Steven F. Havill Books in Order

Steven F. Havill is an American author best known for his two related police procedural series set in the fictional Posadas County, New Mexico, the Bill Gastner mysteries and the Posadas County mysteries featuring Undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman. He has also written the Dr. Thomas Parks historical mystery series, set in 1890s Pacific Northwest.

This page lists all Steven F. Havill books in order, including both Posadas County series, the Dr. Thomas Parks series, and his standalone western novels.

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Bill Gastner Mystery Series (Books in Order)

The Bill Gastner Mystery series follows overweight and insomniac Undersheriff, and later Sheriff Bill Gastner, of the fictional Posadas County in southern New Mexico, as he investigates crimes in and around a small, close-knit border community. Bill Gastner is already approaching retirement at the beginning of the series, which puts Bill in a particular spot with him knowing his job and his surroundings very well.

Reading Order

1. One Perfect Shot, 2012
2. Easy Errors, 2017
3. Heartshot, 1991
4. Bitter Recoil, 1992
5. Twice Buried, 1994
6. Before She Dies, 1996
7. Privileged to Kill, 1997
8. Prolonged Exposure, 1998
9. Out of Season, 1999
10. Dead Weight, 2000
11. Bag Limit, 2001

Reading notes: Easy Errors and One Perfect Shot are prequel novels in the series, published much later.

Posadas County Mystery Series (Books in Order)

The Posadas County Mystery series follows Estelle Reyes-Guzman, who takes over as Undersheriff of Posadas County after Bill Gastner’s retirement. While Bill Gastner was methodical and world-weary, Estelle is the modern woman of her time, balancing the demands of her high-pressure law enforcement role with a busy family life including her physician husband and her sons as gifted musicians.

Reading Order

1. Red, Green, or Murder, 2009
2. Scavengers, 2002
3. A Discount for Death, 2003
4. Convenient Disposal, 2004
5. Statute of Limitations, 2006
6. Final Payment, 2007
7. The Fourth Time is Murder, 2008
8. Double Prey, 2010
9. NightZone, 2013
10. Blood Sweep, 2015
11. Come Dark, 2016
12. Lies Come Easy, 2018
13. Less Than a Moment, 2020
14. No Accident, 2022
15. Perfect Opportunity, 2024
16. If It Isn’t One Thing . . ., 2025
17. Reverse, 2026

Dr. Thomas Parks Series (Books in Order)

The Dr. Thomas Parks series follows Thomas Parks, a newly graduated physician from the University of Pennsylvania, who arrives in1890 to the timber country of Puget Sound to practice trauma medicine at his dad’s friends medical practice. Here he finds himself entangled in fraud and murder cases. The historical medical mystery series is set in the coastal village of Port McKinney, Washington.

Reading Order

1. Race for the Dying, 2009
2. Comes a Time for Burning, 2010

Standalone Novels

• The Killer, 1981
• The Worst Enemy, 1982
• Leadfire, 1984
• Timber Blood, 1986

Steven F. Havill Biography

Steven F. Havill is an American author whose work includes the Bill Gastner mystery series, the Posadas County mystery series, the Dr. Thomas Parks historical series, and several standalone western novels. He has written more than 30 books since his debut western, The Killer, in 1981.

Steven F. Havill was born on June 22, 1945, in Penn Yan, New York, the son of Edward Havill, also a writer. He married Kathleen Murphey in 1969, and earned both his B.A. in 1969 and M.A. in 1982 from the University of New Mexico. He worked as a reporter and editor before becoming a high school biology and English teacher in Grants, New Mexico. He later earned an AAS degree in gunsmithing, which is a detail that inspires the precision of his procedural writing.

The first Steven F. Havill book, Heartshot, which is also the first in the Bill Gastner series, was published in 1991. The story is set in Ruidoso, New Mexico, in southwestern New Mexico. Posados country is an imaginary border country. Already in the first book, Bill Gastner was already fast approaching retirement, as he was 60 at the time. That’s why the original series is relatively short, with only nine main books, which is then followed by the Posadas Country series that continues today.

Easy Errors, published in 2017, is a prequel of the series that takes us back to 1986 when Bill Gastner was an undersheriff. The story focuses mostly on Deputy Robert Torrez’s first big case from back then. It should be read after One Perfect Shot. Next, the author shifted the series focus to Estelle Reyes-Guzman with Scavengers, published in 2002, keeping Gastner as a recurring supporting character.

Steven F. Havill lives in Datil, New Mexico, with his wife Kathleen, a writer and artist.

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