Barbara Michaels Books in Order
Barbara Michaels has written 29 books, published between 1966 and 1999. The first book is The Master of Blacktower (1966) and the newest is Other Worlds (1999). Publication order is the reading order below.
Barbara Michaels is the pen name of Barbara Mertz. Barbara Michaels also publishes as Elizabeth Peters books in order. Elizabeth Peters books in order are published under that pen name.
- Books
- 29
- Published
- 1966–1999
- Confirmed
- 18 of 29 titles
- Pages on record
- 7,927 in 24 of 29 books
- Reading time
- 132–198 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 7,927 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 24 of 29 titles with a page count on record.
Barbara Michaels was a pen name of Barbara Louise Mertz (1927-2013), an American author who also wrote as Elizabeth Peters. Mertz earned a PhD in Egyptology from the University of Chicago in 1952, wrote the ancient Egypt histories Temples, Tombs, and Hieroglyphs and Red Land, Black Land, and was best known for mystery and suspense novels including the Amelia Peabody series. The Barbara Michaels catalogue holds 29 books from The Master of Blacktower (1966) to Other Worlds (1999), among them Ammie, Come Home (1968). Gothic, supernatural and romantic suspense tags run through the subjects.
How many Barbara Michaels books are there?
Barbara Michaels has 29 books, released between 1966 and 1999. They include 2 series and 6 titles listed outside any series.
Barbara Michaels Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 29 Barbara Michaels books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 1The Master of Blacktower1966 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/419663521/4
- 2Sons of the Wolf1967 · 240 pages · confirmed 1/419672401/4
- 31968–1/4
- 419693523/4
- 519702503/4
- 619713203/4
- 719723423/4
- 819732563/4
- 919742933/4
- 1019752243/4
- 11Patriot's Dream1976 · 368 pages · confirmed 1/419763681/4
- 12Wings of the Falcon1977 · 304 pages · confirmed 1/419773041/4
- 13Wait for What Will Come1978 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/419783201/4
- 1419793523/4
- 151980–3/4
- 1619813001/4
- 1719823681/4
- 1819833383/4
- 191984–3/4
- 2019853223/4
- 2119863401/4
- 22Search the Shadows1987 · 389 pages · confirmed 1/419873891/4
- 2319894003/4
- 2419903683/4
- 251992–3/4
- 2619933843/4
- 271995–1/4
- 2819974533/4
- 2919992923/4
Barbara Michaels books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Elizabeth Peters Standalone Novels
18 books18 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Georgetown in order
3 booksSomeone in the House in order
2 booksStandalone books
6 books6 Barbara Michaels titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Barbara Michaels books in order?
You only need to read Barbara Michaels books in order within each series: the books listed here span 2 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Barbara Michaels
Start with The Master of Blacktower (1966), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Barbara Michaels book?
Other Worlds (1999) is the newest Barbara Michaels book released so far.
Is there a new Barbara Michaels book coming?
No next Barbara Michaels book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Awards Barbara Michaels has won
Wikidata records 3 awards for Barbara Michaels. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- The Grand Master1998Won
- Agatha Award for Best Novel1989Won
- Anthony Award1986Won
Barbara Michaels at a glance
- Died
- Barbara Michaels died in 2013, according to Wikidata.
- Last book
- The newest book credited to Barbara Michaels on record dates from 1999.
- Release pace
- Barbara Michaels books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 7,927 pages across the 24 of 29 books with a recorded length, a median of 339 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Barbara Michaels books, 10 of 29, were published in the 1970s.
What the Barbara Michaels books are about
26 of the 29 Barbara Michaels books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: espionage is tagged on 8 of 26. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Espionage 8 of 26 books
- Fiction in English 7 of 26 books
- Gothic 6 of 26 books
- Romance 6 of 26 books
- Romantic suspense 6 of 26 books
- Suspense 6 of 26 books
- Thrillers 6 of 26 books
- Mystery & detective 5 of 26 books
- Psychological fiction 4 of 26 books
- Man-woman relationships 3 of 26 books