Alaska book series in reading order

by Dana Stabenow

by Tom Bodett

Alaska is where most of Dana Stabenow's crime fiction takes place. Kate Shugak, a private investigator, heads the series that carries her name, and Liam Campbell, the Coast Guard books and the Harvey Girl Mysteries follow. Stabenow also wrote the Star Svensdotter, Eye of Isis and Silk and Song sequences. Second Star (1991) opens a 47-book catalogue that reaches The Iron Trail in 2027.

Alaska is the setting for Sue Henry's mysteries, which pair the sled-dog musher Jessie Arnold with the investigator Alex Jensen. Murder on the Iditarod Trail (1991) opens the catalogue, followed by Termination Dust (1995), Sleeping Lady (1996), Murder on the Yukon Quest (1999) and Dead North (2001); the Maxie and Stretch books form a second series. Sixteen titles are catalogued and the list is likely complete.

Debbie Macomber

245 books• 35 series

Debbie Macomber, born October 22, 1948, is an American author of romance novels and contemporary women's fiction. Six Macomber novels became made-for-TV movies, and the Cedar Cove novels became a television series of the same name, with Macomber serving as executive producer on the adaptations. Macomber won the first fan-voted Quill Award for romance in 2005 and holds a RITA Award and a lifetime achievement award from the Romance Writers of America. The catalogue counts 245 books between Starlight (1983) and A Date with Santa (2026). Series include Heart of Texas, Midnight Sons, Navy, Those Manning Men, Orchard Valley and Angels Everywhere.

Fourteen catalogued books by John Straley run from The Woman Who Married a Bear (1992) to Big Breath In (2024). Cecil Younger, a private investigator, is the recurring character of the first series; Cold Storage forms a second. Straley is a poet as well as a writer of detective fiction, and lives in Sitka, Alaska. Crime, suspense and the Pacific Northwest recur as subjects.

Tracie Peterson, born 1959, writes Christian fiction, mostly historical novels carrying romance and faith themes. Peterson used the pen name Janelle Jamison early on and has written joint novels with other Christian authors; Bethany House publishes many of the titles. Several Peterson series feature Harvey Girls, the waitstaff of the Fred Harvey Company. The catalogue lists 153 books from A Kingdom Divided (1991) to Devoted to Love (2026), across series such as Heirs of Montana, Westward Chronicles, Ribbons West, Yukon Quest, Shannon Saga and Desert Roses. Peterson lives in Montana and runs Peterson Ink with husband Jim.

Reunited with the Sheriff (2013) is the first of Belle Calhoune's 54 catalogued books, which run to The Soldier's K-9 Companion (2025). Alaskan Grooms, Seven Brides, Seven Brothers, Secrets of Savannah, Home to Owl Creek, Mistletoe, Maine, Serenity Peak, Moose Falls, Alaska and Guardians Inc. are the series. Christian romance, Alaska, sheriffs, veterans, widows and women with disabilities appear among the subjects. Forever Her Hero (2014), Heart of a Soldier (2014), Love Me Tender (2014) and An Alaskan Wedding (2015) are other titles.

Kat Martin is a pen name of Kathleen Kelly Martin, born July 14, 1947, an American writer of romance novels who has also published as Kathy Lawrence and Kasey Marx. The catalogue holds 81 books from Magnificent Passage (1988) to The Unseen (2025), split between historical romance and romantic suspense, with private investigators among the recorded subjects. Series include the Raines of Wind Canyon, Maximum Security, the Brodies of Alaska, the Sinclair Sisters Trilogy and BOSS, Inc. Martin is married to the writer and photographer Larry Jay Martin.

Helen Moss writes adventure and mystery stories for children. Adventure Island is the main series, and the subjects name Emily Wild, Jack Carter and Scott Carter as characters. The early titles read The Mystery of the...: Cursed Ruby, Hidden Gold, Midnight Ghost and Whistling Caves, all from 2011. Time Dogs and Secrets of the Tombs are further series, and time travel and dogs appear among the subjects. Balto and Togo: Hero Dogs of Alaska (2023) is the latest of 24 books.

Elizabeth Goddard writes Christian romantic suspense, with 60 books catalogued from Seasons Of Love (2007) to Deadly Currents (2026) and Where the Shadows Begin scheduled for 2027. Series include Mountain Cove, Wilderness, Inc., Oregon Outback, Coldwater Bay Intrigue, Mount Shasta Secrets, Missing in Alaska, Redwood Coast and Uncommon Justice. Subjects include clean and wholesome romance, missing persons, criminals and Alaska.

Max Brand

345 books• 13 series

Max Brand was the main pen name of Frederick Schiller Faust, an American writer who died in 1944 and whose westerns fill most of a 345-title catalogue. Faust also created Dr. James Kildare, a young medical intern, for pulp fiction; the character later carried into Paramount and MGM films, radio, two television series and comics. Other Faust pseudonyms include George Owen Baxter, John Frederick, Evan Evans, David Manning, Peter Dawson, George Challis and Frederick Frost. Series strands include Silvertip, Dan Barry, Thunder Moon, Ronicky Doone and Bull Hunter. Harrigan (1918) is the earliest catalogued title, with reissues dated as late as 2022.

Christian romance and romantic suspense make up the catalogue of Margaret Daley, and the subject tags also mark inspirational fiction and the Love Inspired line. The catalogue holds 110 books from A Matter of Pride (1983) to Into the Danger (2021). Family for Keeps, Sadie's Hero and The Power of Love all appeared in 2002, and Gold in the Fire (2004) and Light in the Storm (2005) came soon after. Series include Strong Women, Extraordinary Situations; Fostered by Love; Guardians Inc.; Lone Star Justice; Men of the Texas Rangers; Caring Canines; Alaskan Search and Rescue; and Heart of the Amazon. Widows, bodyguards and missing persons recur in the tags.

Tom Bodett is an American author, voice actor, woodworker and radio personality, born on February 23, 1955, and a host, correspondent and panelist on National Public Radio shows. Bodett has voiced Motel 6 advertising since 1986, closing each spot with the line about leaving the light on. The catalogue lists 17 books from As Far As You Can Go Without A Passport (1985) to Growing Up, Growing Old and Going Fishing at the End of the Road (2009). Small Comforts (1987) and The End of the Road (1989) are among them. Recorded subjects include Alaska, American humor and short stories.

Stan Jones, born in 1947, is an American writer of mystery novels and co-author of a non-fiction oral history of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Jones was born in Anchorage and lives in Alaska, and every book to date is set there. Seven belong to the Nathan Active mystery series: White Sky, Black Ice (1999), Shaman Pass (2003), Frozen Sun (2008), Village of the Ghost Bears (2009), Tundra Kill (2016), The Big Empty (2018) and Ghost Light (2021). The catalogue holds 9 books in total, adding sHERlock: the screenplay (2022) and The Sand Garden (2023).

Dani Pettrey writes Christian romantic suspense, with 19 books catalogued from 2012 to 2026. Submerged (2012) opens the list, followed by Shattered and Stranded (both 2013), Silenced (2014) and Sabotaged (2015). Cold Shot (2016), Blind Spot (2017) and Dead Drift (2018) come after, and Three Steps Behind (2026) is the latest. Series on the author page are Alaskan Courage, Chesapeake Valor, Coastal Guardians and Jeopardy Falls. Alaska, missing persons, serial murder investigation, siblings and mountaineers appear in the subject tags.

Romantic suspense is the register Elle James works in: undercover operations, Navy SEALs, ranchers, Austin, Texas and love stories all appear in the subjects recorded against the books. The catalogue runs to 216 titles between 2005 and 2026, beginning with To Kiss a Frog (2005) and Voodoo on the Bayou (2005) and reaching Papa Noel (2026). Brotherhood Protectors, Take No Prisoners, Iron Horse Legacy, Delta Force Strong, Hellfire, Texas and Covert Cowboys, Inc. are among the series listed under the James name.

Greig Beck's books carry horror, thriller, suspense and action-adventure subject tags, and the catalogue records 42 titles from Beneath the Dark Ice (2009) to The Titans (2026). Alex Hunter is the recurring character, and other series include Matt Kearns, Cate Granger, Primordia, Valkeryn Chronicles, Europa, Devil's Peak, Mysterious Island and Center of the Earth. Seven other writers, Jeremy Robinson and James A. Moore among them, appear in the credits on 1 book each. Settings tagged in the subjects include Alaska, Antarctica, Israel and Paraguay.

Lucy Monroe writes contemporary and historical romance, with Harlequin among the recorded subjects alongside billionaires, marriage, seduction, Greeks and werewolves. Ninety books are catalogued from The Billionaire's Pregnant Mistress (2003) to Honorable Sins (2026). Series include Royal Brides, Princesses by Royal Decree, Children of the Moon, the Goddard Project, Syndicate Rules, the Mercenary Trilogy, the Petronides Brothers and Northern Fire.

Franklin W. Dixon is the author name on the Hardy Boys books, and the catalogue lists 473 titles under the Dixon name from 1927 to 2023. The Tower Treasure, The House on the Cliff and The Secret of the Old Mill all date from 1927. Dixon series include Hardy Boys Casefiles, Hardy Boys Adventures, Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers, Hardy Boys: Secret Files and Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Super Mystery, plus the Ted Scott Flying Stories. Undercover Bookworms (2023) is the newest title.