Left Behind: The Kids Books in Order
Left Behind: The Kids contains 40 books, published between 1998 and 2004. The first book is The Vanishings (1998) and the newest is Triumphant Return (2004). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 40
- Published
- 1998–2004
- Confirmed
- 40 of 40 titles
- Pages on record
- 4,262 in 28 of 40 books
- Reading time
- 71–107 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 4,262 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 28 of 40 titles with a page count on record.
Left Behind: The Kids is a series of young adult novellas spun off from the Left Behind series and published by Tyndale House. The story follows young Christians through the Rapture and the Great Tribulation, mixing science fiction, dystopian, mystery and horror elements into an evangelical narrative. The catalogue holds 40 books dated 1998 to 2004, opening with The Vanishings (1998); Jerry B. Jenkins is credited on 29 and Tim LaHaye on 15, and Chris Fabry contributed uncredited. EarFlix produced radio dramatisations for Christian radio.
How many Left Behind: The Kids books are there?
Left Behind: The Kids has 40 books, released between 1998 and 2004.
Left Behind: The Kids Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 40 Left Behind: The Kids 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.
- 1The Vanishings1998 · confirmed 4/41998–4/4
- 2Second Chance1998 · confirmed 4/41998–4/4
- 3Through the Flames1998 · confirmed 4/41998–4/4
- 4Facing the Future1998 · confirmed 4/41998–4/4
- 5Nicolae High1999 · 40 pages · confirmed 4/41999404/4
- 6The Underground1999 · confirmed 4/41999–4/4
- 7Busted!2000 · confirmed 4/42000–4/4
- 8Death Strike2000 · confirmed 4/42000–4/4
- 9The Search2000 · confirmed 4/42000–4/4
- 10On the Run2000 · confirmed 4/42000–4/4
- 11Into the Storm2000 · 149 pages · confirmed 4/420001494/4
- 12Earthquake!2000 · 138 pages · confirmed 3/420001383/4
- 13The Showdown2001 · 132 pages · confirmed 4/420011324/4
- 14Judgment Day2001 · 130 pages · confirmed 4/420011304/4
- 15Battling the Commander2001 · confirmed 3/42001–3/4
- 16Fire from Heaven2001 · 142 pages · confirmed 4/420011424/4
- 17Terror in the Stadium2001 · 150 pages · confirmed 4/420011504/4
- 18Darkening Skies2001 · confirmed 4/42001–4/4
- 19Attack of Apollyon2002 · confirmed 4/42002–4/4
- 20A Dangerous Plan2002 · 152 pages · confirmed 4/420021524/4
- 21Secrets of New Babylon2002 · 133 pages · confirmed 4/420021334/4
- 22Escape from New Babylon2002 · 146 pages · confirmed 4/420021464/4
- 23Horsemen of Terror2002 · 148 pages · confirmed 4/420021484/4
- 24Uplink from the Underground2002 · 125 pages · confirmed 4/420021254/4
- 25Death at the Gala2003 · 147 pages · confirmed 4/420031474/4
- 26The Beast Arises2003 · 146 pages · confirmed 4/420031464/4
- 27Wildfire2003 · 146 pages · confirmed 4/420031464/4
- 28The Mark of the Beast2003 · 146 pages · confirmed 4/420031464/4
- 29Breakout!2003 · 147 pages · confirmed 4/420031474/4
- 30Murder in the Holy Place2003 · 147 pages · confirmed 4/420031474/4
- 31Escape to Masada2003 · 146 pages · confirmed 4/420031464/4
- 32War of the Dragon2003 · 150 pages · confirmed 4/420031504/4
- 33Attack on Petra2004 · 176 pages · confirmed 4/420041764/4
- 34Bounty Hunters2004 · 176 pages · confirmed 4/420041764/4
- 35The Rise of False Messiahs2004 · 183 pages · confirmed 4/420041834/4
- 36Ominous Choices2004 · 192 pages · confirmed 4/420041924/4
- 37Heat Wave2004 · 183 pages · confirmed 4/420041834/4
- 38The Perils of Love2004 · 186 pages · confirmed 4/420041864/4
- 39The Road to War2004 · 208 pages · confirmed 4/420042084/4
- 40Triumphant Return2004 · 198 pages · confirmed 4/420041984/4
Do you have to read Left Behind: The Kids books in order?
You should read the Left Behind: The Kids books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Left Behind: The Kids book also stands alone.
Where to start with Left Behind: The Kids
Start with The Vanishings (1998), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Left Behind: The Kids book?
Triumphant Return (2004) is the newest Left Behind: The Kids book released so far.
Is there a new Left Behind: The Kids book coming?
No next Left Behind: The Kids book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Left Behind: The Kids at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Left Behind: The Kids title on record dates from 2004, 22 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Left Behind: The Kids books have appeared more than one a year on average.
- Length
- 4,262 pages across the 28 of 40 books with a recorded length, a median of 147 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Left Behind: The Kids books, 34 of 40, were published in the 2000s.
- Corroboration
- 38 of the 40 titles appear in all four independent book listings, and every one of them in at least three.
- Attribution
- Of the 40 titles, 29 are credited to Jerry B. Jenkins and 15 to Tim LaHaye.
What the Left Behind: The Kids books are about
37 of the 40 Left Behind: The Kids books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: christian life is tagged on 32 of 37. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Christian life 32 of 37 books
- Good and evil 29 of 37 books
- Rapture (Christian eschatology) 27 of 37 books
- End of the world 25 of 37 books
- Adventure stories 23 of 37 books
- Children's fiction 22 of 37 books
- Christian fiction 16 of 37 books
- Suspense 13 of 37 books
- Good vs Evil 8 of 37 books
- Survival 8 of 37 books
- Tribulation (Christian eschatology) 8 of 37 books
- Teens vs dystopian regime 6 of 37 books
Characters in the Left Behind: The Kids books
The character linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Left Behind books in order 56 books