Family-owned business enterprises book series in reading order

by Leslie Ann Budewitz

by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Jayne Ann Krentz, born Jayne Castle on 28 March 1948 in Cobb, California, is an American romance novelist with New York Times bestsellers under seven pseudonyms. Three names remain in use: Krentz for contemporary romantic suspense, Amanda Quick for historical romantic suspense and Jayne Ann Castle for futuristic and paranormal romantic suspense. More than 35 million copies are in print. The catalogue lists 205 books, from Vintage of Surrender (1979, as Jayne Castle) to Enter the Nightmare (2026), with The Book Hunter due in 2027. Early titles also appeared as Jayne Bentley, Jayne Taylor and Stephanie James. Series include Burning Cove, Eclipse Bay and the Dreamlight Trilogy.

Barbara Taylor Bradford began in non-fiction, with Fashions That Please Him (1970) and a run of interior decorating guides, then wrote A Woman of Substance (1979) and the family sagas that followed. Businesswomen, inheritance and mothers and daughters are the standing subjects. 47 catalogued books include the Emma Harte and Harte Family sagas, Cavendon Hall, the House of Falconer and the Ravenscar novels. The Wonder of It All, published in 2023, closes the catalogue.

Paranormal romance built on vampires, angels and the deadly sins is J.R. Ward's territory. Ward began as Jessica Bird with Leaping Hearts (2002) and Heart of Gold (2003), then started the Black Dagger Brotherhood with Dark Lover (2005), continuing through Lover Eternal and Lover Awakened (2006) and Lover Revealed (2007). 61 catalogued books also take in Black Dagger Legacy, Prison Camp, Fallen Angels, Lair Of The Wolven, Firefighters and the Bourbon Kings. Lover Enthroned is the most recent title.

Ellie Alexander writes mysteries, with subjects that include bakeries, family-owned businesses, Oregon and women sleuths. The catalogue lists 58 books from 2010 to 2027; the earliest, Underneath the Ash (2010), appeared as Kate Dyer-Seeley. Meet Your Baker (2014), A Batter of Life and Death (2015) and On Thin Icing (2015) come next. Series include Bakeshop Mysteries, Secret Bookcase Mysteries, Meg Reed Investigates, Novel Detectives Mystery and the Sloan Krause shorts. The Pumpkin Vice Cafe (2026) is the newest title and A Fatal Frost is set for 2027.

Lisa Lutz

13 books• 3 series

Izzy Spellman investigates for a family-run detective agency in Lisa Lutz's comic mysteries. The Spellman Files (2007) opens that series, and 13 catalogued books reach The Accomplice in 2022, with standalone novels and non-fiction beside them. Dysfunctional families, women detectives and humour run through the subjects.

Leslie Ann Budewitz writes mysteries with women sleuths, and her two series are the Food Lovers' Village Mystery and the Spice Shop Mystery. Montana, Seattle and family-owned businesses appear among the subjects. The 22 books open with Books, Crooks and Counselors (2011), and criminal law and crime writing are listed topics. Punning titles follow, such as Death Al Dente (2013) and Guilty as Cinnamon (2015), through Lavender Lies Bleeding (2025).

Nora Roberts

279 books• 37 series

Nora Roberts, born Eleanor Marie Robertson on October 10, 1950, is an American writer of romance under that name. As J. D. Robb, Roberts writes police procedurals with science-fiction elements, and has also published as Jill March and, in the UK, as Sarah Hardesty. This listing carries 280 Roberts books, opening with Irish Thoroughbred (1981); The Missing is scheduled for 2027. Series on the page include the In Death Universe, the MacGregors, Night Tales, the Calhoun Women, the Chesapeake Bay Saga, Irish Hearts and the O'Hurleys.

Sandra Brown

94 books• 11 series

Sandra Brown, born Sandra Lynn Cox on March 12, 1948, is an American author of romance and suspense thrillers. Brown has also published under three pen names: Rachel Ryan, Laura Jordan and Erin St. Claire. The catalogue counts 94 titles from 1981, when Love's Encore and Love Beyond Reason came out as Rachel Ryan, to Bloodlust (2026). Listed series include the Texas! Tyler Family Saga, the Coleman Family Saga, Mason Sisters and Lee Coburn. Texas, widows and murder recur among the subject headings.

Jeffrey Archer

63 books• 11 series

Jeffrey Archer's 63 catalogued books cover novels, short stories, plays, children's books and prison diaries. The list opens with Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1976) and reaches Adam and Eve in 2026. The Clifton Chronicles, Kane and Abel and the Detective William Warwick novels are the main series; families, social class and English history supply the material.

Adriana Trigiani

24 books• 8 series

Adriana Trigiani is a New York City-based author, playwright, television writer and producer, film director and entrepreneur who has published a novel every year since 2000. Big Stone Gap (2000) opens the 24-book catalogue, followed by Big Cherry Holler (2001) and Milk Glass Moon (2002). Trigiani's series include Big Stone Gap, the Valentine Trilogy and Viola. Subjects include Italian American families, mountain life and domestic fiction. Do You Want Me to Go? (2026) is the newest title.

Carl Weber

38 books• 11 series

Carl Weber, born 1964, is an American author, publisher and television writer and producer who owns the publishing house Urban Books and formerly owned the Urban Knowledge bookstore chain. The catalogue holds 38 books of African American urban fiction and romance, from Lookin' For Luv (2000) and Married Men (2001) to Dating to Die (2026). Weber's novels became the films The Man in 3B (2015), The Preacher's Son (2017), The Choir Director (2018) and Influence (2020). The Family Business book series is the basis of the crime drama The Family Business (2018), and Weber created The Black Hamptons in 2022.

Ellen Byron writes mysteries in four series: Cajun Country, the Catering Hall Mysteries, the Vintage Cookbook Mysteries and Golden Motel. Louisiana, bed and breakfast accommodation, family-owned businesses, weddings and carnival sit in the subject tags. The listing holds 22 entries, the earliest dated 1984 and the most recent A Murderer's Guide to Mardi Gras (2026).

Samantha Chase writes contemporary romance organised around large families. The catalogue is unusually big: 105 books since Jordan's Return (2011), including the Montgomery Brothers, Shaughnessy Brothers, Magnolia Sound, Enchanted Bridal and Lakeview Harbor series. Family-run businesses, musicians and sibling groups recur, in settings across Virginia, North Carolina and California. Lucky 22 (2026) is the most recent Chase title.

Tom Holt, born Thomas Charles Louis Holt on 13 September 1961, is a British novelist who also writes fantasy as K. J. Parker. The catalogue lists 57 books under the Holt name, from Lucia in Wartime (1985) and Lucia Triumphant (1986) to The Eight Reindeer of the Apocalypse (2023). Recorded subjects include humorous fantasy, and titles include Expecting Someone Taller (1987), Who's Afraid Of Beowulf? (1988), Goatsong (1989) and Flying Dutch (1991). Series include J. W. Wells & Co., YouSpace and Walled Orchard.

Penny Jordan is one of the pen names of Penelope Halsall, born Penelope Jones, an English novelist who lived from 24 November 1946 to 31 December 2011. Halsall produced more than 200 romance novels: contemporary romance as Penny Jordan, Regency romance as Caroline Courtney and historical romance as Annie Groves, the maiden name of Halsall's mother. Melinda Wright and Lydia Hitchcock were two further pen names. Sales passed 70 million copies, with translations into many languages. The catalogue lists 210 books from 1979 to 2019, and the earliest entries, such as A Wager For Love (1979), carry the Caroline Courtney name. Series include Perfect Crightons, Jet Set Wives, Leopardi Brothers, Parenti Dynasty and Russian Rivals.

Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli writes women-sleuth mysteries, with subject headings naming women journalists, policewomen, Michigan, Texas, pecans and family-owned businesses. The series list covers Emily Kincaid Mystery, Little Library Mystery and Nut House Mystery, along with Elizabeth Lee Picture. Dead Dancing Women (2008) is the first title, followed by Dead Floating Lovers (2009) and Dead Sleeping Shaman (2010). A Tough Nut to Kill (2014) and She Stopped for Death (2017) come later.