Karen Rose Books in Order - Series Guide

Karen Rose is a New York Times bestselling author and two-time RITA Award winner, best known for her Romantic Suspense series, a single interconnected universe of 30+ novels and novellas set in multiple U.S. cities. The series is grouped into location-based subseries (Chicago, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Sacramento, New Orleans, San Diego, and more), with recurring characters crossing between them. Her debut, Don’t Tell, came out in 2003, and she has been on the New York Times, USA Today, and Sunday Times bestseller lists ever since, including a #1 on Germany’s Der Spiegel.

What sets her apart from most crime fiction authors in her genre is the structure: every novel is part of one shared universe, with recurring characters and overlapping storylines that are grouped into location-based story arcs set in Chicago, Philadelphia/Atlanta, Minneapolis, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Sacramento, New Orleans, and San Diego. New readers can start with any city arc, but reading the books in the full universe in publication order gives the biggest payoff.

This page lists all Karen Rose books in order, including all location-based subseries, novellas, and short stories, arranged in the recommended reading sequence across the entire connected universe.

Table of Contents

Latest Karen Rose Books

**Family Lies** (San Diego Case Files #4), March 2026

More upcoming releases:

The One Who Walked Away (August 2026)

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Where to Start With Karen Rose

New to Karen Rose? Start with Don’t Tell (Chicago #1, 2003). It is the beginning of the connected universe and the cleanest entry point if you want to follow characters as they reappear across later series.
Prefer to jump into a self-contained arc? Die for Me (Philadelphia/Atlanta #1) is a tight three-book arc that stands mostly on its own, or try Say You’re Sorry (Sacramento #1) for a more recent starting point with a cult investigation plot that runs across all three books.
Want the newest series with no prior knowledge of other series? Start with Quarter to Midnight (New Orleans #1, 2022) or Cold Blooded Liar (San Diego #1, 2023). Both books bring in new character pairs that don’t rely on earlier books.
The city arcs are largely independent from each other in terms of plot, but characters from earlier arcs appear in later ones, so as you go further into the universe, those character will become more and more familiar.
Reading by location (all Chicago books, then all Baltimore books, etc.) is an option, but publication order gives a better sense of how the universe builds in the series, since some books can interlap across cities.

How the Series Connect

Karen Rose writes one connected universe. Each series is set in a different U.S. city, and has its own main characters that are involved in their won investigation, but characters from earlier arcs cross into later books, sometimes in minor supporting roles, sometimes become more important.

The city arcs are independent enough that most can be started without reading the others. The exception is within each arc: the Philadelphia/Atlanta trilogy (Die for Me, Scream for Me, Kill for Me) and the Sacramento trilogy (Say You’re Sorry, Say No More, Say Goodbye) both have each one ongoing story thread across all three books and are best read in sequence within that arc, even if you haven’t read the previous city series.

Romantic Suspense Series (Books in Order)

The Romantic Suspense series takes place in a shared universe, with recurring characters and storylines connecting more than 30 novels and short stories across multiple cities. Although each city-based subseries has its own story arc, the best reading order follows the overall chronology rather than grouping the books by setting.

Reading Order

Reading notes:

Dirty Secrets (#4.5) is a standalone novella set in St. Petersburg, Florida. It is not part of any location-based subseries but fits chronologically here in the overall reading sequence.

Chicago Series (Books in Order)

The Chicago series is the beginning of Karen Rose’s Romantic Suspense universe. The books follow detectives, lawyers, and survivors in Chicago’s underworld. Each book has its own pair of investigators with a central romance theme. The characters have to leave their risky pasts behind if they want to survive. It’s best to start with “Don’t Tell” since it introduces key characters who appear throughout the series.

Reading Order

Philadelphia / Atlanta Series (Books in Order)

The Philadelphia/Atlanta series follows Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) Special Agent Daniel Vartanian and Philadelphia homicide detective Vito Ciccotelli as they work separate but connected cases that involve elaborate, ritualized murders. The first book is set in Philadelphia, while the following two move to Atlanta as Vartanian’s storyline becomes more prominent here. The three-book arc is best read in order, as Daniel Vartanian’s storyline continues in all three novels. A later short story, The White Picket Fence, revisits the Ciccotelli family through Vito’s brother Tino.

Minneapolis Series (Books in Order)

The Minneapolis series follows investigators working cases where technology becomes a weapon. Virtual worlds, digital surveillance, and online manipulation are a main part of how the crimes in these books are commited. Set in Minneapolis, the two-books have the same mix of dark crime investigation and character-driven romance as the rest of the universe, but here the focus is more high-tech. Each book has its own case, but reading in order gives a deeper background for the recurring characters.

Reading Order

I Can See You, 2009
Silent Scream, 2010

Baltimore Series (Books in Order)

The Baltimore series follows cops, defense attorneys, and investigators pursuing ruthless criminals in Baltimore with cases that often involve organized crime, trafficking, and long-buried secrets, while at the same time dealing with their own personal struggles. It has some of the strongest character connection in Karen Rose’s Romantic Suspense universe, as characters from Chicago and Philadelphia/Atlanta appear here, and meaningful relationships and emotional struggles develop across multiple books.

Reading Order

Cincinnati Series (Books in Order)

The Cincinnati series follows FBI and law enforcement working out of the Cincinnati office, with cases that are more about serial killers, trafficking networks, and crimes with ties to the characters’ own pasts.

Reading Order

Sacramento Series (Books in Order)

The Sacramento trilogy follows FBI Special Agent Gideon Reynolds, who was raised in a violent Northern California cult called Eden, as he works together with his sister Mercy and a team of police officers to take down the cult while tracking its survivors. The series has one main villain and the investigations in each book focuses on finding and taking him down. Characters from Cincinnati and Baltimore appear in this series, but it can be read without reading previous series.

Reading Order

New Orleans Series (Books in Order)

The New Orleans series follows former Marine Molly Sutton and her team at a private investigative firm run by ex-NOPD officer Burke Broussard. They take on cases for people who couldn’t get justice from the official channels before. The series is set in the humid New Orleans, and it is different from the previous series as it has private investigators rather than law enforcement solving cases. Also, the books have a strong community-feel to them.

Reading Order

San Diego Case Files Series (Books in Order)

The San Diego Case Files series follows homicide detective Kit McKittrick and court-appointed psychologist Sam Reeves, who are drawn together when one of Sam’s clients, a compulsive liar, claims to know a serial killer and describes what sounds like an unsolved serial murder. Set in the bright but deceptive San Diego, the series has a stronger procedural focus than some of Karen Rose’s earlier series, and it has a slower-burn romantic arc that goes through the whole series rather than teaming up a new pair in each book.

Reading Order

Anthologies

Hot Pursuit, 2004 (with Annie Solomon, and Carla Cassidy)

Standalone Novels

The One Who Walked Away, 2026

Karen Rose Biography

Karen Rose is an American romantic suspense author who wrote more than 30 novels, novellas, and short stories published since 2003. She is a two-time RITA Award winner and an international #1 bestseller, with books translated into more than 20 languages.
Official website: karenrosebooks.com

Karen Rose was born Karen Rose Hafer in 1964 in Baltimore, Maryland, and grew up in a small town near Washington D.C. At 17, she met her future husband Martin on a blind date. They both went to study at the University of Maryland, where Karen earned a degree in chemical engineering. After graduating they moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where she worked as an engineer, filing two patents during that period, both related to improving the palatability of the fiber supplement Metamucil. She also taught high school chemistry and physics for a period before writing took over.

She started writing in her late twenties, initially just to quiet the scenes that kept interrupting her concentration at work so she could focus on her work. Her debut novel, Don’t Tell, was published in July 2003, launching the Chicago arc of what would become a single interconnected universe that would include more than eight city-based series.

Her second novel, I’m Watching You (2004), earned the RITA Award for Best Romantic Suspense in 2005, which is the Romance Writers of America’s top prize in the category. She won a second RITA in 2011 for Silent Scream. Five other titles have been RITA finalists. The RT Reviewers’ Choice Award recognized Die for Me for Best Romantic Suspense in 2007 and Kill for Me for Best Contemporary Mystery in 2009.

Her books have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, Sunday Times (London), Irish Times, and Der Spiegel bestseller lists, reaching #1 in Germany, South Africa, and Australia. Karen Rose currently lives in Florida with her family and continues to write.

Karen Rose Awards and Honors

Awards

I’m Watching You – RITA Award for Best Romantic Suspense (2005)
Die for Me – RT Reviewers Choice Award for Best Romantic Suspense (2007)
Kill for Me – RT Reviewers Choice Award for Contemporary Mystery (2009)
Silent Scream – RITA Award for Best Romantic Suspense (2011)

Nominations and Shortlists

Scream for Me – RITA Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2008)
Kill for Me – RITA Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2009)
Die for Me – RITA Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2007)
You Belong to Me – Suspense Magazine Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2011)
Say You’re Sorry – Suspense Magazine Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2019)
Say Goodbye – Suspense Magazine Award, Best Romantic Suspense (2021)

Edited by

Marika

Founder of Mystery Sequels, a reference site focused on listing mystery and thriller books in the correct reading order. I maintain and update the site’s bibliographies as new titles are released, ensuring accuracy and consistency across author and series pages.

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Last verified: June, 2026

59 Comments

David Townsend says:
January 2, 2021 at
straight into the bin,to many people, to complicated,couldnt keep up,ripped two books up and into the bin,and hardly got started,read reviews on 2nd karen rose book,same said,to many complicated people,that went in bin.now reading reviews saying must read in order has put me right off,ive about 10 other karen rose books thinking of just putting them in bin,but may give them away,to much like hard work,better things to do in life,wanted to get back into reading and i must say her books have put me right off,prologue was good in death is not enough,but then 19 years later i just lost the plot within a few pages and thought,no Dave this is to complicated,ripped it up and in the bin.try another writer to suit my simple needs.
Pam says:
August 25, 2020 at
I have read every book written by Karen Rose. Loved them all. Yes these should be read in order as the characters become almost like family. They are the type of reading that you can’t put down. Waited & waited for Dani & Diesel’s, excellent as expected. Enjoying new Sacramento series too.
Paula Ross says:
June 29, 2020 at
I have walked many miles listening to her books. I am just finishing Dani and Diesels story and all I can say is Wow and ahhhhhhhhh. Have already preordered Say No More. Have loved her books from the very first one I read. Highly recommended and must read in order.
Merle Dicks says:
June 5, 2020 at
I really really enjoy Karen Rose books and have 18 so far. I do have a question though, is it normal practice for the ME to contact the detectives when he/she has c found something and have them drop everything and rush to the mortuary to get news they could have got over the phone ?
Susan Scofield says:
February 12, 2020 at
My favorite series of books! I’m so glad Karen Rose was recommended to me!
Maureen says:
February 12, 2020 at
Please bring back
Deacon and Faith. I presume they get married as I read that Faith was pregnant. I love all the books and Closer than you Think is the latest one I have read. Are there more in the Cincinnati Series?
Sam says:
January 7, 2020 at
Totally love her style of writing… you can feel the emotional electricity between her characters … Karen you are awesome.. my favourite so far and I’ve read a few is Don’t tell … just wow.. Almost finished, You Belong to Me, and have it sitting on top of Alone in the Dark, hoping it’s as fabulous as You Belong to Me is .. off to the book store today as my husband has read all of the Karen Rose books we have in the house, a firm favourite author.. if you haven’t read them, why not? Must reads
Ginablue says:
February 14, 2019 at
Love all her books. Thank you for the list, it really helps to keep them all in sequence. Can’t wait to get more.
Lorraine Ridley says:
February 13, 2018 at
I have all the books now, just started Nothing to Fear,
Absolutely love Karen Rose.
1. Mystery Sequels says:
  March 27, 2018 at
  I loved Nothing to Fear as well.
Julie says:
February 6, 2018 at
I absolutely love Karen’s books, I feel as if I am in the book, I get so engrossed in them, and nothing else matters,i love the characters, and all their personalities, and I just can’t wait until the next book finally comes out,thank you Karen rose.

Comments are closed.