16 Authors Like Tom Clancy For Thriller and Spy Book Fans

Looking for authors like Tom Clancy? Discover the best thriller and espionage books in our guide and add them to your reading list!

The famous author Tom Clancy was well known for the authentic technical detail contained within his espionage and military-science thrillers, such as bestsellers The Hunt for Red October, Cardinal of the Kremlin, Patriot Games, Executive Orders, and The Sum of All Fears. Clancy was also the mind behind the Jack Ryan series, which has been continued through various writers (some of whom you’ll find below) through his family estate.

For more recommendations, you might also enjoy exploring authors like Tom Clancy, best thriller authors, authors like Vince Flynn.

Table of Contents

Here Are The Best Authors Like Tom Clancy

1. John Grisham, 1955 - Present

This American novelist and former lawyer is well-known for his hugely popular legal thrillers, including _The Firm, _The Pelican Brief*, The Rainmaker,*and A Time to Kill, many of which have been turned into blockbuster Hollywood films. Grisham’s books have sold over 300 million copies worldwide, and he is one of only three authors to have achieved sales, on a first printing, of more than two million copies - the other two are J.K. Rowling and Tom Clancy himself.

“I’m alone and outgunned, scared and inexperienced, but I’m right.”

John Grisham, The Rainmaker

2. Robert Ludlum, 1927 - 2001

Robert Ludlum is the author of 27 thriller and spy fiction novels and is best known for the original The Bourne Trilogy* books, which introduced the character of Jason Bourne. Before becoming a full-time writer, Ludlum had been a United States Marine, a producer, and a theatrical actor. He has spoken about how his theatre work has informed his novels, particularly his use of suspense to drive the plotline.

“I mean, we’re all trying to find out who the hell we are, aren’t we?”

Robert Ludlum, The Bourne Identity

3. Frederick Forsyth, 1969 - Present

Readers who enjoy the fast-paced action and clever plotting of a classic Tom Clancy novel will no doubt love to get their teeth into a book by the English novelist Frederick Forsyth. If you’re new to this author, The Day of the Jackalor The Odessa File are great places to start; both were made into successful films in the 1970s. Forsyth’s books have sold more than seventy million copies worldwide and have been translated into thirty languages. Forsyth’s autobiography, The Outside: My Life in Intrigue, revealed his role as a British spy during the Cold War.

“To understand everything is to forgive everything.”

Frederick Forsyth, The Odessa File

4. Michael Crichton, 1942 - 2008

Although Jurassic Parkmay have catapulted this American author to stratospheric fame, his techno-thrillers were already widely read before the blockbuster movie hit the big screen. Titles like _The Andromeda Strain _and*Congo *were successful books well before those realistic-looking dinos lumbered across our screens in 1993. Fourteen of Crichton’s twenty-eight novels have been turned into films, and he’s sold more than 200 million copies of his books globally.

“The planet has survived everything, in its time. It will certainly survive us.”

Michael Crichton, Jurassic Park

5. Lee Child, 1954 - Present

James Dover Grant writes under the pen name of Lee Child and is the mind behind the wildly popular Jack Reacherseries - every single book in this collection has topped the bestsellers list. Child has also written several hardboiled thriller novellas, including I Heard a Romantic Storyand James Penney’s New Identity. In 2019, the author collaborated with the band Naked Blue on an album that explored the character of Jack Reacher in song. For more,

“Now they broke my toothbrush, I don’t own anything.”

Lee Child, Bad Luck and Trouble

6. Mark Greaney, 1967 - Present

Fans of Tom Clancy may already be familiar with author Mark Greany, who collaborated with Clancy on the latter’s final books and has subsequently continued expanding the Tom Clancy universe and the adventures of the character Jack Ryan. As well as this collaborative work, Greaney is also known for his _Gray Man _series, which was adapted into a Netflix movie starring Ryan Gosling in 2022.

“Court Gentry was a killer of men. These were men. And that’s all there was to it.”

Mark Greaney, The Gray Man

7. Dale Brown, 1956 - Present

Dale Brown should be at the top of your ‘to read’ list if you like nothing better than immersing yourself in a military thriller! Brown joined the US Air Force in 1978 and earned several military awards and decorations, including the Combat Crew Award and the Air Force Commendation Medal. His extensive flight experience informs his novels, such as Flight of the Old Dog*, Tiger’s Claw, *and Skymasters. Brown is also the co-author of the Dreamland series alongside Jim DeFelice.

“He could see tiny sparkles in the distance and assumed it was the Chinese pilots ejecting flares when they got the missile launch warning.”

Dale Brown, Tiger’s Claw

8. Daniel Silva, 1960 - Present

Readers who raced through Tom Clancy’s The Hunt for Red Octoberand are looking for their next spy thriller adventure will devour the books of Daniel Silva. His first novel, The Unlikely Spy, was published in 1997 and remained on the New York Times’s bestseller list for five consecutive weeks. Silva has now written twenty-four books, most of which feature the protagonist Gabriel Allon: an Israeli art restorer…who also happens to be an assassin and spy.

“They sat in an awkward, embarrassed silence for a moment, the way Englishmen are apt to do after sharing private thoughts.”

Daniel Silva, The Unlikely Spy

9. David Baldacci, 1960 - Present

This author specializes in legal thrillers and suspense novels; to date, he’s published over forty books for adults and seven novels for younger readers. As well as several popular series, including The Camel Club and John Pullercollections, you may want to dip into one of Baldacci’s standalone novels, such as Saving Faith and True Blue. His new book, Simply Lies, willbe published in April 2023. for more!

“When a poor man gives something, that is a sacrifice indeed. When a rich man gives something, it hardly rises to the same level.”

David Baldacci, True Blue

10. Stephen Coonts, 1946 - Present

Looking for your next spy thriller read? Try Coonts’s debut novel, Flight of the Intruder, published in 1986 and partly based on the author’s experiences during the Vietnam War, in which he served as an A-6 pilot, could be the perfect pick. Of Coonts’s thirty-six books, sixteen have been New York Times bestsellers.

“There is no such thing as luck. If you think you’re lucky and that’ll carry you through, you’re living on borrowed time.”

Stephen Coonts, Flight of the Intruder

11. Vince Flynn, 1966 - 2013

Vince Flynn is the creator of the fictional assassin Mitch Rapp who appears in the author’s acclaimed political thrillers; The Survivoris the first in the series, and where to start if you’re new to Flynn’s work. Flynn was also a story consultant for season five of the smash hit tv show 24. He cites his fictional influences, including Tom Clancy, Robert Ludlum, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ernest Hemingway, and John Irving.

“The world is chaos, punctuated by brief outbreaks of civilization.”

Vince Flynn, The Survivor

12. Clive Cussler, 1931 - 2020

Bestselling author Clive Cussler wrote thrillers and adventure novels - and was an adventurer in real life, too! Cussler was a marine archaeologist and the chairman and founder of NUMA (the National Underwater and Marine Agency), responsible for discovering more than sixty underwater wrecks and shipwreck sites. As well as his non-fiction works, which include the memoir, The Sea Hunters: True Adventures with Famous Shipwrecks, Cussler is also the writer of the popular*Dirk Pitt *series: the first book in the collection,Pacific Vortex, was published in 1983.

“Marine lieutenants were almost never made aware of confidential information. They had a duty to be killed, but not the right to know why.”

Clive Cussler, Pacific Vortex

13. Brad Thor, 1969 - Present

Brad Thor is an American thriller writer whose novel*The Last Patriot was nominated as the Best Thriller of the Year by The International Thriller Writers Association. National Public Radios listeners also ranked Thor’s book,*Blowback* as one of the 100 Best Ever killer thrillers - all the more reason to discover this author if you’re new to his work! Thor initially announced his intention to run for President of the United States in the 2020 election but changed his mind in 2018, leaving the Republic Party to stand as an independent.

“While the words are yet unspoken, you are master of them; when once they are spoken, they are master of you.”

Brad Thor, The Last Patriot

14. Grant Blackwood, 1964 - Present

As well as being the creator of the Briggs Tannerseries, Grant Blackwood has also continued Tom Clancy’s legacy: he was the co-author, along with Clancy, of the first book in the Jack Ryan Jr collection, 2010’s_ Dead or Alive_ and the sole author of two further books featuring this character. Blackwood’s Splinter Celland EndWar series, written under the pen name of David Michaels, is also set in the Tom Clancy universe.

“Goddamn espionage, Jack thought. He’d stepped into this world of his own volition, but it had come with a price: Outside your inner circle, trust was a rare thing;”

Grant Blackwood, Under Fire

15. Larry Bond, 1951 - Present

If you’re a fan of Tom Clancy, then you may already be familiar with Larry Bond’s work, even if you don’t know it! Bond co-authored Red Storm Rising with Clancy, which became one of the 1980s bestselling books. This writer’s novels are known for their fast-paced plots and accuracy of subject matter, which often focus on political or military crises. Bond is also a celebrated video games designer responsible for the Command at Sea and Harpoon gaming systems.

“We deal with people, not numbers. Numbers have their own special kind of perfection. People remain people no matter what we try to do with them.”

Larry Bond, Red Storm Rising

16. Mike Maden, 1960 - Present

Author and Tom Clancy superfan Mike Maden got hooked on the latter’s novels after reading The Hunt for Red October* in graduate school. Maden added four novels to the Jack Ryan Jr canon, with the most recent, Tom Clancy: Firing Point published in 2020. The author’s debut book,*Drone* is a techno-thriller due to a challenge posed to Maden by friends.

“A liar is a self-interested man, which means he is a rational man. He lies because he knows the honest truth bears a cost he’s not willing to pay. But the honest man? He’s the dangerous man. He’s the one who insists on telling the truth no matter the cost.”

Mike Maden, Tom Clancy: Firing Point

3. Frederick Forsyth, 1938 - Present

Readers who enjoy Tom Clancy’s fast-paced action and clever plotting will appreciate English novelist Frederick Forsyth’s masterfully crafted thrillers. The Day of the Jackal and The Odessa File serve as excellent introductions to his work—both were successfully adapted into 1970s films that remain classics of the thriller genre.

Forsyth’s books have sold more than seventy million copies worldwide and been translated into thirty languages. His autobiography, The Outsider: My Life in Intrigue, revealed his experiences as a British spy during the Cold War, providing the same real-world credibility that distinguishes Clancy’s military fiction.

His combination of journalistic background and intelligence experience creates thrillers with documentary-like authenticity. Forsyth’s meticulous research and insider knowledge make his political scenarios feel not just plausible but inevitable.

“To understand everything is to forgive everything.” — Frederick Forsyth, The Odessa File