Black Dagger Brotherhood Books in Order

J.R. Ward has written 33 Black Dagger Brotherhood books, published between 2005 and 2026: 31 in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series and 2 related titles. The first book is Dark Lover (2005) and the newest main-line book is Lover Enthroned (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
33
Published
2005–2026
Confirmed
33 of 33 titles
Pages on record
7,606 in 15 of 33 books

Black Dagger Brotherhood is J.R. Ward's paranormal romance series about a band of vampire warriors, each book pairing one of them with a partner. Dark Lover (2005) opens the run, followed by Lover Eternal, Lover Awakened, Lover Revealed, Lover Unbound and Lover Enshrined, a naming pattern that holds to Lover Enthroned. Thirty-three volumes make up the series, long ones at a median of 509 pages, and it continues through 2026.

Source: composed

How many Black Dagger Brotherhood books are there?

Black Dagger Brotherhood has 33 books, released between 2005 and 2026. 31 of them belong to the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, and 2 related titles sit outside it: companion books.

Black Dagger Brotherhood Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 33 Black Dagger Brotherhood 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 November 2026.

  1. 1
    Dark LoverBlack Dagger Brotherhood #12005 · confirmed 4/4
    2005–
  2. 2
    Lover EternalBlack Dagger Brotherhood #22006 · 449 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2006449
  3. 3
    Lover AwakenedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #32006 · 448 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2006448
  4. 4
    Lover RevealedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #42007 · confirmed 3/4
    2007–
  5. 5
    Lover UnboundBlack Dagger Brotherhood #52007 · 509 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2007509
  6. 6
    The Black Dagger Brotherhood: An Insider's GuideBlack Dagger Brotherhood Companion #12008 · 478 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2008478
  7. 7
    Lover EnshrinedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #62008 · 542 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2008542
  8. 8
    Father MineBlack Dagger Brotherhood #72008 · confirmed 4/4
    2008–
  9. 9
    Lover AvengedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #82009 · 527 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2009527
  10. 10
    Lover MineBlack Dagger Brotherhood #92010 · confirmed 4/4
    2010–
  11. 11
    Lover UnleashedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #102011 · 489 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2011489
  12. 12
    Lover RebornBlack Dagger Brotherhood #112012 · 572 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2012572
  13. 13
    Lover at LastBlack Dagger Brotherhood #122013 · confirmed 4/4
    2013–
  14. 14
    The KingBlack Dagger Brotherhood #132014 · 573 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2014573
  15. 15
    The ShadowsBlack Dagger Brotherhood #142015 · 576 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2015576
  16. 16
    The BeastBlack Dagger Brotherhood #152016 · 508 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2016508
  17. 17
    The ChosenBlack Dagger Brotherhood #162017 · 521 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2017521
  18. 18
    Dearest IvieBlack Dagger Brotherhood #172018 · confirmed 4/4
    2018–
  19. 19
    The ThiefBlack Dagger Brotherhood #182018 · 454 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2018454
  20. 20
    Prisoner of NightBlack Dagger Brotherhood #192019 · confirmed 4/4
    2019–
  21. 21
    The SaviorBlack Dagger Brotherhood #202019 · confirmed 4/4
    2019–
  22. 22
    Where Winter Finds YouBlack Dagger Brotherhood #212019 · confirmed 4/4
    2019–
  23. 23
    The SinnerBlack Dagger Brotherhood #222020 · confirmed 4/4
    2020–
  24. 24
    A Warm Heart in WinterBlack Dagger Brotherhood #232020 · 448 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2020448
  25. 25
    Lover UnveiledBlack Dagger Brotherhood #242021 · confirmed 4/4
    2021–
  26. 26
    Lover ArisenBlack Dagger Brotherhood #252022 · 512 pages · confirmed 4/4
    2022512
  27. 27
    DariusBlack Dagger Brotherhood #262022 · confirmed 4/4
    2022–
  28. 28
    LassiterBlack Dagger Brotherhood #272023 · confirmed 4/4
    2023–
  29. 29
    The BelovedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #292024 · confirmed 4/4
    2024–
  30. 30
    A Bloom in WinterBlack Dagger Brotherhood #302024 · confirmed 4/4
    2024–
  31. 31
    The Black Dagger Brotherhood: 20th Anniversary Insider's GuideBlack Dagger Brotherhood Companion #22025 · confirmed 3/4
    2025–
  32. 32
    Lover ForbiddenBlack Dagger Brotherhood #312025 · confirmed 4/4
    2025–
  33. 33
    Lover EnthronedBlack Dagger Brotherhood #322026 · confirmed 3/4
    2026–

Do you have to read Black Dagger Brotherhood books in order?

You should read the Black Dagger Brotherhood series in publication order, the order of the numbered table above; the 2 related titles (companion books) sit outside that sequence. The catalogue does not record whether each Black Dagger Brotherhood book also stands alone.

What order should you read Black Dagger Brotherhood books in?

Read them in publication order, starting with Dark Lover (2005), the earliest published book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. After it come Lover Eternal (2006), Lover Awakened (2006), Lover Revealed (2007) and Lover Unbound (2007); the numbered table above continues from there.

What is the newest Black Dagger Brotherhood book?

Lover Enthroned (2026) is the newest book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series.

Is there a new Black Dagger Brotherhood book coming?

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

Black Dagger Brotherhood at a glance

Still running
Black Dagger Brotherhood is still running, with a main-line title published as recently as 2026.
Release pace
Black Dagger Brotherhood books have appeared more than one a year on average.
Length
7,606 pages across the 15 of 33 books with a recorded length, a median of 509 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Black Dagger Brotherhood books, 13 of 33, were published in the 2010s.
Corroboration
29 of the 33 titles appear in all four independent book listings, and every one of them in at least three.

When Black Dagger Brotherhood books were published

Publication distribution by decade, showing when Black Dagger Brotherhood titles appeared. 2010s was the most productive decade with 13 titles.

2000s
9
2010s
13
2020s
11

33 books total across 3 decades. Decade reflects the year each title was first catalogued.

What the Black Dagger Brotherhood books are about

21 of the 33 Black Dagger Brotherhood books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: vampires is tagged on 21 of 21. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

More books by J.R. Ward

The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.