Franck Thilliez Books In Order

Publication Order of Franck Sharko Books

Franck Thilliez is a French author of horror and mystery thriller novels written in his native French. Thilliez was born in Annecy in 1973 though he currently lives in Pas de Calais. Before becoming an author, he had a distinguished career as a computer engineer that specialized in new technologies. But he had always loved reading and writing and was penning manuscripts even as he worked in the corporate world for more than a decade. His debut novel was “Train d’enfer pour Ange rouge” that he first published in 2003 that went on to become a bestselling title. The novel alongside “Obsession” published in 2009 and “Ligna des morts” were made into highly successful movies. “Syndrome E” was the first of his novels to be translated into English in 2012 followed by “Bred to Kill” in 2015. He has made his name for writing thrillers set in a hostile environment and he combines his taste for thrillers with his engineering training to make intriguing stories that have been popular with both fans and critics.

Franck Thiliez’s biggest inspirations are the classic Anglo-Saxon crime fiction authors such as Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie. He has also been influenced by Stephen King and spent a lot of time reading his novels by King trying to get the magic of how he could write such scary stories. As a student, he slacked off on the reading though he watched a lot of movies that have also been a significant influence on his later writing. Ten years later, he got back into reading and was fascinated by the works of the likes of John Steinbeck, Michael Connelly, and Dennis Lehane. He published his debut novel “Train d’enfer pour Ange rouge” in 2003 and has never looked back since as the novel made the shortlist for the 2004 SNCF Prix du Polar. His readers were fascinated by the lead character of the novel, a certain Franck Sharko. Encouraged by the success of the first, he decided to write a series based on the adventures of the wily detective. Even more encouragement came when the second novel in the series “Chamber of the Dead” was made into a motion picture by Alfred Lot. He also won the 2007 SNCF French Polar Prize and the Quai du polar Readers Prize. It was at this time that Thilliez decided to quit his job as a computer engineer and become a full-time author. He is known for his novels that combine themes of subliminal suggestion, neuroscience, film technology, police work, violent video games, schizophrenia, computer-oriented worlds, and parent-child relationships to make for intriguing and complex narratives.

Having had a lot of success in his native France, he decided to raise the bar higher by venturing into the US market. He brought together his two favorite detectives in Lucie Henebelle and Sharko in the newest series that debuted with his first English translation “Syndrome E” in 2012. The novel went on to become a bestselling novel that has been published in several countries in Europe and the United States. Apart from writing his thriller novels, Thilliez is also a screenwriter and had “Obsession” his first screenplay broadcast in February 2010 on “France 2.” He was the winner of the 2011 Mireille Lanteri Prize and also co-wrote another thriller with Mikaël Ollivier Insoupçonnable in 2012. His novels have never failed to fascinate and excite readers and have been hailed by critics as some of the best thrillers in the genre.

Franck Thilliez’s debut novel “Syndrome E” is the story of Lucie Hennebelle a beleaguered detective. she learns that an old friend had become blind after watching an extremely violent and rare film from the 1950s and vows to get to the bottom of it. The film is full of subliminal images that are inexpressibly heinous. But she knows that she needs to urgently resolve the mystery when several other people who come in contact with the film turn up dead. Hennebelle asks the broken and brooding analyst Franck Sharko for help in investigating the case. He works for the Paris place and together they start stripping away the layers of what could perhaps be the most powerful and disturbing film ever made. It is not long before Lucie and Sharko are deep in a mire that spreads across art, politics, science, and religion and stretches from Canada to France, Rwanda to Egypt, and beyond. “Syndrome E” forces the readers to consider if the most brilliant and earlies inventions and discoveries in neuroscience may have been used for evil rather than good.

Thilliez’s “Bred to Kill” is a shocking sequel to the first novel of the series Syndrome E. Inspector Sharko and Lucie Henebelle make a comeback and this time try to resolve the case of the gruesome killing of a promising graduate student named Eva Louts. She had met her death while working for the primate research center in Paris in bizarre circumstances. But what had at first seemed like an attack by a vicious animal now looks like something more sinister when they dig through the evidence. The victim had been working on some secret research that involved tracking three fanatical scientists that had in their possession a virus that had been suppressed for more than thirty thousand years. They were now looking to release the deadly virus onto the world. Thilliez writes an intriguing novel that draws from cutting edge science, the dark side of humanity, and genetics to craft adrenaline-fueled smart thrillers. The novel moves from the heart of the Alps to the rain-slick Parisian streets to the remote reaches of the Amazon forest, where Sharko and Lucie must tread to find a killer.

“Atomka” the third novel of the “Franck Sharko” series by Franck Thilliez is set a few days before the Christmas holidays. Franck and Lucie of the quai des Orfevres section of the Paris Police are involved in a major investigation where a news reporter named Christophe Gamblin had been found killed and dumped in his freezer. A friend and colleague has also gone missing while investigating what is the most explosive file in the department and now the file has also gone missing. The only lead in the case is his identity written on a piece of paper that had been found in the possession of an ill wandering kid. In the meantime, a cold case about abducted women turns warm as mysterious phone calls are made to the police with more leads into what had happened. As Sharko moves forward with the investigations, demons from the past come back to haunt his present. Someone is playing with him in a cruel dancethat is slowly destroying his will.