CompulsionCompulsion
Score Modern
What it's about
A young woman vanishes on a desolate highway, a retired teacher is stabbed in broad daylight, two women are butchered in a beauty parlor. The killers all drove luxury cars, and none had a motive, which brings in Milo Sturgis and psychologist Alex Delaware.
Why it's worth reading
It was a #1 New York Times bestseller.
You'll love it if you liked
Gone
True Detectives
The Silence of the LambsGood to know
It's an Alex Delaware thriller.
By the numbers
- Readers13 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller18 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #622 of the 623 mysteries and thrillers we rank
- #1641 of the 1,647 modern books we rank
- #3047 of the 3,056 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Gripping
More by Jonathan Kellerman
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Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
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The Martian
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All 47 best-of lists →
Mysteries and thrillersTop 25 · 623 ranked
Modern booksTop 25 · 1,647 ranked
Books of the 2000sTop 25 · 514 ranked
Fantasy booksTop 25 · 504 ranked
Literary novelsTop 25 · 325 ranked
Pulitzer Prize-winning novelsTop 25 · 63 ranked
Memoirs and biographiesTop 25 · 290 ranked
Science fiction booksTop 25 · 333 rankedQuick answers
Is Compulsion worth reading?
Yes. It was a #1 New York Times bestseller. It ranks #3,047 of the 3,056 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 51.4 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Compulsion about?
A young woman vanishes on a desolate highway, a retired teacher is stabbed in broad daylight, two women are butchered in a beauty parlor. The killers all drove luxury cars, and none had a motive, which brings in Milo Sturgis and psychologist Alex Delaware.
How long does it take to read Compulsion?
About 8 hours (337 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Compulsion?
If you liked it, try Gone by Jonathan Kellerman, True Detectives by Jonathan Kellerman or The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris.