Football players book series in reading order

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Mark Schlabach writes sports nonfiction, on college football and the people around it. The 18 catalogued books span 2003 to 2019, from Destiny's Dogs: Georgia's Championship Season (2003) to Nothing Comes Easy (2019). Recorded subjects include football players, football coaches, college sports, biography, history and anecdotes, and the listing also reaches the television programme Duck Dynasty. Titles include What It Means to Be a Hokie (2006), Heisman: The Man Behind the Trophy (2012) and Happy, Happy, Happy (2013).

Susan Elizabeth Phillips

27 books• 3 series

Susan Elizabeth Phillips is an American romance novelist, born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on December 11, 1944. Phillips is credited with creating the sports romance and has been called the "Queen of Romantic Comedy". The Chicago Stars series and the Wynette, Texas books appear in a catalogue of 27 titles, from The Copeland Bride (1983) to And the Crowd Went Wild (2026). Football players, actors and actresses feature in the subject headings, and It Had to Be You (1994) and Heaven, Texas (1995) are among the 1990s titles.

Sport is Tim Green's subject on both sides of his catalogue: football and baseball novels for young readers, and suspense novels for adults. Ruffians (1993) opens the list, followed by Titans, Outlaws and The Red Zone, with the non-fiction The Dark Side of the Game alongside. Football Genius, Baseball Great and Baseball Genius are the children's series, and Casey Jordan heads a legal one. Forty-five titles run to Rocket Arm in 2025.

Jaci Burton is an Oklahoma-based romance author who came to writing after years in the business world. The subject tags list erotic romance, contemporary romance, small towns, baseball players and football players. The catalogue holds 110 books from Mesmerized (2003) to Designs on You (2024). Play by Play, Wild Riders, Demon Hunters, Kismet, Holloway, Boots and Bouquets and Kent Brothers are among the series.

Julian May

50 books• 7 series

Julian Clare May (July 10, 1931 - October 17, 2017) was an American writer of science fiction, fantasy, horror, science and children's books, working under several pseudonyms as well. The Saga of Pliocene Exile, titled Saga of the Exiles in the United Kingdom, and the Galactic Milieu books are the work May is best known for. The catalogue holds 50 titles dated 1961 to 2015, opening with Robots and Thinking Machines. Much of the run is juvenile writing: profiles of Johnny Unitas, Willie Mays, Bobby Orr, Ernie Banks, Fran Tarkenton, Gale Sayers, Roberto Clemente and Billie Jean King all fall between 1972 and 1974, and Sports Close-Up is among the series on record. Median length across the catalogue is 47 pages.

Bella Andre is a New York-born American author of contemporary romance and the writer of The Sullivans series, a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller. Andre's books had sold over 8 million copies as of 2019. Andre also writes as Lucy Kevin for Four Weddings and a Fiasco and Married in Malibu, and the Billionaire for Me series appeared as Bella Riley. The catalogue lists 87 books from Crown Jewels (2004) to Tempted in Love (2026), with Maverick Billionaires, Bad Boys of Football and Hot Shots: Men of Fire among the other series.

James Patterson

510 books• 73 series

James Patterson, born on March 22, 1947, is an American writer whose catalogue here holds 514 books published from 1976 to 2027. The run opens with The Thomas Berryman Number (1976), and Along Came a Spider (1992) and Kiss the Girls (1995) follow later. Alex Cross, Michael Bennett, Maximum Ride, Daniel X, Witch & Wizard, NYPD Red, Private, Middle School and the Women's Murder Club are among the Patterson series, alongside standalone thrillers, non-fiction and romance. Marshall Karp shares the credit on 5 of the books. Patterson's sales exceed 425 million copies, and Patterson was the first person to sell one million e-books. Forbes ranked Patterson the highest-paid author in 2016, for a third year running, and the National Book Foundation gave Patterson the Literarian Award in November 2015. 27 Stars is scheduled for 2027.

Harlan Coben

41 books• 8 series

Harlan Coben, born January 4, 1962, is an American writer whose honours include an Edgar Award, a Shamus Award and an Anthony Award. Coben's books have been translated into 46 languages and have sold more than 90 million copies. The 41 books catalogued here start with Play Dead (1990) and reach Plot Twist (2026). Subjects attached to them include thrillers, missing persons, sports agents and the fictional character Myron Bolitar. Coben's series include Mickey Bolitar, Wilde and Windsor Horne Lockwood III.

Carly Phillips is the pen name of Karen Drogin, an American romance author and former attorney born July 7, 1965. The catalogue lists 123 books, starting with Brazen and Perfect Partners in 1999 and reaching Falling for Christmas (2026). Phillips's series include Dare to Love, Dare Nation, the Kingston Family, the Sterling Family, Rosewood Bay, Hot Zone, Serendipity's Finest, Dirty Sexy, Book Boyfriend and the Simply books. Subjects include contemporary romance, police, brothers and sisters, orphans, women lawyers and New York City.

Jerry Bruce Jenkins, born September 23, 1949, is an American writer who co-wrote the Left Behind series with Tim LaHaye. Jenkins also writes the novels based on The Chosen, the TV series about Jesus. Across more than 200 books, Jenkins covers biography, self-help, romance, mystery and young adult fiction, and 19 novels explore eschatological themes. The catalogue lists 207 books from The Night the Giant Rolled Over (1971) to The Battle for Heaven and Earth (2026). Series include Left Behind: The Kids, Red Rock Mysteries, Margo Mysteries and Wormling.

Cora Carmack writes contemporary romance and, later, fantasy. Losing It opened the catalogue in 2012 and gave its name to a series continued in Faking It and Finding It. The Rusk University books put college students and football players in Texas, and Stormheart, also catalogued as Stealing Storms, brings in magic. Thirteen books run to Reign in 2025, and Carmack continues to publish.

Sports biography accounts for most of Joe Layden's writing. The catalogue opens in 1994 with Thin Ice: The Complete, Uncensored Story of Tonya Harding and 40 Minutes of Hell, and takes in Deion Sanders (1995), Steve Young (1995) and USA Basketball (1996). Basketball, the NBA, football, women athletes and the Olympic Games run through the subjects, much of it written for young readers. 60 titles span 1994 to 2026, reaching In My Darkest Hour (2026), at a median 214 pages.

Sheryl Lister writes African American romance. Los Angeles settings, teachers, football players, singers, businesspeople and widowers appear among the recorded subjects. The catalogue lists 40 books from Just to Be with You (2014) to All My Sisters and Me (2026). Grays of Los Angeles, Grays Family & Friends and Sassy Seasoned Sisters are the three series under the Lister name, and Once Upon a Funeral is recorded in the character field. Lister is an ongoing author.

Jim Dent, born Harry James Dent in 1953, is an American author and sportswriter. The catalogue shows football books starting with King of the Cowboys: The Life and Times of Jerry Jones (1995). The Junction Boys (1999), Monster of the Midway (2003), Twelve Mighty Orphans (2007), Resurrection (2009), Courage Beyond the Game (2011) and The Kids Got It Right (2013) followed, along with Manziel Mania and The Mighty Mites in 2014. Subjects include football history, coaching, biography and the Dallas Cowboys.