Ranch life book series in reading order

by John R. Erickson

by Terri Farley

by B.M. Bower

by Jodi Thomas

by Susan Mallery

John R. Erickson is an American cowboy and author, born October 20, 1943, best known for the Hank the Cowdog series of children's novels. The catalogue lists 121 Erickson books from Through Time and the Valley (1978) to The Case of the Poison Toad (2025). The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog (1980) and The Further Adventures of Hank the Cowdog (1983) sit alongside titles such as Panhandle Cowboy (1980) and Cowboys Are Partly Human (1983). Subject tags include dogs, ranch life, humorous stories and the American West.

Janet Dailey

161 books• 16 series

Janet Anne Haradon Dailey (1944-2013) was an American author of romance novels, translated into nineteen languages and sold in the hundreds of millions of copies. The Dailey catalogue holds 161 books opening with No Quarter Asked (1974), followed by state-titled entries including Savage Land: Texas (1974), Darling Jenny: Wyoming (1975) and Dangerous Masquerade: Alabama (1976). Subjects cover contemporary and historical romance, western romance, ranch life, love stories, Christmas stories and the Calder family. Series listed include the Calder Saga, New Americana, Tylers of Texas, Bannon Brothers and Christmas Tree Ranch. The listing also carries titles dated after 2013, running to Kill for a Million (2026).

Horses carry the work of Terri Farley, an American writer of children's and young adult fiction. The Phantom Stallion series and its Wild Horse Island continuation account for most of her 39 catalogued books, set on ranches and around mustangs in the contemporary and historic West. Seven Tears into the Sea is her other widely read title, and Farley wrote the adult romance series Magical Love and Haunting Hearts as Tess Farraday. The run opens with The Wild One (2002) and reaches Horse Girl in 2026.

Cowboys, ranchers and ranch life run through Linda Lael Miller's 134 catalogued books, in historical, contemporary and western romance alike. Miller's families and places include the McKettricks, the Montana Creeds, Stone Creek, Springwater Seasons, Painted Pony Creek and the Brides of Bliss County, with a Tremayne vampire sequence off to one side. Desire and Destiny (1983) is the earliest title and The Silver Hills Boarding House the newest.

Diana Palmer is the pen name of Susan Kyle, born Susan Spaeth on December 11, 1946, an American novelist publishing romance since 1979. Kyle spent sixteen years as a journalist under the name Susan Spaeth before turning to fiction, and has also written as Diana Blayne, Katy Currie and Susan Kyle, with a science fiction novel as Susan S. Kyle. The catalogue lists 199 books from 1979 to 2026, opening with titles such as Dream's End and Sweet Enemy and reaching Blaze of Glory (2026). Wyoming Men, Soldiers of Fortune, Men of Medicine Ridge and Morcai Battalion are among the series, and Long, Tall Texans is a listed grouping. Diamond Girl became a 1998 television film. Subjects name ranchers, cowboys, Texas, Wyoming and western romance.

B.M. Bower wrote westerns about cowboys, ranch life and the American West. The Flying U series began with Chip of the Flying U in 1906 and continued through Flying U Ranch (1914) and The Flying U's Last Stand (1915). Montana, forest rangers and man-woman relationships recur through 47 catalogued titles dated between 1906 and 2020. The 1910s were Bower's heaviest decade.

Elmer Kelton

74 books• 9 series

Elmer Kelton (April 29, 1926 - August 22, 2009) was an American writer of Westerns, born in Andrews County, Texas. Kelton graduated from the University of Texas in 1948, edited farm and ranch news at the San Angelo Standard-Times until 1963, and was associate editor of Livestock Weekly from 1968 to 1990. Kelton's novels won seven Spur Awards and three Western Heritage Awards, and Kelton received the Owen Wister Award for lifetime achievement. The catalogue holds 74 books from Hot Iron (1956) to Law of the Land (2021), including the Texas Rangers, Texas Tradition and Hewey Calloway series.

The westerns of Dusty Richards fill a catalogue of 58 books from 1992 to 2025. Noble's Way (1992) opens the list, followed by By the Cut of Your Clothes and From Hell to Breakfast (both 1994). Lawless Land and Servant of the Law date from 2000, and The Abilene Trail from 2003. Rambling Down the Range (2025) is the newest title. Series include Byrnes Family Ranch, Brandiron, Frank Brothers, O'Malleys of Texas, Texas Badge Mysteries, Battling Harrigans of the Frontier and Rodeo Riders. Ranch life, cattle drives, outlaws, sheriffs, Texas Rangers and Arizona appear in the subject tags.

Jodi Thomas is the pen name of Jodi Koumalats, an American author of historical romance born in Amarillo, Texas. Most of the novels are set in Texas, and Romance Writers of America inducted Thomas into its Hall of Fame in 2006. The catalogue records 70 books, from Beneath The Texas Sky (1988) to Silverleaf Rapids (2025). Ransom Canyon, Whispering Mountain, Texas Brothers, Wife Lottery, Honey Creek, McQuillen and Someday Valley are among the Thomas series. Ranch life, women pioneers and western romance appear in the subject tags.

Jane Smiley

40 books• 6 series

Jane Smiley, born September 26, 1949, is an American novelist and the winner of the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for A Thousand Acres (1991). The catalogue holds 40 Smiley books from Barn Blind (1980) to Lidie: The Further Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton (2026). The Greenlanders (1988), Moo (1995) and The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton (1998) are among the titles. Series include Horses Of Oak Valley Ranch, Last Hundred Years: A Family Saga and Ellen and Ned. Subjects include horses, ranch life and rural families.

Lauran Paine (1916-2001) was an American author of Western fiction, born Lawrence Kerfman Duby Jr. The catalogue holds 306 titles dated 1957 to 2022, opening with The Farthest Frontier and The Long Law Trail in 1957. Ranch life, cattle drives, outlaws and frontier settlement run through the subject list, with detective and suspense titles alongside. Paine also published as Mark Carrel, the name on Wagon Train (1957) and Case Of The Innocent Witness (1959). Books average 191 pages.

Susan Mallery is an American romance novelist born in 1970, whose books are set in small, tight-knit communities and give pets a prominent role. The catalogue counts 201 books from Tender Loving Care (1991) onward, including early titles published as Susan Macias. Series include Fool's Gold, Desert Rogues, Hometown Heartbreakers, Happily Inc., Marcelli, Buchanans, Blackberry Island and Mischief Bay. The Bookstore Diaries (2026) is the newest release, and Friend Request is due in 2027.

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.

Lorelei James is a romance author whose subjects cover erotic, contemporary and western romance, ranchers, cowgirls and Wyoming. The 66 catalogued books run from Dirty Deeds (2006) to Back in the Saddle (2024). Series include Rough Riders, Rough Riders Legacy, Blacktop Cowboys, Need You, Want You and Wild West Boys. Long Hard Ride (2007), Rode Hard, Put Up Wet (2007) and Cowgirl Up and Ride (2008) are among the early titles.

Valerie Tripp

62 books• 5 series

Valerie Tripp, born in 1951, writes for children and is best known for the American Girl books. Molly, Felicity, Josefina and Kit each hold an American Girl heading in the catalogue, which runs to 62 titles published between 1986 and 2023. Meet Molly, Molly Learns a Lesson and Molly's Surprise all appeared in 1986, and the Felicity books start in 1991. Subject tags cover historical fiction, the Second World War, the Depression, Mexican Americans, ranch life, sisters and friendship. Susan McAliley, Dan Andreasen, Juliana Kolesova and Jean-Paul Tibbles carry credits alongside Tripp on some volumes. The listing is dormant.

Louis L’Amour

183 books• 11 series

Westerns are what Louis L'Amour is catalogued for - 183 titles built on frontier and pioneer life. The Sackett family novels form the largest sequence, with Kilkenny, Chantry, Bowdrie and Talon beside them. L'Amour also wrote Hopalong Cassidy novels, among them The Riders of High Rock and The Rustlers of West Fork (1951). Smoke from This Altar (1939) is the earliest entry, and the Lost Treasures line carries later releases through 2019.

Larry McMurtry

48 books• 10 series

Larry McMurtry (Larry Jeff McMurtry, June 3, 1936 to March 25, 2021) was an American novelist, essayist and screenwriter. Most of McMurtry's fiction takes place in the Old West or in contemporary Texas, and the early novels Horseman, Pass By (1961), The Last Picture Show (1966) and Terms of Endearment (1975) trace the decline of small-town Texas life. Screen adaptations of McMurtry's work received 34 Oscar nominations and 13 wins. The catalogue lists 48 books from 1961 to Thalia (2017), including the Lonesome Dove and Berrybender Narratives series and non-fiction.

Carolyn Brown, born Carolyn Louise Brown on October 22, 1948, is an American writer of romance and women's fiction. Brown has written more than 100 novels and 8 novellas and has contributed to anthologies. The catalogue holds 153 books from Love Is (1999) to The Purple Thistles (2026), with Taking Sides due in 2027. Texas, Oklahoma, cowboys and ranchers run through the subject headings, and the series include Spikes & Spurs, Longhorn Canyon, Broken Roads, Honky Tonk and Cadillac, Texas.

Ranchers, frontier life and women pioneers recur in the subjects of Joan Johnston's books, which cover historical, western and contemporary romance. Johnston, born in Little Rock, Arkansas, is an American romance author. The catalogue lists 68 Johnston books between A Loving Defiance (1985) and Winter Magic (2020), and the run is marked as likely complete. Series include Hawk's Way, Bitter Creek, Benedict Brothers, Captive Hearts, Sisters of the Lone Star and Frontier Brides.

Kristen Heitzmann wrote Christian romance and inspirational fiction, much of it set in the Rocky Mountains. Honor's Pledge (1998) opens the catalogue, and the Rocky Mountain Legacy, Diamond of the Rockies, Spencer Family, Michelli Family, Redford and Told You series follow. Ranch life, women pioneers and mining country supply the subjects. The catalogue stands at 23 books and ends with Told You Twice (2015).

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.

Vicki Lewis Thompson, born 11 October 1950, is an American romance novelist who has also published as Cory Kenyon and, with Mary Tate Engels, as Corey Keaton. The catalogue holds 174 books from Mingled Hearts (1984) to When a Cowboy Falls Hard (2026), including Promise Me Sunshine (1984), When Angels Dance (1985) and The Fix-It Man (1986). Sons of Chance, McGavin Brothers, NERDS, Rowdy Ranch, Thunder Mountain Brotherhood, Buckskin Brotherhood, Wild About You and Hex are among the series. Cowboys, westerns, Harlequin Blaze, paranormal romance and werewolves appear in the subjects.

Thomas McGuane (Thomas Francis McGuane III, born December 11, 1939) is an American writer of ten novels, short fiction, screenplays and three essay collections about life outdoors. McGuane belongs to the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the NCHA Members Hall of Fame and the Fly Fishing Hall of Fame. The Sporting Club (1968) opens the catalogue of 23 books, followed by The Bushwhacked Piano (1971) and Ninety-two in the Shade (1973), and A Wooded Shore: And Other Stories (2025) is the newest. Subjects include Montana, ranch life and Key West.

Tina Leonard writes western and contemporary romance, with cowboys, ranch life, Texas and New Mexico among the subjects. The catalogue lists 64 books from It Takes Two (1996) to Wish Upon a Star (2019). Callahan Cowboys, Cowboys by the Dozen, Bridesmaids Creek, Tulips Saloon, Hell's Outlaws, Star Canyon and Pecan Creek are the series. Cowboy Cootchie Coo (1998) and A Match Made in Texas (1999) are among the early titles.