Jon Land Books in Order

Jon Land is an American thriller author, screenwriter, and New York Times and USA Today bestselling author whose work includes the Caitlin Strong Texas Ranger series, the Blaine McCracken action thrillers, the Ben Kamal and Danielle Barnea political thrillers, and several collaborative projects. He has written more than 65 books and has also continued long-running series created by others, including Murder, She Wrote and Margaret Truman’s Capital Crimes books.

His thrillers often start with one person who knows how to move fast when things go wrong. Caitlin Strong has the authority of a Texas Ranger, Blaine McCracken comes from intelligence work and covert missions, and Michael Walker is a National Park Service investigator who deals with crimes that begin in protected places and quickly become national problems.

This page lists all Jon Land books in order, including his main series, standalone novels, short stories, non-fiction books, collaborations, and the National Parks Thriller series written as A.J. Landau with Jeff Ayers.

Latest Jon Land Books

More upcoming releases:

• Pressure Point (December 8)

Blaine McCracken Series (Books in Order)

The Blaine McCracken series follows disgraced CIA operative Blaine McCracken, a rule-breaking agent who gets called back when a threat is too dangerous, too secret, or too politically messy and the official channels won’t touch them. The books began in the 1980s and have a strong Cold War action-thriller feel, with missions involving weapons, terrorism, foreign powers, and government secrets.

The books are mission-based, so later books can usually be read on their own, but the publication order still works the best to see how McCracken’s world develops from the early Cold War era into the later Open Road-era books.

1. The Omega Command, 1986
2. The Alpha Deception, 1987
3. The Gamma Option, 1989
4. The Omicron Legion, 1991
5. The Vengeance of the Tau, 1993
6. Day of the Delphi, 1993
7. Kingdom of the Seven, 1994
8. The Fires of Midnight, 1995
9. Dead Simple, 1998
10. Pandora’s Temple, 2012
11. The Tenth Circle, 2013

Jared Kimberlain Series (Books in Order)

The Jared Kimberlain series follows retired government agent Jared Kimberlain, who, based on his history of tracking down serial killers, is pulled back into action when a dangerous escaped criminal and a mass murderer begin killing across the country. Both books in the series have a darker, more hard-edged thriller feel than the Caitlin Strong series, with a morally complex character who is only called back when official law enforcement agencies are helpless.

1. The Eighth Trumpet, 1989
2. The Ninth Dominion, 1991

Ben Kamal and Danielle Barnea Series (Books in Order)

The Ben Kamal and Danielle Barnea series follows Palestinian-American detective Ben Kamal and Israeli police chief inspector Danielle Barnea, who are forced to put their differences aside and work together on cases related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, terrorism, religious tension, and political violence. The series is part crime fiction and part political thriller, with two main characters whose partnership gradually develops from a strictly professional nature into a personal one over time.

1. The Walls of Jericho, 1997
2. The Pillars of Solomon, 1999
3. A Walk in the Darkness, 2000
4. Keepers of the Gate, 2001
5. Blood Diamonds, 2002
6. The Blue Widows, 2003
7. The Last Prophecy, 2004

The Tyrant Series (Books in Order)

The Tyrant series follows follows Michael Tiranno, a Las Vegas casino owner connected to the Sicilian mob and organized crime, who becomes a target of enemies who want to destroy everything he has built. The two books deal with casino politics, mob deals, and revenge set in Las Vegas.

1. The Seven Sins: The Tyrant Ascending, 2007
2. Black Scorpion: The Tyrant Reborn, 2015

Caitlin Strong Series (Books in Order)

The Caitlin Strong series follows fifth-generation Texas Ranger Caitlin Strong, based in San Antonio, who deals with threats that start in Texas but often grow into national and international dangers. Caitlin’s own family past is relevant to the series, especially the Strong family’s connection to the Rangers. While the cases are usually solve in each book, the character relationships and family history have a background arc that develops throughout the whole series.

1. Strong Enough to Die , 2009
2. Strong Justice, 2010
3. Strong at the Break, 2011
4. Strong Vengeance, 2012
5. Strong Rain Falling, 2013
6. Strong Darkness, 2014
7. Strong Light of Day, 2015
8. Strong Cold Dead, 2016
9. Strong to the Bone, 2017
10. Strong as Steel, 2018

Rising Series (Books in Order)

The Rising series follows two high school students Alex Chin, a high school football star, and Samantha Dixon, a NASA intern, after they discover that Alex’s past is related to a major threat beyond ordinary conflict. The books are part action thriller, science fiction, and a young adult coming-of-age story, with Samantha and Alex trying to understand what Alex really is and why he is so important.

Co-authored with Heather Graham

• The Rising, 2017
• Blood Moon, 2022

Murder She Wrote Series (Books in Order)

The Murder, She Wrote series follows mystery writer and amateur sleuth Jessica Fletcher, based in Cabot Cove, Maine. Jessica Fletcher has been made famous by the television series. Jon Land took over the series from Donald Bain following his death in 2017, and has continued the adventures of his character to write the next six books. Each book is a tie-in mystery that is unrelated to Jon Land’s own thrillers.

1. A Date with Murder, 2018
2. Manuscript for Murder, 2018
3. Murder in Red, 2019
4. A Time for Murder, 2019
5. The Murder of Twelve, 2020
6. Murder in Season, 2020

Capital Crimes Series (Books in Order)

The Capital Crimes series was created by Margaret Truman and is set in Washington, D.C., focusing on murders around the city’s famous places. Jon Land picked up the series from book 31, Murder on the Metro, introducing private investigator Robert Brixton as the main character. The two books continue the stories in the tradition of Margaret Truman’s world.

1. Murder on the Metro, 2021
2. Murder at the CDC, 2022

National Parks Thriller Series (Books in Order)

The National Parks Thriller series follows National Park Service investigator Michael Walker, who handles crimes and threats connected to America’s national parks and landmarks. The books use the setting of real parks as real plot devices, as the crimes involved protected land, public safety, smuggling, terrorism, and the government response to these acts.

Writing as A.J. Landau, co-authored with Jeff Ayers.

• Leave No Trace, 2024
• Cold Burn, 2025
• Pressure Point, 2026

Standalone Novels

• The Doomsday Spiral, 1983
• The Lucifer Directive, 1984
• Vortex, 1984
• Labyrinth, 1985
• The Council of Ten, 1987
• The Valhalla Testament, 1990
• Hope Mountain, 1998
• Dolphin Key, 1999
• The Copper Bracelet, 2010 (Harold Middleton book 2)
• Dark Light: Dawn, 2017
• Icefall: The Rise of the Nine, 2026 (with Michael Newman)

Short Stories

• Killing Time, 2018
• Last Shot, 2018

Short Story Collections and Anthologies

• Thriller 2, 2010 (edited by Clive Cussler)
• The Best American Mystery Stories 2010, 2010
• Suspense Magazine January 2012, 2012
• Love is Murder, 2012 (edited by Sandra Brown)
• Suspense Magazine July 2012, 2012
• Suspense Magazine August 2013, 2013
• Nothing Good Happens After Midnight, 2020
• Blood on the Bayou, 2025

Non-Fiction Books

• Betrayal, 2012 (with Robert Fitzpatrick)
• Takedown, 2016 (with Jeff Buck)
• Guardian, 2019 (with Thomas Pecora)
• The Living Room, 2021 (with Bonnie J Addario)
• Walking in Mud, 2021  (with Steve Giblin)
• No Surrender, 2022 (with Patrick Bisher)
• White Robes and Broken Badges, 2024 (with Joe Moore)
• Justice Never Rests, 2025 (with William Kolibash)
• The Myth of Aging, 2026  (with Arnold Gilberg MD)

Jon Land Biography

Jon Land is an American thriller author who wrote more than 65 books across multiple series, standalone novels, and non-fiction books. He has published under his own name and, for the National Parks Thriller series, under the pen name A.J. Landau with co-author Jeff Ayers.

Jon Land was born in 1957 in Rhode Island, grew up in Barrington, and has lived in Providence most of his life. He attended Brown University from where he graduated in 1979, Phi Beta Kappa and Magna cum Laude. During his senior year, he wrote a thriller as part of his senior honors thesis, which was not published. His first published work was an article in People Magazine in 1978, followed by assignments for The Saturday Evening Post.

His debut novel, Doomsday Spiral, was published in 1983 as a standalone novel, and his first major series, the Blaine McCracken action thrillers, began with The Omega Command in 1986 during the last years of the Cold War. The Ben Kamal and Danielle Barnea series followed in 1998, and the Caitlin Strong series, which began with Strong Enough to Die, published in 2009, have won over a dozen awards and were included in the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists. He also wrote the two-book Michael Tirrano (aka The Tyrant) series, and Rising, a young adult series.

He has also worked in established series worlds created by other authors. He continued the Murder, She Wrote book series after Donald Bain and wrote two entries in Margaret Truman’s Capital Crimes series. Under the name A.J. Landau, he writes the National Parks Thriller series with Jeff Ayers.

Jon Land has also written non-fiction books like Betrayal, which he co-wrote with FBI agent Robert Fitzpatrick and became a bestseller in the Boston Globe, and White Robes and Broken Badges, which won the 2025 International Book Award for both General Nonfiction and Narrative Nonfiction. He is a former board member of the International Thriller Writers and has been actively involved in marketing for the group.

Besides writing, he is also a screenwriter. His very first film, Dirty Deeds, was a teen comedy released in 2005, followed by the screenplay for Chalk, Stranded, and Lucky Dog. In 2019, he received the 2019 Rhode Island Authors Legacy Award for his lifetime of work.

Jon Land Awards and Nominations

Major Awards and Honors

• Strong Rain Falling – USA Best Book Award, Mystery/Suspense (2013)
• Strong Rain Falling – International Book Award (2014)
• Strong Darkness – USA Books Best Book Award, Thriller (2014)
• Strong Darkness – International Book Award, Thriller (2015)
• Strong Light of Day – Books and Author Award, Best Mystery Thriller (2015)
• Strong Light of Day – International Book Award, Best Thriller-Adventure (2016)
• Strong Cold Dead – International Book Award, Best Thriller (2017)
• Rhode Island Authors Legacy Award (2019)
• Strong as Steel – International Book Award, Best Thriller (2019)

H3: Awards (Full List)

Nominations and Shortlists

• Pandora’s Temple – ITW Thriller Award, Best E-Book Original Novel (2012)
• Strong to the Bone – ITW Thriller Award, Best Hardcover Novel (2018)

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