Authors

Lee Child

Lee Child, the pen name of British novelist James Dover Grant, is best known for the Jack Reacher thrillers. Start with Killing Floor and follow publication order for the main novels; four military-era prequels appear where they were published, preserving the books’ original reveals. Reacher’s world also includes a collected short-story volume, a crossover novella, and the newer Neagley spin-off. The guides below keep those connected routes distinct from the numbered novels.

Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan writes connected mythology-inspired fantasy for young readers. Begin with Percy Jackson and the Olympians, then continue through Heroes of Olympus and Trials of Apollo; Kane Chronicles and Magnus Chase explore other myth traditions in the same universe. Companion stories and crossovers add context, but are optional. The guides here separate those routes and explain where newer connected adventures fit.

Robert Jordan

Robert Jordan was the pen name of James Oliver Rigney Jr. He wrote epic fantasy, sword-and-sorcery adventures and historical novels, and is best known for The Wheel of Time. Begin with The Eye of the World for the main saga; New Spring is an optional prequel best placed after Crossroads of Twilight on a first publication-order read. His connected work also includes seven Conan novels and the Fallon trilogy, written as Reagan O’Neal. Warrior of the Altaii and Cheyenne Raiders are separate standalones.

Terry Pratchett

Sir Terry Pratchett was an English humorist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, famously known for his 41-novel Discworld series.

Diana Gabaldon

Diana Gabaldon writes the Outlander novels and the connected Lord John Grey stories. The nine published main novels follow Claire and Jamie Fraser across historical periods and should be read from Outlander onwards in publication order. Lord John Grey is a related companion series that can be read independently or after Voyager, while the Outlander Universe page explains how the two routes connect.

James S.A. Corey

James S. A. Corey is the joint pen name of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. They created The Expanse, a nine-novel science-fiction saga with eight companion stories collected in Memory's Legion, and The Captive's War, which includes the novella Livesuit.

Julia Quinn

Julia Quinn is the pseudonym of Julie Pottinger, a best-selling American author of historical romance fiction, world-famous for her Bridgerton series.

Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly is an American author of detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring LAPD Detective Hieronymus 'Harry' Bosch.

Robin Hobb

Robin Hobb is a pen name of Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden, an American writer of fantasy fiction primarily known for her Realm of the Elderlings series.

Anne McCaffrey

Anne McCaffrey (1926–2011) was an American-born Irish science-fiction and fantasy author whose work ranged from the Dragonriders of Pern and The Ship Who Sang to the Crystal Singer, Talents, Acorna and other connected worlds. Her stories combine speculative ideas with character-led adventure, and many series can be read independently. This guide separates the principal routes and explains where publication order is the clearest starting point.

C.J. Box

C.J. Box is an American author of novels. He is the author of the Joe Pickett series, as well as several stand-alone novels and a collection of short stories.

Ilona Andrews

Ilona Andrews is the pen name of husband-and-wife author duo Ilona and Andrew Gordon, celebrated for their urban fantasy and romantic fiction.

Jim Butcher

Jim Butcher is an American author best known for his contemporary fantasy book series The Dresden Files, featuring wizard and private investigator Harry Dresden.

Martha Wells

Martha Wells is an American writer of speculative fiction, highly acclaimed for her sci-fi series The Murderbot Diaries.

Patricia Briggs

Patricia Briggs is an American writer of fantasy, successfully writing both high fantasy and the highly popular Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series.

Seanan McGuire

Seanan McGuire is an American author and filker, known for her urban fantasy works including the October Daye and InCryptid series.

Vince Flynn

Vince Flynn was an American political thriller novelist who created the Mitch Rapp series, focusing on a counter-terrorism operative.

Charlaine Harris

Charlaine Harris is an American author known for her The Southern Vampire Mysteries series, which inspired the hit television series True Blood.

Dan Simmons

Dan Simmons is an American writer known for his Hugo Award-winning science fiction series, the Hyperion Cantos, as well as works in horror and fantasy.

Mira Grant

Mira Grant is a pseudonym used by Seanan McGuire to write science fiction and horror, notably the Newsflesh zombie series.

Megan Lindholm

Megan Lindholm and Robin Hobb are pen names of Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden. As Lindholm, she writes contemporary fantasy and science fiction; as Hobb, she is best known for epic fantasy.

Christopher Golden

Christopher Golden is an American author whose novels, comics, and graphic novels include collaborative work with Charlaine Harris.

Janci Patterson

Janci Patterson is an American author who co-wrote the Skyward Flight novellas with Brandon Sanderson.

Andrew Child

Andrew Child is a British thriller novelist who has collaborated with his brother Lee Child on the Jack Reacher series since 2020. The two writers share the later Reacher novels, beginning with The Sentinel, while earlier entries remain Lee Child’s solo work. This catalogue credits each book to the writers named by the publisher and keeps their collaboration visible in the series sequence.

Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter is an American crime novelist whose work includes the Will Trent and Grant County series. She co-wrote the crossover novella Cleaning the Gold with Lee Child, bringing Will Trent and Jack Reacher into the same story. This catalogue records the book as connected fiction rather than a numbered Reacher novel, so readers can choose the crossover without confusing the main series order.

Yasmin Angoe

Yasmin Angoe is a thriller novelist and the author of the Nena Knight series. She co-wrote Zero Margin with Lee Child, the first novel in the Neagley spin-off starring Frances Neagley from the Jack Reacher stories. The book begins a separate route within the wider Reacher world and is scheduled for publication in March 2027. This catalogue credits both writers and marks the series as a spin-off.

Alastair Reynolds

British science-fiction author and former space scientist. His connected novels include the Revelation Space, Prefect Dreyfus, Poseidon's Children and Revenger books, alongside standalone novels, short-fiction collections and a Doctor Who novel.

Andrew Bourelle

Andrew Bourelle is a novelist and short-story writer who coauthors the Texas Ranger novels with James Patterson.

Andrew Gross

Andrew Gross is a thriller novelist who coauthored several books with James Patterson, including Lifeguard.

Annabelle Oh

Annabelle Oh is a writer and the co-author, with Rick Riordan, of The Wild Zone, the first Camp Half-Blood novel.

Ashwin Sanghi

Ashwin Sanghi is an Indian novelist who coauthored Private India with James Patterson.

Boyd Morrison

Brendan DuBois

Brendan DuBois is a thriller and mystery novelist who has coauthored the Amy Cornwall novels and Owen Taylor BookShots with James Patterson.

Brian Herbert

American author and son of Frank Herbert, co-author of the expanded Dune universe novels.

Brian Sitts

Brian Sitts is an advertising creative director and television writer who has coauthored adult and children's books with James Patterson.

Candice Fox

Candice Fox is an Australian crime novelist and coauthor, including the 2 Sisters series with James Patterson.

Chris Grabenstein

Chris Grabenstein is a novelist and frequent coauthor on James Patterson’s younger-reader series, including I Funny, Treasure Hunters and House of Robots.

Chris Tebbetts

Chris Tebbetts is a children’s author who has coauthored the early Middle School novels with James Patterson.

Clive Cussler

Cody Martin

Craig Dirgo

Ctein

Ctein is a photographer and science-fiction writer who co-authored Saturn Run with John Sandford.

Dave Freer

Dave Freer is an Australian fantasy and science fiction author whose background includes ichthyology and fisheries science. His books range from comic science fiction to historical fantasy, and he has collaborated with Eric Flint and Mercedes Lackey on the Heirs of Alexandria novels. Freer also wrote A Mankind Witch, a solo novel set in that world, as well as other fantasy series including Dragons Ring.

David Baldacci

David Ellis

David Ellis is an Edgar Award-winning novelist and appellate judge who has coauthored the Billy Harney thrillers with James Patterson.

David Weber

Delilah S. Dawson

Delilah S. Dawson is an American novelist and comic-book writer. She co-writes The First Druids of Shannara with Terry Brooks.

Dennis Lee

Dianna Love

Dirk Cussler

Don Bentley

Don Bentley is a thriller novelist and former FBI special agent who writes the continuing Mitch Rapp series.

Elio M. García Jr.

Elio M. García Jr. is a researcher and co-author of illustrated reference books about the world of A Song of Ice and Fire.

Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

Elizabeth Ann Scarborough is an American fantasy and science-fiction author and the winner of the Nebula Award for The Healer's War. Her solo bibliography spans more than twenty novels, and her collaborations with Anne McCaffrey extend several connected settings: Acorna, Acorna's Children, Petaybee, the Twins of Petaybee and the Barque Cats books. Those joint novels form substantial reading routes in their own right. This catalogue credits her alongside McCaffrey and links each collaboration to its relevant series guide.

Elizabeth Moon

Elizabeth Moon is an American science-fiction and fantasy author and a former U.S. Marine. Her work includes the Paksenarrion fantasy trilogy, the Heris Serrano space-adventure books and the Hugo-finalist novel Remnant Population. She collaborated with Anne McCaffrey on Sassinak and Generation Warriors, which connect to the Ireta and Planet Pirates setting. This catalogue treats those two novels as joint works and keeps the overlapping series routes distinct so readers can choose the best entry point.

Emily Raymond

Emily Raymond coauthored The Lost in James Patterson’s Witch & Wizard series.

Eric Flint

Gabrielle Charbonnet

Gabrielle Charbonnet is a children’s and young-adult author who coauthored Witch & Wizard and Crazy House with James Patterson.

Graham Brown

Grant Blackwood

Harlan Coben

Holly Lisle

Howard Roughan

Howard Roughan is a thriller novelist who has collaborated with James Patterson on novels including Sail.

Ian Rankin

J. D. Barker

J. D. Barker is a thriller novelist who coauthored The Noise with James Patterson.

J. D. Robb

J.K. Rowling

J.K. Rowling created the seven Harry Potter novels and related Wizarding World books. New readers should begin with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, published in the United States as Sorcerer's Stone, and follow the seven novels in publication order. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is a later stage-play script, while the Hogwarts Library books and Fantastic Beasts screenplays are optional companion branches.

Jack Du Brul

James Mallory

James Mallory is a fantasy author and collaborator with Mercedes Lackey. Together they wrote the Obsidian Trilogy, the Enduring Flame trilogy, and the Dragon Prophecy trilogy, which explores their shared world thousands of years before the Obsidian Trilogy. Mallory also wrote a three-part novelization of the Hallmark Merlin miniseries: The Old Magic, The King’s Wizard, and The End of Magic. Readers can follow these connected settings through separate series guides.

James O. Born

James O. Born is a crime novelist and former law-enforcement officer who coauthors the Michael Bennett novels with James Patterson.

James Patterson

James Patterson writes crime, suspense, and young-reader fiction across long-running series and shared story worlds. His work ranges from Alex Cross and the Women's Murder Club to Maximum Ride, Middle School, and Treasure Hunters. Choose a series that fits your interests, then follow its reading-order guide; most series can be read independently of the others.

Jassy Mackenzie

Jassy Mackenzie is a South African crime novelist and the author of the Jade de Jong series. She coauthored the Private BookShot Private: Gold with James Patterson.

Jeffrey J. Keyes

Jeffrey J. Keyes is a writer, photographer, and producer who coauthored Killer Chef with James Patterson.

Jill Dembowski

Jill Dembowski coauthored The Fire and The Kiss in James Patterson’s Witch & Wizard series.

Jody Lynn Nye

Jody Lynn Nye is an American science-fiction and fantasy writer whose work includes original space-opera novels and collaborations in shared universes. She worked with Anne McCaffrey on The Death of Sleep, The Ship Who Won and the later Doona novels, and with Robert Asprin on books in the Myth-Adventures setting. Her McCaffrey collaborations connect the Planet Pirates, Brainships and Doona routes. This catalogue credits each book to both writers and keeps the three reading paths separate for clarity.

John Jos. Miller

John Jos. Miller is a writer and Wild Cards contributor who co-wrote Dead Man’s Hand with George R. R. Martin.

John Sandford

John Sandford is the pen name of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Camp. His crime fiction follows Lucas Davenport, Virgil Flowers and Letty Davenport across connected Minnesota investigations, with separate series about the artist-hacker Kidd and the young-adult Singular Menace conspiracy. Sandford also wrote three standalone novels, including the science-fiction thriller Saturn Run with Ctein. Readers can start with Rules of Prey or choose a separate series entry point.

Josepha Sherman

Justin Scott

Keir Graff

Keir Graff is a children’s author and novelist who coauthored the MK’s Detective Club books with James Patterson.

Kelley Armstrong

Kevin J. Anderson

American science fiction author, co-author of the expanded Dune universe.

Kim Harrison

Kinley MacGregor

Kyle Mills

Kyle Mills is an American thriller novelist who continued Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp series after Flynn’s death.

Larry Dixon

Linda Antonsson

Linda Antonsson is a researcher and co-author of reference books about the world of A Song of Ice and Fire.

Lisa Papademetriou

Lisa Papademetriou is a children's author and coauthor of Middle School: My Brother Is a Big, Fat Liar with James Patterson.

Lisa Tuttle

Lisa Tuttle is an American writer of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. She co-wrote Windhaven with George R. R. Martin.

Lois McMaster Bujold

Margaret Ball

Margaret Ball writes fantasy, science fiction, historical fiction and romance. Her fantasy novels include The Shadow Gate and Lost in Translation, while her science-fiction collaborations with Anne McCaffrey include PartnerShip and the opening two Acorna books. Ball studied mathematics and linguistics and was a Fulbright Scholar. For this catalogue, her Acorna collaborations begin the Linyaari sequence, while PartnerShip is placed within the Brainships guide; those co-written books are credited to both authors.

Mark Oshiro

Mark Oshiro is a novelist and the co-author, with Rick Riordan, of the Nico di Angelo Adventures set in the Riordanverse.

Mark Pearson

Mark Pearson is a novelist who coauthored Private London with James Patterson.

Mark Shepherd

Mark Sullivan

Mark Sullivan is a journalist and novelist who coauthored Private Berlin with James Patterson.

Martin Chatterton

Martin Chatterton is an author and illustrator who coauthored later Middle School novels with James Patterson.

Max DiLallo

Max DiLallo is a writer who collaborated with James Patterson on the BookShot sequel Zoo 2.

Maxine Paetro

Maxine Paetro is a novelist who has collaborated with James Patterson on the Women’s Murder Club and other bestselling crime novels.

Mercedes Lackey

Mercedes Lackey is an American fantasy and science-fiction author known for long-running connected settings, including Valdemar and Elemental Masters. Her books range from high fantasy to contemporary and science-fiction stories, often organised in series that can be followed through dedicated reading routes. She co-wrote The Ship Who Searched with Anne McCaffrey; that novel belongs to the Brainships sequence presented on this site. Readers can use the Brainships guide to see where their collaboration fits alongside McCaffrey's other linked ship stories.

Michael Ledwidge

Michael Ledwidge is a novelist who has coauthored several thrillers with James Patterson, including Zoo.

Michael White

Michael White is an Australian novelist and journalist who coauthored Private Down Under with James Patterson.

Michele Cook

Michele Cook is a co-author of the young-adult Singular Menace trilogy with John Sandford.

Mike Lupica

Mike Lupica is an award-winning sports columnist and novelist who coauthors the Jane Smith thrillers with James Patterson.

Mike Maden

Nalini Singh

Ned Rust

Ned Rust is a young-adult novelist who coauthored Daniel X: Watch the Skies with James Patterson.

Nora Roberts

Owen King

Owen King co-wrote Sleeping Beauties with Stephen King. This catalogue currently represents that collaboration and its associated adaptation, rather than his full independent bibliography. The prose novel tells a self-contained story; readers choosing the graphic adaptation should begin with its first volume. The adaptation and novel retell the same central premise in different forms.

Paul Kemprecos

Peter F. Hamilton

Peter F. Hamilton is a British science-fiction author known for expansive space opera, intricate future societies, and connected series including the Commonwealth novels, Night’s Dawn, and the Salvation Sequence.

Peter Straub

Peter Straub was a novelist whose work includes horror and literary suspense. He co-wrote The Talisman and Black House with Stephen King. These linked novels follow Jack Sawyer at different stages of his life and connect to King’s wider fantasy setting. This catalogue currently represents those collaborations; it is not a complete bibliography of Straub’s independent work. Start with The Talisman before continuing to Black House.

R. A. Salvatore

Raymond E. Feist

Raymond E. Feist is best known for the Riftwar Cycle, an expansive fantasy sequence that follows the worlds of Midkemia and Kelewan across generations. Its connected series can be read in the publication order Feist recommends, while the Empire trilogy is co-written with Janny Wurts. The separate Firemane Saga follows Hatu's earlier story in Garn and becomes relevant when it crosses into Midkemia in The Dragonwar Saga. Start with Magician for the central route.

Rees Jones

Rees Jones, also known as Geraint Jones, is a former British soldier and thriller novelist. He coauthored the Private BookShot Private: The Royals with James Patterson.

Reese Witherspoon

Richard Chizmar

Richard Chizmar co-wrote Gwendy’s Button Box and Gwendy’s Final Task with Stephen King, and wrote the intervening Gwendy’s Magic Feather alone. This catalogue currently covers his part in that trilogy. Begin with Button Box and follow the three books in publication order; the middle volume is part of the sequence even though King is not its co-author.

Richard DiLallo

Richard DiLallo is a novelist and former advertising executive who has collaborated with James Patterson on thrillers.

Roberta Gellis

Robin Burcell

Rosemary Edghill

Rosemary Edghill writes across several genres under her own name and pseudonyms. Her work includes the Bast mysteries, featuring Wiccan amateur detective Karen Hightower, as well as Regency romances and fantasy. She has collaborated with Mercedes Lackey on the Shadow Grail novels and other fantasy projects, and with Andre Norton on historical fantasy. Readers who enjoy her work can follow the Shadow Grail books in order or explore her separate mystery and fantasy series.

Ru Emerson

Russell Blake

S. M. Stirling

S. M. Stirling is a science-fiction and fantasy author whose series include the Draka novels, the Lords of Creation and the Emberverse. He has also collaborated with other writers on shared settings, including General and Falkenberg's Legion. Stirling co-wrote The City Who Fought with Anne McCaffrey, placing his work in the Brainships universe. The Brainships guide shows how that joint novel fits with the other McCaffrey contributions without implying that it is a solo Stirling book.

Sherrilyn Kenyon

Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimes is an American television producer, screenwriter, and author.

Stephen Baxter

British science-fiction author. He co-wrote The Medusa Chronicles with Alastair Reynolds.

Stephen King

Stephen King writes horror, suspense, crime and fantasy, with many stories rooted in small American towns. His work includes independent novels, linked settings such as Castle Rock and Derry, and continuing narratives including The Dark Tower and the Bill Hodges and Holly Gibney books. Choose a standalone for a self-contained introduction, or follow a series guide for stories with returning characters. Connections between different groups are usually optional; readers do not need to follow every book as one enormous sequence.

Steve Libbey

Steven Butler

Steven Butler is a children’s author who coauthors the Dog Diaries novels with James Patterson.

Tad Safran

Tad Safran is a writer and producer who coauthored The Time Travel Twins novels with James Patterson.

Terry Brooks

Terry Brooks is a prominent American fantasy writer. He is best known for his epic Shannara series, which has sold millions of copies worldwide, and the comedic Magic Kingdom of Landover series.

Thomas Perry

Todd McCaffrey

Todd McCaffrey is an American science-fiction and fantasy author whose work includes books in the Dragonriders of Pern universe, both solo and co-written with Anne McCaffrey. His Pern novels continue the family and planetary history for readers who want to follow the setting beyond Anne's own books. Todd also writes the Canaris Rift, Steamworld, LA Witch and Twin Soul series. The Anne-and-Todd collaborations in this catalogue are credited to both authors and placed in the Pern reading guides.

Veronica Giguere