United States book series in reading order

by David Poyer

by Alex Berenson

by Don Mann

by Traci Hunter Abramson

by Ace Atkins

by David Baldacci

by Kendra Elliot

by James Axler

by Ed McBain

by Mike Lawson

by David Hagberg

by Amy Stewart

by Blake Crouch

by Matthew Betley

by David Baldacci

by Jeff Abbott

by Kyle Mills

by Olen Steinhauer

by Art Spiegelman

by John E. Douglas

Historical romance and FBI suspense make up Catherine Coulter's two main bodies of work. Regency and medieval romances such as the Sherbrooke Brides and Medieval Song sequences date back to the 1979 debut The Rebel Bride, while the FBI Thriller series and A Brit in the FBI follow government investigator Dillon Savich. Coulter's catalogue runs to 95 books, reaching The Heir of Whitestone in 2026.

W.E.B. Griffin was the best-known pen name of William Edmund Butterworth III (November 10, 1929 to February 12, 2019), an American author of military and detective fiction. Under the Griffin name Butterworth published 59 novels across seven series, 21 of them written with Butterworth's son, William E. Butterworth IV. The catalogue files 194 titles here, including 1960s books issued as W.E. Butterworth, Webb Beech and Walker E. Blake. Series include Brotherhood of War, Presidential Agent and M*A*S*H, and World War II and the U.S. Marine Corps recur in the subjects.

Donald Eugene Pendleton (December 12, 1927 to October 23, 1995) was an American author of fiction and non-fiction who created Mack Bolan, a character with hundreds of millions of copies sold since a 1969 debut. From 1980, other authors wrote the Bolan books under the Pendleton name, at first with Pendleton's editorial guidance. Pendleton also wrote six Joe Copp, Private Eye novels and six Ashton Ford, Psychic Detective novels. Early titles include The Insatiables (1967), War Against the Mafia (1969) and Miami Massacre (1970).

Military aviation drives Dale Brown's technological thrillers. Patrick McLanahan and Brad McLanahan are the recurring characters across a catalogue of 52 books that opens with Flight of the Old Dog (1987) and reaches Devil's Fortress (2024). Dreamland, Puppet Master, Nick Flynn and the Jason Richter books are the named series. The United States Air Force, weapons systems, espionage and terrorism fill the subject tags.

Alex Berenson

24 books• 4 series

John Wells, an intelligence officer working undercover, leads Alex Berenson's espionage thrillers from The Faithful Spy (2006). Berenson's catalogue holds 24 books, opening with The Number (2003) and reaching The Fatherhood Manifesto in 2026, with the Unreported Truth titles and other non-fiction beside the novels. Terrorism, the CIA and undercover operations supply the material.

Tom Clancy

72 books• 9 series

Tom Clancy, born Thomas Leo Clancy Jr. on April 12, 1947 and dead on October 1, 2013, was an American writer of techno-thrillers, a form that carries technical detail about espionage and military science. An insurance agent before publishing, Clancy debuted with The Hunt for Red October in 1984. The Ryanverse books follow Jack Ryan, an analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency. Subjects across the listing include terrorism, suspense and espionage. The catalogue carries 72 titles under the Clancy name dated 1984 to 2023, with Bill McCay, Grant Blackwood and Peter Telep credited on one or two each.

Suzanne Brockmann, born 1960, is an American writer of romantic fiction, some of it under the name Anne Brock. Brockmann lives near Boston, Massachusetts. The catalogue counts 69 books, opening with Future Perfect in 1993 and running to Jules Cassidy, P.I. in 2026. Troubleshooters and Tall, Dark & Dangerous are recurring series, and Navy SEALs, terrorism, kidnapping and government investigators appear in the subjects, together with romantic suspense.

David Baldacci

71 books• 16 series

David Baldacci is an American novelist, born on 5 August 1960, who trained as an attorney and writes mostly suspense fiction and legal thrillers. The catalogue lists 72 Baldacci books, starting with Absolute Power (1996); All In appeared in 2026 and Boom Town is scheduled for 2027. Recurring leads include Amos Decker, Will Robie, John Puller, Atlee Pine and Aloysius Archer, alongside the Camel Club and the Sean King & Michelle Maxwell books. Baldacci novels have been published in more than 80 countries and 45 languages, with worldwide sales above 130 million copies.

Allison Brennan, an American writer born in 1969, writes romantic thrillers; her first book was published in 2005. The catalogue lists 74 of her books through Make It Out Alive, with One Last Warning announced and the list reaching 2027. Lucy Kincaid and Max Revere are recurring figures. Series listings include the Predator Trilogy, Quinn & Costa Thriller, Angelhart Investigations, River City Mysteries, Regan Merritt and Moreno & Hart Mysteries. Subjects include the FBI, serial murders, women journalists and romantic suspense.

David Poyer, born 1949, is an American author and a retired naval officer. Dan Lenson is a series, and subjects include the United States Navy, officers, sea stories, war and military thrillers and terrorists. Tiller Galloway, Hemlock County and Civil War at Sea are other series. The 51 catalogued books run from White Continent (1980) to Writing Your Memoir In The Age Of AI (2026). The Med (1988), Hatteras Blue (1989) and The Gulf (1990) are among the earlier titles.

Don Mann's catalogue mixes handbooks with thrillers and runs to 21 books published between 2001 and 2023. The United States Navy SEALs are the recurring subject: Inside SEAL Team Six (2011) and The U.S. Navy SEAL Survival Handbook (2012) sit alongside titles such as Hunt the Wolf (2012), Hunt the Scorpion (2013) and Hunt the Fox (2015). SEAL Team Six is the series the catalogue records for Mann. Special operations, counter-terrorism and cyberterrorism appear among the subjects. History's Assassins: Motives for Murder (2023) is the newest entry.

Traci Hunter Abramson writes romantic and Christian suspense, drawing on Navy SEALs, special operations, witness protection and competitive swimming, with Mormon life among its subjects. The Saint Squad heads her series, and Falcon Point Suspense, Dream's Edge, Luke Steele and Pen & Dagger sit beside it. Fifty-six catalogued books run from Undercurrents (2004) to Treasures of Falcon Point in 2026.

Don Brown writes military and legal thrillers drawn from the United States Navy. Navy JAG officer Zack Brewer anchors the Navy Justice series, with courts-martial, submarines, terrorism and international crises supplying the plots. Fourteen books span 2005 to 2023, from Treason and Hostage (2005) through Black Sea Affair, The Malacca Conspiracy and Extortion 17 to 83 Days in Mariupol: A War Diary (2023). No new title has appeared since.

William Wallace Johnstone, October 28, 1938 to February 8, 2004, was an American author of westerns, horror and survivalist fiction. The Devil's Kiss opened the run in 1981, followed by The Last of the Dog Team (1981), Out of the Ashes (1983) and Anarchy in the Ashes (1984). Series filed under the name include Ashes, First Mountain Man, Smoke Jensen, Last Gunfighter, Blood Bond and Duff MacCallister, and subjects include outlaws, frontier and pioneer life, revenge and Texas. The catalogue carries 544 titles under the Johnstone name dated 1981 to 2026, well past the 2004 death date, and 400 of them carry a William W. Johnstone credit.

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.

Kendra Elliot writes romantic suspense and thrillers, and subjects tie the books to Oregon, the FBI, serial murders and missing persons. The catalogue holds 45 books from 2012 to 2027, starting with Hidden (2012). Elliot's series include Bone Secrets, Callahan & McLane, Mercy Kilpatrick, Widow's Island, Columbia River and Noelle Marshall. Until She Dies (2026) is the newest title, and Never To Return is set for 2027.

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.

P.T. Deutermann writes naval fiction and thrillers drawn from United States Navy service. Scorpion in the Sea (1992), The Edge of Honor and Official Privilege sit early in a catalogue of 29 books, the World War II Navy novels form its largest strand, and the Cam Richter mysteries run alongside. The Screaming Sands is scheduled for 2027.

Gilbert Morris produced Christian historical fiction at length: 248 catalogued books between 1977 and 2014. The House of Winslow follows one family across American history; the Appomattox Saga and Bonnets & Bugles take up the Civil War; Cheney Duvall, M.D. follows a woman physician; the Seven Sleepers, Dixie Morris and Too Smart Jones series sit alongside, with children's fiction among the subjects. The catalogue opens with Race Against Time (1977), reaches Raina's Choice, and is listed as likely complete.

Cynthia Eden writes romantic suspense and paranormal romance, and the catalogue runs from The Vampire's Kiss (2005) to Ice Covered Heart (2026). Subjects include vampires, serial murder investigation, the FBI and Atlanta. Series include Wilde Ways, Ice Breaker Cold Case, Shadow Agents: Guts and Glory, LOST/Last Option Search Team, Killer Instinct, Lazarus Rising, Battling McGuire Boys, Bad Things, Trouble For Hire and Phoenix Fire. Early titles include The Wizard's Spell (2006), Hotter After Midnight (2008) and Midnight Sins (2008). The listing also carries several volumes of the Secrets anthology from 2005 to 2008.

Carla Cassidy, born Carla Bracale in Kansas, is an American romance novelist who has published since 1988. The first novels carried the maiden name Carla Bracale, later ones the married name Cassidy, and one fantasy novel appeared under the name Carla Cook. The catalogue lists 184 books, from Falling for You (1988, as Carla Bracale) to The Final Victim (2026). Series include Cowboys of Holiday Ranch, Wild West Bodyguards, Scarecrow Murders, Mustang, Montana, Lawmen of Black Rock, Cherokee Corners, Men of Wolf Creek and Kings of Coyote Creek. Subjects include romantic suspense, cowboys, bodyguards and serial murderers.

Noam Chomsky

134 books• 4 series

Noam Chomsky (Avram Noam Chomsky, born December 7, 1928) is an American linguist, philosopher, political activist and social critic, sometimes called the father of modern linguistics. Chomsky helped found cognitive science, is a major figure in analytic philosophy, and holds posts as laureate professor of linguistics at the University of Arizona and institute professor emeritus at MIT. The catalogue lists 134 books, starting with Syntactic Structures (1957) and reaching The Myth of American Idealism (2024). Subjects range from generative grammar to world politics and terrorism.

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.

Brad Meltzer

85 books• 14 series

Brad Meltzer, born April 1, 1970, is an American novelist, non-fiction author, television creator and comic book writer. The novels span political thrillers, legal thrillers and conspiracy fiction. Meltzer has written superhero comics for DC Comics and, at times, Marvel, and a run of short biographies of well-known people for young readers. The catalogue holds 86 titles from The Tenth Justice (1997) to We are the Wright Brothers (2026), and I am Taylor Swift is scheduled for 2027. Series include Ordinary People Change the World, Beecher White/Culper Ring and Escape Artist/Zig & Nola. Other titles include Identity Crisis (2004) and The Book of Fate (2006).