The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)

Tom Ripley’s envy becomes a practical project when he is sent to Italy to bring a wealthy young man home. Highsmith keeps you close to the small adjustments by which wanting a different life becomes feeling entitled to take one. The suspense comes from his decisions and the ease with which he explains them to himself. Begin with this first Ripley novel for sustained moral discomfort, with a protagonist whose company is compelling without becoming reassuring.