Joel Shepherd Books in Order
Joel Shepherd has written 20 books, published between 2001 and 2025. The first book is Crossover (2001) and the newest is Precursor (2025). Publication order is the reading order below. 10 of the 20 books listed here are in the Spiral Wars series, which has its own page: Spiral Wars books in order.
- Books
- 20
- Published
- 2001–2025
- Pages on record
- 3,690 in 8 of 20 books
Joel Shepherd is an Australian science fiction author born in Adelaide in 1974. Shepherd studied film and television arts at Curtin University in Perth. The Crossover manuscript was shortlisted for the George Turner Prize in 1999, and Crossover (2001) became the first of his 20 books. Cassandra Kresnov is his recurring character, with androids and women soldiers among the subjects, and Shepherd also writes the Spiral Wars and A Trial of Blood and Steel series.
How many Joel Shepherd books are there?
Joel Shepherd has 20 books, released between 2001 and 2025. They include 3 separate series.
Joel Shepherd Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 20 Joel Shepherd 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.
- 120014671/4
- 220024271/4
- 320045441/4
- 42007–1/4
- 52008–1/4
- 62009–1/4
- 72010–1/4
- 82013–1/4
- 920144631/4
- 1020154701/4
- 112015–1/4
- 1220153991/4
- 1320164861/4
- 142017–1/4
- 1520184341/4
- 162019–1/4
- 172020–1/4
- 182022–1/4
- 192024–1/4
- 202025–1/4
Joel Shepherd series in order
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Spiral Wars books in order 10 books
Joel Shepherd 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.
Cassandra Kresnov in order
6 books- 1. Crossover
- 2. Breakaway
- 3. Killswitch
- 4. 23 Years on Fire
- 5. Operation Shield
- 6. Originator
A Trial of Blood and Steel in order
4 booksDo you have to read Joel Shepherd books in order?
You only need to read Joel Shepherd books in order within each series: the books listed here span 3 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Joel Shepherd
Start with Renegade (2015), the first Spiral Wars book. The earliest catalogued title overall is Crossover (2001).
What is the newest Joel Shepherd book?
Precursor (2025) is the newest Joel Shepherd book released so far.
Is there a new Joel Shepherd book coming?
No next Joel Shepherd book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Joel Shepherd at a glance
- Still publishing
- Joel Shepherd published a book as recently as 2025.
- Release pace
- Joel Shepherd books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 3,690 pages across the 8 of 20 books with a recorded length, a median of 465 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Joel Shepherd books, 10 of 20, were published in the 2010s.
What the Joel Shepherd books are about
10 of the 20 Joel Shepherd books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: androids is tagged on 6 of 10. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Androids 6 of 10 books
- Science fiction 6 of 10 books
- Cassandra Kresnov (Fictitious character) 4 of 10 books
- Science fiction, military 3 of 10 books
- Life on other planets 3 of 10 books
- Women soldiers 3 of 10 books
- Science fiction, action & adventure 2 of 10 books
- Swordplay 2 of 10 books
- Women heroes 2 of 10 books