7 Crime Novels That Feature Outsiders Who Challenge the Status Quo

One of the most delicious parts of crime fiction is that it’s loaded with tension. Our desire to know what will happen next in a story keeps us racing through the pages. We gather clues, hoping to solve the twisty mysteries at the core of these stories, and we observe with fascination as volatile character relationships play out to dramatic effect. While the plot lures us in, the characters compel us, their desires, fears, and messy relationships heightening the tension in a story.

One of the character archetypes that causes the most disruption to the status quo is the outsider. Because they come from a place of isolation or otherness, an inherent struggle ensues. Whether they want to fit in or stand out, their otherness often puts them at odds with the “insiders” who have maintained the status quo, setting them on a collision course with each other and the events of the story.

Through the outsider’s lens, we understand whether this world and characters should be embraced or feared. Because the reader is privy to the outsider’s thoughts, we empathize with them, whether or not we agree with their approach. A splash of moral grayness adds to the messiness and conflict—often, seeing how far an outsider will go to achieve their goals is part of the fun.

I explore this tension in my psychological thriller, A Beautiful Lie. The story follows Emily, an ambitious home organizer who becomes obsessed with her latest client, a beautiful heiress. Emily is an outsider in many ways—she works for a living, doesn’t have a family or safety net to fall back on, and is forced into otherness by nature of her role as an employee.

However, Emily is more than willing to shake up the current social hierarchy, and her sometimes terrifying manipulations on her path to earning insider status drive the plot to a chilling conclusion.

Here are seven novels about characters whose outsider status disrupts the status quo and leads to dangerous places.

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Darby Kane, Pretty Little Wife

Lila is an outsider in her community, thanks to her controlling husband’s influence and the effects of a traumatic past. But when her teacher husband goes missing, along with several college students in the area, Lila’s carefully controlled life comes under scrutiny.

As an investigation unfolds, Lila is more confused than anyone, because she was the last person to see her husband’s body, and now it’s gone….

Andrea Bartz, The Spare Room

To escape spending a pandemic lockdown with the man who’s called off her wedding, Kelly accepts an invitation to stay with her childhood friend and her husband. Though Sabrina and Nathan welcome Kelly into their home—and eventually their bed—Kelly is the outsider in their relationship. And when she discovers the last woman they invited into their marriage is missing, Kelly begins to fear she might be next.

Caroline Kepnes, You

In this story of obsession, Joe Goldberg becomes infatuated with a woman who walks into his bookshop. Joe is an outsider in many ways, othered by his background, education, and social standing. To move from stranger to boyfriend, Joe relies on increasingly dangerous manipulation and tactics. He’ll stop at nothing to get close to Beck—even committing murder.

Emma Cline, The Guest

When Alex, a twenty-two-year-old escort is dismissed from her latest job, she remains in the wealthy beachside enclave where she was dumped rather than return to New York City. To survive on little cash and few connections, she manipulates affluent strangers. The divide between the ultra-wealthy and service workers is never more clear than when viewed through Alex’s outsider lens.

Rachel Hawkins, The Wife Upstairs

Jane is an underemployed young woman working as a dog walker in a wealthy community after escaping a traumatic past. She meets Eddie Rochester and feels an instant connection with the handsome man, whose wife is missing and presumed dead. Soon, Jane and Eddie begin dating, and Jane finds herself embedded in his exclusive community, trying to fit in while keeping her secrets safe.

It’s a lot to handle, and that’s before you count the thumping sounds coming from upstairs….

Ashley Elston, First Lie Wins

Evie Porter is a con woman, her identity handed to her by her mysterious boss. Her latest mark, Ryan, has gotten under her skin, making Evie dream of a different life for herself. But her real identity—the one she could always go back to—is at risk when an imposter claims that it’s hers. Now Evie will have to stay one step ahead of her past if she ever hopes to have a future.

Joelle Wellington, Their Vicious Games

In this young adult thriller, Adina is a Black scholarship student in a wealthy, mostly white private school. After her path to college is jeopardized, Adina accepts an invitation to a secret high-stakes competition sponsored by one of the town’s most powerful families.

It soon becomes clear that winning the competition is a matter of life and death, and that a chance at survival means Adina must rewrite the rules of the game.

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