John Jakes Books in Order
John Jakes has written 73 books, published between 1952 and 2006. The first book is The Texans Ride North (1952) and the newest is The Gods of Newport (2006). Publication order is the reading order below.
John Jakes also publishes as Jay Scotland.
- Books
- 73
- Published
- 1952–2006
- Confirmed
- 73 of 73 titles
- Pages on record
- 14,020 in 30 of 73 books
John William Jakes (March 31, 1932 to March 11, 2023) was an American writer of historical and speculative fiction. Jakes wrote The Kent Family Chronicles and the North and South trilogy set in the American Civil War, and used the pen name Jay Scotland. The catalogue lists 73 books from The Texans Ride North (1952) to The Gods of Newport (2006). Other series include Johnny Havoc, Lou Largo, Brak the Barbarian and the Crown Family Saga. Subjects range across westerns, frontier life, science fiction and private investigators.
How many John Jakes books are there?
John Jakes has 73 books, released between 1952 and 2006. They include 8 separate series.
John Jakes Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 73 John Jakes 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.
- 11952–3/4
- 21952–3/4
- 31958–3/4
- 41958–3/4
- 51959–3/4
- 61959–3/4
- 719601433/4
- 81961–3/4
- 91961–3/4
- 101962–3/4
- 1119621413/4
- 121962–3/4
- 1319622743/4
- 141962–3/4
- 1519631413/4
- 161963–3/4
- 171963–3/4
- 181963–3/4
- 1919632633/4
- 201967–3/4
- 211968–3/4
- 221968–3/4
- 231969–3/4
- 241969–3/4
- 251969–3/4
- 261969–3/4
- 271969–3/4
- 281969–3/4
- 291969–3/4
- 301969–3/4
- 311969–3/4
- 321969–3/4
- 331969–3/4
- 3419701743/4
- 351970–3/4
- 361970–3/4
- 371970–3/4
- 381972–3/4
- 391972–3/4
- 401972–3/4
- 411973–3/4
- 421973–3/4
- 431973–3/4
- 4419745443/4
- 451974–3/4
- 4619754483/4
- 4719755273/4
- 4819752983/4
- 4919753143/4
- 5019764803/4
- 5119765603/4
- 521977–3/4
- 5319775923/4
- 541977–3/4
- 5519781403/4
- 5619788003/4
- 571978–3/4
- 5819798163/4
- 591980–3/4
- 6019828163/4
- 61198410883/4
- 621985–3/4
- 6319878003/4
- 6419896583/4
- 6519912753/4
- 66199311823/4
- 671998863/4
- 6819985483/4
- 6920004623/4
- 7020012403/4
- 7120025063/4
- 72Savannah, or A Gift for Mr. Lincoln / Savannah ChristmasJohn Jakes Standalone Novels #342004 · 321 pages · confirmed 3/420043213/4
- 7320063833/4
John Jakes characters in order
The character linked below has its own reading-order page.
John Jakes 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.
John Jakes Standalone Novels
35 books35 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Kent Family in order
8 books- 1. The Bastard
- 2. The Rebels
- 3. The Seekers
- 4. The Furies
- 5. The Titans
- 6. The Warriors
- 7. The Lawless
- 8. The Americans
Brak the Barbarian in order
5 booksJohnny Havoc in order
4 booksLou Largo Series in order
3 booksJohn Jakes Non-Fiction
3 books3 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
II Galaxy in order
3 booksNorth and South in order
3 booksJohn Jakes Short Story
2 books2 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Crown Family Saga in order
2 books- 1. Homeland
- 2. American Dreams
Planet of the Apes in order
2 booksGavin Black in order
1 bookJohn Jakes Short Stories/Novellas
1 book1 title published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
John Jakes Plays in order
1 bookJohn Jakes Books in Chronological Order
By publication date, the John Jakes books run from The Texans Ride North (1952) to The Gods of Newport (2006), the sequence in the table above. No separate story order is recorded for John Jakes in the book listings this catalogue merges, so publication order is the only order on record.
Do you have to read John Jakes books in order?
You only need to read John Jakes books in order within each series: the books listed here span 8 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with John Jakes
Start with The Bastard (1974), the first Kent Family Chronicles book. The earliest catalogued title overall is The Texans Ride North (1952).
What is the newest John Jakes book?
The Gods of Newport (2006) is the newest John Jakes book released so far.
Is there a new John Jakes book coming?
No next John Jakes 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 John Jakes has won
Wikidata records 1 award and 1 nomination for John Jakes. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Owen Wister Award2007Won
- British Fantasy Award for Best Short Fiction1975Shortlistedfor Ghoul's Garden
John Jakes at a glance
- Died
- John Jakes died in 2023, according to Wikidata.
- Last book
- The newest book credited to John Jakes on record dates from 2006.
- Release pace
- John Jakes books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 14,020 pages across the 30 of 73 books with a recorded length, a median of 455 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most John Jakes books, 27 of 73, were published in the 1960s.
What the John Jakes books are about
37 of the 73 John Jakes books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: historical fiction is tagged on 13 of 37. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Historical fiction 13 of 37 books
- History 8 of 37 books
- Fiction in English 4 of 37 books
- Science fiction 4 of 37 books
- Fantasy 3 of 37 books
- Frontier and pioneer life 3 of 37 books
- Johnny Havoc (Fictitious character) 3 of 37 books
- Private investigators 3 of 37 books
- United States 3 of 37 books
- United States Civil War, 1861-1865 3 of 37 books
- Westerns 3 of 37 books