L.J. Smith

One of the most infamous novelists among readers of young adult fiction, particularly of the supernatural, fantasy and romance genre, is Lisa Jane Smith. Ms. Smith, or L.J. as she is known in the professional world, is the original author of the highly successful series called The Vampire Diaries. “Original” is the operative word here, because unfortunately, L.J.’s work has taken some interesting turns in the publishing world, surprising to her huge fan base and influencing the highly popular television series developed from her stories. Lisa Jane was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in September of 1965.

The best place to start is the Point Horror series, the earliest of L.J. Smith's multi-book series: it opens with Avalanche (1979) and runs to 81 books across 1979–2020, ending with The Dark: v. 1 (2020). L.J. Smith's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.

L.J. Smith has 256 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1979 and 2025. Every one of them sits in one of 15 named series — the largest being the Point Horror series with 81 books.

Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. L.J. Smith's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Point Horror (1979–2020, 81 books), Wildworld (1987–1990, 2 books) and The Vampire Diaries (1991, 4 books), plus 11 more.

This guide splits L.J. Smith's 256 books into 15 named series, with no standalone titles: Point Horror (81 books, 1979–2020); Night World (9 books, 1996–1998); Vampire Diaries Fan Fiction & Extras (8 books, 2010–2014); The Secret Circle (6 books, 1992–2013); The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries (6 books, 2010–2012), plus 10 further series.