The Intruder is a psychological thriller novel. The psychological thriller genre is distinct but shares many similarities with the mystery genre. Psychological thrillers are best known as “suspense-filled, edge-of-your-seat narratives, with characters motivated by fear, paranoia, or a thirst for vengeance” (Dukes, Jessica. “What Is a Psychological Thriller?” Celadon Books). In psychological thriller novels, a key conflict arises from a suspicious act like “a robbery, a murder, or a disappearance” (Dukes). The rest of the plot revolves around this conflict.

Thrillers are unique from mystery novels because they focus on exploring the annals of the human consciousness. They explore dark themes, including the human capacity for evil, manipulation, and secrecy: “They feature protagonists and antagonists driven by obsession or violence, with an emphasis on internal tension and conflict. Within every psychological thriller, the core mystery is crystalized by the inner workings of a disturbed mind” (Dukes). This is true of The Intruder, which is written from Casey’s point of view as an adult and a child. Casey is an unreliable narrator capable of violence and secrecy. She has a tendency to withhold the truth, distrust people, and to hide her own missteps and hurts. True to the tropes of the genre, the novel justifies Casey’s dark tendencies via depictions of her traumatic past.

Psychological thrillers are known for their heavy reliance on tropes. Some popular tropes are the mysterious stranger, broken down vehicle, isolated locale, unreliable narrator, fearful protagonist, tight circle of suspects, and “revenge” tropes (where the victims seeks vengeance against their perpetrators). The Intruder capitalizes on the mysterious stranger, isolated locale (or cabin in the woods), unreliable narrator, fearful protagonist, and the victim getting revenge. Casey is fearful and suspicious because she has been a victim all her life. She doesn’t trust people and withholds the truth because she has learned to be self-protective. Living alone in the woods redoubles her anxious tendencies and intensifies the stakes of her night in the storm with Eleanor. Like all thriller novels, The Intruder incorporates these tropes to intensify the narrative mood and to offer the reader familiar narrative sign posts amidst an otherwise unpredictable narrative world.