James Dashner

Born in Austell, Georgia on November 26th 1972, James Dashner is the well known author of books for young adult readers as well as writing some adult novels. After he graduated from Duluth High School in 1991 he attended Brigham Young University, graduating with a Degree in Accounting. He originally worked in finance before deciding to turn his hand to writing.

The best place to start is the Jimmy Fincher Saga series, the earliest of James Dashner's multi-book series: it opens with A Door in the Woods (2003) and runs to 4 books across 2003–2005, ending with War of the Black Curtain (2005). James Dashner's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.

James Dashner has 31 books catalogued in this guide, published between 2003 and 2025. 30 of them belong to 8 named series — the largest being the Infinity Ring series with 8 books — and 1 is a standalone title, collection or anthology.

Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. James Dashner's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Jimmy Fincher Saga (2003–2005, 4 books), The 13th Reality (2008–2012, 4 books) and Maze Runner (2009–2016, 5 books), plus 5 more.

This guide splits James Dashner's 31 books into 8 named series and 1 title that stands alone or appear only in collections: Infinity Ring (8 books, 2012–2014); Maze Runner (5 books, 2009–2016); Jimmy Fincher Saga (4 books, 2003–2005); The 13th Reality (4 books, 2008–2012); The Mortality Doctrine (4 books, 2013–2015), plus 3 further series.