Steven James Books in Order – Complete List

Steven James is an award-winning and critically acclaimed author known for his psychological thrillers, crime novels, and his series, including the Patrick Bowers Files books, Jevin Banks thriller series, and the Blur Trilogy books. Here are the Steven James books in order for his fiction works. The novels are listed in publication order with a note if the reading order is different.

New Steven James Books

Patrick Bowers Files Books in Publication Order

1. The Pawn, 2007
2. The Rook, 2008
3. The Knight, 2009
4. The Bishop, 2010
5. The Queen, 2011
6. Opening Moves, 2012 (prequel story)
7. The King, 2013
8. Checkmate, 2014

The Bowers Files: The New York Years (Prequel Series)

1. Every Crooked Path, 2015
2. Every Deadly Kiss, 2017
3. Every Wicked Man, 2018

Travis Brock Series in Publication Order

• Broker of Lies, 2023

The Jevin Banks Experience Books in Publication Order

• Placebo, 2012
• Singularity, 2013

Blur Trilogy in Publication Order

1. Blur, 2014
2. Fury, 2015
3. Curse, 2016

 Standalone Steven James Novels

• Quest for Celestia, 2006
• Synapse, 2019

Steven James Non Fiction Books About Writing

• Story Trumps Structure, 2014 (with Donald Maas)
• Troubleshooting Your Novel, 2016
• The Art of the Tale, 2022 (co-written with Fortune 50 speechwriter Tom Morrisey)

Steven James Biography – About the Author

Born in Wisconsin in 1969, Steven James moved to Tennessee, where he earned a Master of Arts in Storytelling from the East Tennessee State University in 1997. He resides with his wife and three daughters in the Smoky Mountains’ foothills.

Despite starting his writing career later than most, Steven James has authored over three dozen titles over a decade. In 200, Steven James published his first book, and from 2001 to 2009, he wrote several books as part of his Christian The Steven James Storytelling Library series. However, his career skyrocketed in 2007 when his first crime novel, The Pawn, achieved great success and became the first in the Bower Files. Since then, Steven James has mostly written criminal mysteries or psychological thrillers and is known to have transformed the genre to a new level.

Steven James is one of the seven Master CraftFest instructors at ThrillerFest, an event organized in North America with the aim of training aspiring suspense writers into professional writers. A good number of leading writers in the genre give him credit for inspiring and shaping them into great writers. The writing of Steven James has been praised by critics and industry experts alike. Suspense Magazine says that he has set a new standard in suspense writing, while Publishers Weekly calls him a master storyteller at the top of his game. He has won the Christy Award three times, among several other awards and recognitions.

The most popular Steven James books are the critically acclaimed Bowers Files, an eleven-book series of psychological thrillers that follow FBI Agent Patrick Bowers. Broker of Lies, his latest fiction novel, was released in April 2023.

Steven James’ writing expertise is widely recognized, and he has taught writing and storytelling on four continents over the past two decades, speaking more than two thousand times at events spanning the globe. His groundbreaking book on the craft of fiction, Story Trumps Structure: How to Write Unforgettable Fiction by Breaking the Rules, won a 2015 Storytelling World Award and was recognized as one of the year’s best resources for storytellers. Troubleshooting Your Novel, also won a Storytelling World Award. Both books were published by Writer’s Digest Books.

Steven James is a nationally bestselling author whose novels continue to gain wide critical acclaim and a growing fan base. His work is distinguished by the philosophical insights in his stories, which give his writing an edge to win over the hearts of his readers.

Steven James Awards and Nominations

• Every Wicked Man – Christy Award for Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, 2019
• Every Wicked Man – International Book Award for best Mystery/Suspense, 2018
• Troubleshooting Your Novel – Storytelling World Award, 2018
• Story Trumps Structure – Storytelling World Award, 2015
• The Queen – ECPA Book of the Year – Fiction, 2012
• The Queen – Retailers Choice Awards Finalist, 2012
• The Queen – Christy Award – Suspense, 2012
• The Queen – International Thriller Award Finalist for Best Original Paperback, 2012
• The Queen – Library Journal’s One of the Best Christian Fiction Books, 2011
• The Bishop – Christy Award – Suspense, 2011
• The Bishop – INSPY Award – Mystery/Thriller, 2011
• The Knight – INSPY Award – Thriller/Suspense, 2011
• The Bishop – Suspense Magazine Book of the Year, 2010
• The Bishop – RT Book Reviews Best Inspirational Suspense, 2010
• The Bishop – The Christian Manifesto’s Lime Award, 2010
• The Knight – The Suspense Zone Book of the Month, November 2009
• The Knight – Suspense Magazine Top 10 Books of 2009
• The Knight – The Christian Manifesto’s Lime Award – Best Fiction, 2009
• The Rook – Christy Award – Suspense, 2009
• The Rook – The Suspense Zone Book of the Month, November 2009
• The Pawn – Best Crime Thriller Christy Award, Finalist, 2008
• The Pawn – A Peek At My Bookshelf, 2007