🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About C.J. Box
On 2001, he published Open Season under G. P. Putnam’s Sons, immediately capturing the interests of critics and readers alike. The novel got him three prizes, namely Anthony Award, the Gumshoe Award, the Macavity Award, and the Barry Award for the Best Debut Novel of the year and was nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. The same novel was also a New York Times Notable Book. Inspired by the success of this first novel, Box decided to continue the book’s story as a series and devote his life to writing. He followed Open Season with Savage Run, published on 2002, continuing with Winterkill (2003), Trophy Hun (2004), Out of Range (2005), In Plain Sight (2006), and Free Fire (2007) 2008 was a big year for Box’s life and career.
All Book Series by C.J. Box
Shots Fired: Stories from Joe Pickett Country
Single-title series · published 2014
Pronghorns of the Third Reich
Latest in the series · book 3 of 3 · published 2012
Everyday is a Good Day on the River
Latest in the series · book 2 of 2 · published 2016
Travel Smart: Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho
Single-title series · published 1998 Co-authored · Paul Otteson
The Book of Virtue
Series opener · book 1 of 40 · published 2012 Anthology · Ken Bruen
An Acceptable Sacrifice
Book 5 of 40 · published 2012 Anthology · Jeffery Deaver
The Long Sonata of the Dead
Book 9 of 40 · published 2013 Anthology · Andrew Taylor
The Book of Ghosts
Book 10 of 40 · published 2013 Anthology · Reed Farrel Coleman
The Compendium of Srem
Book 11 of 40 · published 2014 Anthology · F. Paul Wilson
The Nature of My Inheritance
Book 17 of 40 · published 2014 Anthology · Bradford Morrow
It's in the Book
Book 18 of 40 · published 2014 Anthology · Max Allan Collins,Mickey Spillane
Reconciliation Day
Book 28 of 40 · published 2016 Anthology · Christopher Fowler
The Hemingway Valise
Book 34 of 40 · published 2018 Anthology · Robert Olen Butler
The Last Honest Horse Thief
Book 35 of 40 · published 2018 Anthology · Michael Koryta
The Caxton Private Lending Library & Book Depository
Book 36 of 40 · published 2018 Anthology · John Connolly
The Girl Who Did Say No
Book 37 of 40 · published 2020 Anthology · David Handler
The Honeymoon Trap
Latest in the series · book 40 of 40 · published 2022 Anthology · Peter Swanson
Honor & ...
Latest in the series · book 2 of 2 · published 2017 Co-authored · Sandra Brown
Honor & ...
Series opener · book 1 of 11 · published 2017 Co-authored · Sandra Brown
Deserves to Be Dead
Book 2 of 11 · published 2017 Anthology · John Sandford,Lisa Jackson
Getaway
Book 3 of 11 · published 2017 Anthology · Lisa Scottoline,Nelson DeMille
Midnight Flame
Book 4 of 11 · published 2018 Anthology · Christopher Rice,Lara Adrian
Short Story
Book 5 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Karin Slaughter,Michael Koryta
Past Prologue
Book 6 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Diana Gabaldon,Steve Berry
Faking a Murderer
Book 7 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Lee Child,Kathy Reichs
Dig Here
Book 8 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Charlaine Harris,Andrew Gross
Taking the Veil
Book 9 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · J.A. Jance,Eric Van Lustbader
Rambo on Their Minds
Book 10 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Gayle Lynds,David Morrell
Footloose
Latest in the series · book 11 of 11 · published 2019 Anthology · Val McDermid,Peter James
Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus
Book 11 of 33 · published 2022 Anthology · Faye Kellerman
Aloysius X. L. Pendergast
Book 15 of 33 · published 2022 Anthology · Douglas Preston,Lincoln Child
Charlotte and Thomas Pitt
Book 18 of 33 · published 2022 Anthology · Anne Perry
Precious Ramotswe
Book 24 of 33 · published 2022 Anthology · Alexander McCall Smith
Orphan X
Latest in the series · book 33 of 33 · published 2025 Anthology · Gregg Hurwitz
The Best American Mystery Stories 2006
Series opener · book 1 of 9 · published 2006
Once Upon a Crime: An Anthology of Murder, Mayhem and Suspense
Book 2 of 9 · published 2009
Mysterious Writers: The Many Facets of Mystery Writing
Book 4 of 9 · published 2010
Killin’ Time in San Diego: Bouchercon Anthology 2023
Latest in the series · book 9 of 9 · published 2023
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is C.J. Box?
On 2001, he published Open Season under G. P. Putnam's Sons, immediately capturing the interests of critics and readers alike. The novel got him three prizes, namely Anthony Award, the Gumshoe Award, the Macavity Award, and the Barry Award for the Best Debut Novel of the year and was nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
Which C.J. Box series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Joe Pickett series, the earliest of C.J. Box's multi-book series: it opens with Open Season (2001) and runs to 27 books across 2001–2027, ending with The Missing (2027). C.J. Box's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has C.J. Box written?
C.J. Box has 141 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1998 and 2027. 126 of them belong to 8 named series — the largest being the Joe Pickett series with 27 books — and 15 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should C.J. Box's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. C.J. Box's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Joe Pickett (2001–2027, 27 books), Joe Pickett Short Stories/Novellas (2005–2022, 6 books) and The Hoyt/Dewell (2011–2022, 6 books), plus 2 more.
How are C.J. Box's books organised into series?
This guide splits C.J. Box's 141 books into 8 named series and 15 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Joe Pickett (27 books, 2001–2027); Joe Pickett Short Stories/Novellas (6 books, 2005–2022); The Hoyt/Dewell (6 books, 2011–2022); Lee Coburn (2 books, 2011–2017); Joe Pickett Collections (1 book, 2014), plus 3 further series.