NPR Asks Book Lovers To Pick The 100 Most "Killer Thrillers

Vote For The Next Two Weeks; Pulse-Pounding Answers Revealed August 2

Companion Series “Thrilled To Death” Airing On All Things Considered

The heart-stopping suspense and pulse-quickening action of thriller novels keep readers glued to tightly gripped pages. As part of its ongoing and extremely popular Summer Books series, NPR is asking its audience to draw up the ultimate list of “Killer Thrillers.” Voting begins today at the “Killer Thrillers” page of NPR.org where people can pick 10 favorite books from the list: www.npr.org/killerthrillers Polling remains open until July 26 and the 100 last books standing will be revealed on August 2.

In addition to the poll, the NPR series “Thrilled to Death” gives fans even more excitement by presenting interviews and recommendations from noted thriller writers during the NPR afternoon newsmagazine All Things Considered.

Last month, NPR’s call for nominations of the best thrillers garnered more than 600 titles. A panel of experts then combined audience preference with their own judgment to narrow that list down to a manageable roster of some 200 favorites. The panelists were Patrick Anderson, book reviewer and author of The Triumph of the Thriller: How Cops, Crooks, and Cannibals Captured Popular Fiction; Steve Berry, author of bestselling thrillers The Paris Vendetta and The Templar Legacy; Maureen Corrigan, book critic for NPR’s Fresh Air and The Washington Post; David Morrell, cofounder of the International Thriller Writers association and author of First Blood; and Hank Wagner, coeditor of the recent book Thrillers: 100 Must Reads.

In the companion series “Thrilled to Death,” hosted by Michele Norris on All Things Considered, popular thriller authors talk about their writing process and then, in exclusive online essays, recommend works by other masters of the genre. The series, which began in June, has already featured Tess Gerritsen, Karin Slaughter and Scott Turow; later in the summer, listeners can expect to hear from writers such as Stephen L. Carter, Barry Eisler and Richard North Patterson. Readers can find the interviews and must-read recommendations at www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127374393

The Killer Thrillers poll and “Thrilled to Death” are part of NPR Books’ Summer Books 2010 series. NPR Books – www.NPR.org/books – generates nearly 500,000 page views per month and is specifically designed to help a busy audience find great reads. NPR Books combines the best of NPR’s radio interviews and news with original Web reviews, commentaries and bestseller lists, and includes popular recurring series such as “What We’re Reading,” which features NPR staff picks of new titles with candid comments from our reporters, hosts and critics; “You Must Read This,” in which well-known authors share passionate recommendations; and “My Guilty Pleasure,” presenting thoughts from writers about books they love but are embarrassed to be seen reading.