Gregg Hurwitz Books in Order

Gregg Hurwitz is an American thriller author best known for the Orphan X series, which follows former government assassin Evan Smoak, also known as the Nowhere Man, who helps people who have no one else to turn to. A New York Times #1 internationally bestselling author published in 33 languages, he also a four-book series with Deputy U.S. Marshal Tim Rackley before Evan Smoak arrived. His debut novel, The Tower, was published in 1999.

Gregg Hurwitz writes in several formats and genres. He has created comics for Marvel and DC, written screenplays including The Book of Henry (2017), and published two award-winning YA thrillers, The Rains and Last Chance, under his own name. He currently serves as Co-President of International Thriller Writers (ITW).

This page lists all Gregg Hurwitz books in order, including the Orphan X series, the Tim Rackley series, the Rains YA duology, standalone novels, and short stories.

Latest Gregg Hurwitz Books

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Orphan X Series (Books in Order)

The Orphan X series follows Evan Smoak, a former government assassin codenamed Orphan X, who was taken from a group home at age twelve and trained inside a secret intelligence program designed to create deniable assets. After breaking off from the program, he reinvents himself as the Nowhere Man, who became a figure spoken about in whispers, reachable only by those with nowhere else to turn. As such, he uses his skills to help people in desperate situations that official channels can’t or won’t touch. The series combines action full of adrenaline with an ongoing arc about Evan’s history, the Orphan Program hunting him, and his slowly reaching for something that resembles a normal life.

For the full Orphan X reading order, see Orphan X Books in Order.

Reading Order

1. The Code, 2025
2. Orphan X, 2016
3. Buy a Bullet, 2016
4. The Nowhere Man, 2017
5. Hellbent, 2018
6. The Intern, 2018
7. Out of the Dark, 2019
8. Into the Fire, 2020
9. The List, 2020
10. Prodigal Son, 2021
11. Dark Horse, 2022
12. The Last Orphan, 2023
13. The Recital, 2023
14. Lone Wolf, 2024
15. Nemesis, 2025
16. Antihero, 2026

Reading Notes:

• The Code is a short prequel story set before the events of Orphan X but published much later.

Other Orphan X Books

• Orphan X: A Mysterious Profile, 2025

Tim Rackley Series (Books in Order)

The Tim Rackley series follows Deputy U.S. Marshal Tim Rackley, a former Special Forces soldier who has a rigid moral code, and whose faith in the justice system shatters when his daughter is murdered and her killer walks free on a technicality. The opening book finds him involved with a vigilante group operating outside the law, and the series tracks his return to the Marshals Service and subsequent high-risk undercover missions involving a mind-control cult, a violent biker gang, and a maximum-security prison. The cases get more complex as the series goes on, but all four books share the same conflict: what it costs a man of principle to find himself in situations where the rules don’t apply.

Reading Order

1. The Kill Clause, 2003
2. The Program, 2004
3. Troubleshooter, 2005
4. Last Shot, 2006

Rains Series (Books in Order)

The Rains series follows brothers Chance and Patrick Rains, two teenagers in the small rural community of Creek’s Cause, fighting to survive after a mysterious parasite transforms every adult in their town into a violent, zombie-like creature. With Patrick’s eighteenth birthday approaching, which is the age at which the parasite grabs a person, the clock is running on both the mission and his life. It is a YA sci-fi thriller with strong action and a focus on brotherhood. The series won the ITW Thriller Award for Best YA Novel in 2018 for the first book.

Reading Order

1. The Rains, 2016
2. Last Chance, 2017

Standalone Novels

• The Tower, 1999
• Minutes to Burn, 2001
• Do No Harm, 2002
• The Crime Writer (also titled as I See You), 2007
• We Know (also titled as Trust No One), 2008
• Or She Dies (also titled as They’re Watching), 2009
• You’re Next, 2010
• The Survivor, 2011
• Tell No Lies, 2013
• Don’t Look Back, 2014

Graphic Novels

1. Wolverine: Dangerous Games, 2008
2. Foolkiller: Fool’s Paradise, 2008
3. Foolkiller: White Angels, 2009
4. Wolverine: Flies to a Spider #1, 2009
5. Wolverine: Switchback #1, 2009
6. Vengeance of the Moon Knight, Vol 1, 2010
7. Vengeance of the Moon Knight, Vol. 2, 2010
8. Shadowland: Moon Knight, 2011
9. Penguin: Pain and Prejudice #1–5, 2011
10. Batman: The Dark Light Annual #1, 2011-2014
11. Detective Comics #0, 2011-2016
12. Detective Comics #27, 2011-2016
13. New Think, Vol. 1, 2022

Short Stories and Novellas

• Dirty Weather, 2006
• The Delivery, 2026

Anthologies

• Show Business Is Murder, 2004
• Meeting Across the River, 2005
• Thriller: Stories to Keep You Up All Night, 2006
• Uncage Me, 2009
• First Thrills: Volume 3, 2011
• Gone Fishing and Other Stories, 2012
• Birds of Prey, 2022 (with C J Box, Allison Brennan, Harlan Coben, Robert Dugoni, Tess Gerritsen, Heather Graham, Kathy Reichs)

Gregg Hurwitz Biography

Gregg Andrew Hurwitz is an American author of crime and thriller novels, as well as a screenwriter and comic book writer.
Official website: gregghurwitz.net

Born in 1973, Hurwitz grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose before earning a B.A. from Harvard University in 1995. A scholar-athlete who pole-vaulted at Harvard, he went on to Oxford as a Knox Fellow, completing a master’s degree in Shakespearean tragedy at Trinity College in 1996 while writing his first novel. The published The Tower, a psychological thriller set in San Francisco, in 1999.

He spent his early career writing standalone psychological thrillers such as Minutes to Burn, and Do No Harm, and launched his first series in 2003 with The Kill Clause, which introduced Deputy U.S. Marshal Tim Rackley. He wrote four books in that series before shifting his focus. In 2016, Orphan X introduced Evan Smoak and became an instant international bestseller, launching what is now his longest book series. He also wrote the award-winning YA duology The Rains and Last Chance, published in 2016–2017.

Gregg Hurwitz has written for Marvel (Wolverine, Punisher) and DC (Batman, Penguin), written the screenplay for The Book of Henry (2017) and and Sweet Girl (2021), and contributed to television. He currently serves as Co-President of International Thriller Writers.

Gregg Hurwitz currently lives with family in Los Angeles.

Gregg Hurwitz Book Adaptations

• Orphan X – television series in development with rights secured by Makeready and Perfect Storm
• The Book of Henry – film screenplay (2017)
• Marked Man Series – multiple novels optioned for feature film adaptation by Paramount Players

Gregg Hurwitz Awards and Honors

Awards

• Orphan X – Crimson Scribe Award (2016)
• Orphan X – American Library Association: Thriller of the Year (2016)
• The Rains – International Thriller Writers Award for Best YA Novel (2018)
• Out of the Dark – Capital Crime Award for Best Thriller (2019)

Nominations and Shortlists

• The Crime Writer – International Thriller Writers Award nomination (2008)
• Orphan X – SCIBA Best Mystery nomination (2016)
• Hellbent – SCIBA Best Mystery finalist
• Into the Fire – Skoutz Award (Germany), longlist
• Prodigal Son – Society of Voice Arts Awards, Best Audiobook Narration (Thriller), nomination (2021)
• Prodigal Son – International Thriller Writers Award, Best Audiobook finalist (2022)
• Lone Wolf – Audie Award, Best Thriller/Suspense Audio nomination (2023)
• The Last Orphan – International Thriller Writers Award, Best Audiobook finalist (2024)

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