🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Colleen Helme
Colleen Helme is a bestselling mystery author best known for writing the Shelby Nichols series of novels. She wrote her first novel “Flame of Destiny” the first of the Flame of Destiny series of novels in 2011. While it was just for kicks, she enjoyed it so much that she decided that she needed to learn all about becoming a professional author. Her supportive husband soon found her a community college with a writing class and she was soon learning about the art of novel writing. The class helped her with aspects of writing such as scene writing, character motivation, and showing rather than telling among many others. She has never looked back since and has been writing for more than a decade.
All Book Series by Colleen Helme
The Mob Boss and the Assassin
Latest in the series · book 2 of 2 · published 2026
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Colleen Helme?
Colleen Helme is a bestselling mystery author best known for writing the Shelby Nichols series of novels. She wrote her first novel “Flame of Destiny” the first of the Flame of Destiny series of novels in 2011. While it was just for kicks, she enjoyed it so much that she decided that she needed to learn all about becoming a professional author.
Which Colleen Helme series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Shelby Nichols series, the earliest of Colleen Helme's multi-book series: it opens with Carrots (2011) and runs to 23 books across 2011–2026, ending with Haunted Past (2026).
How many books has Colleen Helme written?
Colleen Helme has 34 books catalogued in this guide, published between 2010 and 2026. 29 of them belong to 4 named series — the largest being the Shelby Nichols series with 23 books — and 5 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Colleen Helme's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Colleen Helme's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Shelby Nichols (2011–2026, 23 books), Flame of Destiny (2011, 2 books) and Sand and Shadows (2021–2022, 2 books), plus 1 more.
How are Colleen Helme's books organised into series?
This guide splits Colleen Helme's 34 books into 4 named series and 5 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Shelby Nichols (23 books, 2011–2026); Love, Loyalty & Larceny (2 books, 2025–2026); Flame of Destiny (2 books, 2011); Sand and Shadows (2 books, 2021–2022).