my storyline, characters, or frankly, far less than what a human editor will attempt. I’ve paid $3,000 to edit The Lines We Cross, and didn’t implement 75% of the editor’s suggestions, and I found numerous grammatical errors after editing. I’ve paid less than $400 for the two AI platforms I use that are author-centric; there are no other costs, editing is completed within minutes, not weeks, and they use input to retain your voice, style, and other factors, plus they don’t have opinions or judgment – suggestions with your voice in mind. Anyway, the point is, I feel my use of AI makes sense and doesn’t compromise my art. But people who give an AI platform a story outline and tell it, GO! And use the cover creator on Amazon’s platform, and a book is for sale an hour later – that’s completely destroying the playing field.

But then again – I’ve never read an eBook…only paper.

Book platforms where indie crime thriller authors worth reading surface first

Amazon’s category system is a genuinely useful discovery tool that many readers overlook. Browse crime thriller subcategories like FBI procedural or police procedural, and you’ll surface indie-published titles that traditional retail shelves rarely carry. The “also bought” section is worth exploring too: find one book you liked, and Amazon’s recommendation engine tends to walk you into the indie neighborhood surrounding it. Kindle Unlimited is particularly well stocked with self-published crime fiction, making it a practical environment for sampling new authors before committing to a full-price purchase. I’m a KU author – my author page can be viewed here!

Goodreads Listopia is crowdsourced(opens in new tab) vetting at its most functional. Search for lists like “best indie crime thrillers” or “self-published mysteries worth reading,” then filter by rating count rather than raw score. A book with 400 ratings and a 3.9 average tells you more than a book with 12 five-star reviews. The community-created shelves tend to be honest because readers build them around genuine enthusiasm, not marketing budgets.

BookBub is one of(opens in new tab)the highest-signal discovery tools available to crime fiction readers right now. Set a genre alert for crime thriller deals, and BookBub’s editorial team does pre-screening for you. Their vetting process covers cover quality, formatting, reader feedback, and market fit. When a title clears all of that and lands in your inbox, you’re getting a curated pool, not raw search results.

Books.by is another treasure trove for Indie authors – my banned title – On Opposite Sides – is available on the platform but plenty of authors have their entire catalogs on the platform.

Editorial sites and review blogs that dig into indie crime thriller writers worth reading

CrimeReads is the strongest(opens in new tab) general destination for crime and thriller coverage, with author spotlights, best-of lists(opens in new tab), and genre deep-dives running regularly. Crime Fiction Lover and Novel Suspects are both consistently active and genre-specific enough that their coverage skews toward exactly what serious crime fiction readers want. All three offer searchable archives and category pages; look for “indie” or “self-published” tags or run a site search to narrow your results fast. (Tag availability varies by site, so check each one’s navigation to find the most direct route.)

Vigilant Reader has a deliberate policy of reviewing books with fewer than ten existing reviews, which makes it particularly useful for finding writers before the crowd does. Spotlight on Indie operates similarly as a dedicated independent-author hub. These two sites consistently surface names worth knowing before they accumulate the kind of visibility that makes discovery feel accidental. Publishers Weekly’s Indie Spotlight and BookTrib’s author features add mainstream editorial credibility to the mix. When an indie crime author shows up in either of those, it’s a meaningful signal that the work clears a professional threshold.

Online communities where real readers share what’s working

Reddit’s r/thrillerbooks(opens in new tab) sits at around 66,000 subscribers and runs active recommendation threads daily. r/mysterybooks covers adjacent territory. The smart move in both communities is to search for “underrated,” “self-published,” or “indie” rather than browsing general recommendation posts. Targeted searches compress the signal-to-noise ratio dramatically and surface the kind of genuine reader-to-reader advocacy that algorithms can’t replicate.

Substack hosts several indie author directories and newsletters in the thriller and mystery space worth bookmarking. The following authors put you directly inside their creative process, release schedule, and advance previews. You’re not just finding a book; you’re building a direct line to the writer.

How to vet indie crime thriller authors worth reading before you commit

Professional cover art is the first filter. A well-designed cover signals production investment. A stock-photo composition with clashing typography signals the opposite. Look next for a named editor with genre credits. That one detail separates books that received real editorial oversight from books that went straight from draft to upload. Blurbs from recognizable crime writers or credible reviewers matter too. They indicate the book was read by someone with actual domain knowledge before it reached you.

Review patterns are the last checkpoint. Organic reviews show spread-out dates, a mix of ratings including mid-range scores, and text that engages with specific plot details, pacing, and character behavior. Clustered five-star reviews posted within days of launch, vague praise with no plot specifics, and zero critical engagement are red flags every time. These patterns reliably predict whether a book was built to earn readers or simply to exist.

One indie author worth adding to your reading list right now

Since this guide is about finding indie crime fiction worth your time, it’s only fair to put my own work on the table. The Elliott Murphy series(opens in new tab) starts with Crossing Over and follows a character-driven procedural arc across three books. Updated editions are available, which makes them a clean entry point for readers coming in fresh. Start there, read in order, and you’ll understand why the series has built the readership it has.

If you come to crime fiction from procedural TV dramas like Criminal Minds or NCIS, the Special Agent in Charge David Stilley series(opens in new tab) is the more direct fit. The FBI and Behavioral Analysis Unit setting carries strong American cultural resonance, and readers familiar with the genre tend to respond well to the investigative detail in those books. Pick up On Opposite Sides(opens in new tab) if behavioral analysis and federal-level crime arcs are what you’re after. Amazon banned the book 60 days after its publication. I described the book as a psychological thriller when it was submitted; in turn, it received 60 4.7-star ratings, which is great for a self-published title, especially in less than two months. I was never told why, but it’s available through my site. Pick up a copy; if you think you can figure out why Amazon is afraid of the book, let me know!

Build your system and start reading

Anyone who wonders where they can discover indie crime thriller authors worth reading is really asking a systems question, not a taste question. The indie crime thriller space rewards readers who approach it with a process rather than random browsing. Take one platform, one editorial site, and one community from this guide. Build your queue from those three sources, apply the vetting signals before you buy, and you’ll spend far less time abandoning books halfway through.

The Anthony Eddolls site(opens in new tab) lists new releases and writing updates for exactly this kind of reader. Drop in, follow along, and let the reading queue build itself.