What do you think?
Rate this book
The Runner
Not yet published
Expected 16 Jul 26The mind-expanding new thriller from the bestselling author of
The Sleepwalkers
and
The End of Mr. Y
He’s running for his life. And he’s running out of time.
Jay has been hunted since he was twenty years old. A contract on his life has been traded like a commodity, rising and falling with Bitcoin. On the run once again, with no passport, and airmiles as his only currency, Jay will have to choose between love and survival, and run for his life!
The Runner is a high concept literary thriller featuring high-finance, con-artists, the Book of Jonah, ultramarathons and how falling in love can change everything.
Darkly funny, sexy, exciting, philosophical and thrilling, The Runner is the most gripping and intelligent novel you will read in 2026.
Praise for Scarlett Thomas
‘Fiction roaring on all cylinders’, Guardian
Gloriously dark and tangled', Observer
'A dark, twisty, savagely … a smart, layered, stinging look at power and its abuse', The Times
‘A work of peculiar, gonzo genius', The New York Times
‘Like a darker, funnier The White Lotus’ James Smythe
‘Brilliant, savage and hilarious', Bidisha Mamata
'A twisty Gothic tale of vertiginous depths and haunting power' Sandra Newman, author of Julia
'Ingenious and original', Philip Pullman
He’s running for his life. And he’s running out of time.
Jay has been hunted since he was twenty years old. A contract on his life has been traded like a commodity, rising and falling with Bitcoin. On the run once again, with no passport, and airmiles as his only currency, Jay will have to choose between love and survival, and run for his life!
The Runner is a high concept literary thriller featuring high-finance, con-artists, the Book of Jonah, ultramarathons and how falling in love can change everything.
Darkly funny, sexy, exciting, philosophical and thrilling, The Runner is the most gripping and intelligent novel you will read in 2026.
Praise for Scarlett Thomas
‘Fiction roaring on all cylinders’, Guardian
Gloriously dark and tangled', Observer
'A dark, twisty, savagely … a smart, layered, stinging look at power and its abuse', The Times
‘A work of peculiar, gonzo genius', The New York Times
‘Like a darker, funnier The White Lotus’ James Smythe
‘Brilliant, savage and hilarious', Bidisha Mamata
'A twisty Gothic tale of vertiginous depths and haunting power' Sandra Newman, author of Julia
'Ingenious and original', Philip Pullman
Kindle Edition
Expected publication July 16, 2026
About the author
Scarlett Thomas
33 books1,843 followersScarlett Thomas was born in London in 1972. Her widely-acclaimed novels include PopCo, The End of Mr Y and The Seed Collectors. As well as writing literary fiction for adults, she has also written a literary fantasy series for children and a book about writing called Monkeys with Typewriters. Her work has been translated into more than 25 languages.
She has been longlisted for the Orange Prize, shortlisted for the South African Boeke Prize and was once the proud recipient of an Elle Style Award. She is currently Professor of Creative Writing & Contemporary Fiction at the University of Kent in the UK. She lives in a Victorian house near the sea and spends a lot of time reading Chekhov and Katherine Mansfield.
She is currently working on a new novel and various projects for TV.
She has been longlisted for the Orange Prize, shortlisted for the South African Boeke Prize and was once the proud recipient of an Elle Style Award. She is currently Professor of Creative Writing & Contemporary Fiction at the University of Kent in the UK. She lives in a Victorian house near the sea and spends a lot of time reading Chekhov and Katherine Mansfield.
She is currently working on a new novel and various projects for TV.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Cyprus, May 2025.
Jay is on the run but this is nothing new, it’s been this way since he was 20 and now he’s in his 30s. Currently, he’s stranded, all he has is air mile points, four euro and an assassin on his tail. He takes a job on a catamaran to escape the latest one, but it’s straight into the arms of a very bizarre crew and he’s so he’s off again, this time in Cyprus, where he meets Ellie. Will she be his salvation? Only time will tell. He’s the runner, quite literally and he’s caught in a huge web from which there seems to be no escape. However, we’re off, pat, pat, pat.
Exorcism, assassins, murders, finance, bitcoin, trading air miles, dictators, and running, running, running. Yes, it’s got to be Scarlett Thomas’s latest creation! She always gives her readers something unusual and different and I like that. To start with it feels a bit like being trapped in Hampton Court maze, you’re not sure of your way out or the plot direction but that soon sorts itself out and becomes clear and I settle in for an enjoyable race to the finish.
It’s extremely well written, there’s wit and humour interspersed with the running and Jay‘s backstory. It’s a circuitous route with plenty of good descriptions and a lot of elegant prose. There’s much to keep me entertained, several good plot twists alongside some “intriguing” characters. I never entirely work Ellie out! However, she’s never boring and she has a good heart. I like the way the author has it all play out at the end and everything slots into place. Highly entertaining!
With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Simon and Schuster for the much appreciated early copy in return for an honest review.
Jay is on the run but this is nothing new, it’s been this way since he was 20 and now he’s in his 30s. Currently, he’s stranded, all he has is air mile points, four euro and an assassin on his tail. He takes a job on a catamaran to escape the latest one, but it’s straight into the arms of a very bizarre crew and he’s so he’s off again, this time in Cyprus, where he meets Ellie. Will she be his salvation? Only time will tell. He’s the runner, quite literally and he’s caught in a huge web from which there seems to be no escape. However, we’re off, pat, pat, pat.
Exorcism, assassins, murders, finance, bitcoin, trading air miles, dictators, and running, running, running. Yes, it’s got to be Scarlett Thomas’s latest creation! She always gives her readers something unusual and different and I like that. To start with it feels a bit like being trapped in Hampton Court maze, you’re not sure of your way out or the plot direction but that soon sorts itself out and becomes clear and I settle in for an enjoyable race to the finish.
It’s extremely well written, there’s wit and humour interspersed with the running and Jay‘s backstory. It’s a circuitous route with plenty of good descriptions and a lot of elegant prose. There’s much to keep me entertained, several good plot twists alongside some “intriguing” characters. I never entirely work Ellie out! However, she’s never boring and she has a good heart. I like the way the author has it all play out at the end and everything slots into place. Highly entertaining!
With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Simon and Schuster for the much appreciated early copy in return for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
“The Runner” is one of the oddest books I have read in a while. And it is certainly not the thriller that it is described as being. There are very few parts of the story that fit the thriller genre. It is more of a commentary on society — importance or lack thereof of money and possessions, what we prize as status symbols, stereotypes, economic rationalism, minimalism, commodification, belief systems, etc. That being said, the story has some pretty good twists.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
DNF’d at 54%.
This book just had no clear point or plot. It was so jumbled and made no sense. I tried to push through, but I just couldn’t do it. The time jumps weren’t clear and became confusing. The general storyline, if there was one, made no sense. I just don’t even know what I just read.
Received this as an ARC through NetGalley.
This book just had no clear point or plot. It was so jumbled and made no sense. I tried to push through, but I just couldn’t do it. The time jumps weren’t clear and became confusing. The general storyline, if there was one, made no sense. I just don’t even know what I just read.
Received this as an ARC through NetGalley.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews