Order of Book Series
0

John Francome Books in Order

John Francome has written 27 books, published between 1985 and 2010. The first book is Born Lucky (1985) and the newest is Storm Rider (2010). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
27
Published
1985–2010
Pages on record
7,069 in 21 of 27 books
Reading time
118–177 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 7,069 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 21 of 27 titles with a page count on record.

See all 27 books in order Printable John Francome checklist

Horse racing runs through every John Francome thriller. Francome, born in 1952, was a seven-time British champion jump jockey, then a racing trainer and a Channel 4 broadcaster, before writing. 27 catalogued books span Born Lucky (1985) to Storm Rider (2010), with Declared Dead (1988), Blood Stock (1989), Stone Cold (1990) and Rough Ride (1993) among them. Jockeys, steeplechasing and crime in British racing fill the subjects, and the catalogue is likely complete.

How many John Francome books are there?

John Francome has 27 books, released between 1985 and 2010.

John Francome Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 27 John Francome 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.

  1. Cover of Riding high by John Francome (1987)
  2. Cover of Blood Stock by John Francome (1989)
  3. Cover of Stone Cold by John Francome (1990)
  4. Cover of Stud Poker by John Francome (1992)
  5. Cover of Rough Ride by John Francome (1993)
  6. Cover of Break Neck by John Francome (1995)
  7. Cover of Dead Ringer by John Francome (1995)
  8. Cover of High Flyer by John Francome (1998)
  9. Cover of Safe Bet by John Francome (1998)
  10. Cover of Tip Off by John Francome (2000)
  11. Cover of Lifeline by John Francome (2000)
  12. Cover of Dead Weight by John Francome (2002)
  13. Cover of Stalking Horse by John Francome (2003)
  14. Cover of Back Hander by John Francome (2004)
  15. Cover of Free Fall by John Francome (2006)
  16. Cover of Final Breath by John Francome (2008)
  17. Cover of Deadly Finish by John Francome (2009)
  18. Cover of Storm Rider by John Francome (2010)
  1. 1
    Born Lucky1985 · 144 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1985144
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Eavesdropper1986 · confirmed 1/4
    1986–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Riding high1987 · 205 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1987205
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Declared Dead1988 · 365 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1988365
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Twice Lucky1989 · 112 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1989112
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Blood Stock1989 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1989352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Stone Cold1990 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1990352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Stud Poker1992 · 256 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1992256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Rough Ride1993 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1993320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Outsider1994 · 336 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1994336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Break Neck1995 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1995384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Dead Ringer1995 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1995352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    False Start1996 · confirmed 1/4
    1996–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    High Flyer1998 · 345 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1998345
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Safe Bet1998 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1998384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Tip Off2000 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2000384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Lifeline2000 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2000384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Dead Weight2002 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2002416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Inside Track2003 · confirmed 1/4
    2003–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Stalking Horse2003 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Back Hander2004 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2004416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    Cover Up2006 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    Free Fall2006 · 314 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006314
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Dark Horse2007 · confirmed 1/4
    2007–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    Final Breath2008 · confirmed 1/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    Deadly Finish2009 · confirmed 1/4
    2009–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    Storm Rider2010 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2010416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

John Francome 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.

Standalone books

27 books

27 John Francome titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read John Francome books in order?

No. No source lists any of the 27 John Francome books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.

Where to start with John Francome

Start with Born Lucky (1985), the earliest published title.

What is the newest John Francome book?

Storm Rider (2010) is the newest John Francome book released so far.

Is there a new John Francome book coming?

No next John Francome book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

John Francome at a glance

No recent titles
The newest John Francome title on record dates from 2010, 16 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
John Francome books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
7,069 pages across the 21 of 27 books with a recorded length, a median of 352 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most John Francome books, 11 of 27, were published in the 2000s.

What the John Francome books are about

22 of the 27 John Francome books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: horse racing is tagged on 17 of 22. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.