Lou Bradshaw Books in Order

Lou Bradshaw has written 34 books, published between 2013 and 2020. The first book is A Fine Kettle of Fish (2013) and the newest is Man With No Face (2020). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
34
Published
2013–2020

Three recurring leads carry Lou Bradshaw's westerns: Ben Blue, Shad Cain and JL Tate. Bradshaw published 34 books between 2013 and 2020, opening with A Fine Kettle of Fish, Blue and Hickory Jack, all dated 2013, and closing with Man With No Face (2020). Ace High (2014), Blue Norther (2014), One Man Standing (2014), Cain just Cain (2015), Driftin' (2015) and Hell's Gate (2015) fill the middle of the run.

Source: composed

How many Lou Bradshaw books are there?

Lou Bradshaw has 34 books, released between 2013 and 2020. They include 3 series and 2 titles listed outside any series.

Lou Bradshaw Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 34 Lou Bradshaw books in the order they were published, with the release year and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of November 2026.

  1. 1
    A Fine Kettle of Fish2013 · confirmed 1/4
    2013–
  2. 2
    Hickory JackBen Blue #12013 · confirmed 1/4
    2013–
  3. 3
    BlueBen Blue #22013 · confirmed 1/4
    2013–
  4. 4
    Ace HighBen Blue #32014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
  5. 5
    Blue NortherBen Blue #42014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
  6. 6
    CainBen Blue #52014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
  7. 7
    One Man StandingBen Blue #62014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
  8. 8
    Cain just CainShad Cain #12015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  9. 9
    JL Tate, Texas RangerJL Tate #12015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  10. 10
    Driftin'Shad Cain #22015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  11. 11
    Spirit ValleyBen Blue #72015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  12. 12
    Hell's GateBen Blue #82015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  13. 13
    Rubio: The LegendBen Blue #92015 · confirmed 1/4
    2015–
  14. 14
    Texas War LordJL Tate #22016 · confirmed 1/4
    2016–
  15. 15
    ArizonaShad Cain #32016 · confirmed 1/4
    2016–
  16. 16
    PalouseBen Blue #102016 · confirmed 1/4
    2016–
  17. 17
    Trails Less Traveled2017 · confirmed 1/4
    2017–
  18. 18
    Buttercup Meets CainShad Cain #42017 · confirmed 1/4
    2017–
  19. 19
    El GatoShad Cain #52017 · confirmed 1/4
    2017–
  20. 20
    Right Thing to DoBen Blue #112017 · confirmed 1/4
    2017–
  21. 21
    AbeBen Blue #122017 · confirmed 1/4
    2017–
  22. 22
    Comin' HomeJL Tate #32018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
  23. 23
    TetonShad Cain #62018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
  24. 24
    Double TroubleShad Cain #72018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
  25. 25
    True BlueBen Blue #132018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
  26. 26
    Along the WayBen Blue #142018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
  27. 27
    Dead Mule ValleyJL Tate #42019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
  28. 28
    AgularShad Cain #82019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
  29. 29
    Blue ValleyBen Blue #152019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
  30. 30
    Gilligan's DemiseBen Blue #162019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
  31. 31
    Rubio IIBen Blue #172019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
  32. 32
    Big Man's KeeperJL Tate #52020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–
  33. 33
    and Cain SmiledShad Cain #92020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–
  34. 34
    Man With No FaceBen Blue #182020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–

Lou Bradshaw 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.

Ben Blue in order

18 books
  1. 1. Hickory Jack
  2. 2. Blue
  3. 3. Ace High
  4. 4. Blue Norther
  5. 5. Cain
  6. 6. One Man Standing
  7. 7. Spirit Valley
  8. 8. Hell's Gate
  9. 9. Rubio: The Legend
  10. 10. Palouse
  11. 11. Right Thing to Do
  12. 12. Abe
  13. and 6 more in the table above

Shad Cain in order

9 books
  1. 1. Cain just Cain
  2. 2. Driftin'
  3. 3. Arizona
  4. 4. Buttercup Meets Cain
  5. 5. El Gato
  6. 6. Teton
  7. 7. Double Trouble
  8. 8. Agular
  9. 9. and Cain Smiled

JL Tate in order

5 books
  1. 1. JL Tate, Texas Ranger
  2. 2. Texas War Lord
  3. 3. Comin' Home
  4. 4. Dead Mule Valley
  5. 5. Big Man's Keeper

Standalone books

2 books

2 Lou Bradshaw titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Lou Bradshaw books in order?

You only need to read Lou Bradshaw 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 Lou Bradshaw

Start with A Fine Kettle of Fish (2013), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Lou Bradshaw book?

Man With No Face (2020) is the newest Lou Bradshaw book released so far.

Is there a new Lou Bradshaw book coming?

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

Lou Bradshaw at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Lou Bradshaw title on record dates from 2020, 6 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Lou Bradshaw books have appeared more than one a year on average.
Busiest decade
Most Lou Bradshaw books, 31 of 34, were published in the 2010s.

When Lou Bradshaw books were published

Publication distribution by decade, showing when Lou Bradshaw titles appeared. 2010s was the most productive decade with 31 titles.

2010s
31
2020s
3

34 books total across 2 decades. Decade reflects the year each title was first catalogued.