Douglas Preston Reading Order

4 books (2012–2024)

Douglas Preston has edited four anthologies between 2012 and 2024, with the series still ongoing. These collections should be read in publication order, beginning with Gone Fishing and Other Stories. The series includes FaceOff, Gaslighted: Slappy the Ventriloquist Dummy vs. Aloysius Pendergast, and the most recent entry, Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering.

Start with Gone Fishing and Other Stories, the first of 4 books in the Anthologies series.

#	Title
1	Gone Fishing and Other Stories 2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	FaceOff 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Gaslighted: Slappy the Ventriloquist Dummy vs. Aloysius Pendergast 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering 2024Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (2024–2027)

Douglas Preston's Cash & Colcord series comprises four books published between 2024 and 2026, with the sequence still ongoing. Begin with Extinction and progress through the novels in publication order, as each installment builds on the previous one. The series blends mystery, thriller, and action elements across its installments, which include Extinction, Paradox, and Resurrection, with Paradox co-authored by Aletheia Preston.

Start with Extinction and read in order.

5 books (2011–2018)

Douglas Preston's Gideon Crew series comprises five complete novels published between 2011 and 2018, following the exploits of a brilliant but troubled operative on high-stakes missions. The books should be read in publication order, beginning with Gideon's Sword and continuing through Gideon's Corpse, The Lost Island, Beyond the Ice Limit, and concluding with The Pharaoh Key. This action-driven mystery series blends thriller elements with adventure, offering a self-contained story arc that concludes after five installments.

Start with Gideon's Sword, the first of 5 books in the Gideon Crew series.

#	Title
1	Gideon's Sword 2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Gideon's Corpse 2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Lost Island 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Beyond the Ice Limit 2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Pharaoh Key 2018Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

34 books (2022–2025)

Mysterious Profiles is an ongoing anthology series comprising 33 books published between 2022 and 2025 that brings together mystery and thriller fiction from multiple bestselling authors. The collection features iconic detectives and protagonists across various series, including characters like Jack Reacher, Hieronymus Bosch, Charlie Parker, and Inspector Morse, each represented by their respective creators. Readers should approach these books in publication order to experience the series as intended. This curated selection spans mystery, literary fiction, and action-adventure genres, offering both established fans and newcomers entry points into some of crime fiction's most celebrated character-driven narratives.

Start with Alex Delaware(By: Jonathan Kellerman), the first of 33 books in the Mysterious Profiles series.

7 books (1986–2023)

Douglas Preston's non-fiction series spans four decades with seven books published between 1986 and 2023. These works should be read in publication order, beginning with Dinosaurs in the Attic and concluding with The Lost Tomb. The series likely represents Preston's complete non-fiction output and covers investigations, archaeology, history, and crime across diverse settings and subjects.

Start with Dinosaurs in the Attic, the first of 7 books in the Non-Fiction series.

#	Title
1	Dinosaurs in the Attic 1986Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Cities of Gold 1992Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Talking to the Ground 1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Monster of Florence 2006Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Forgotten Killer: Rudy Guede and the Murder of Meredith Kercher(With: John Douglas Marshall) 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	The Lost City of the Monkey God 2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Lost Tomb 2023Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

7 books (1999–2027)

Douglas Preston's Nora Kelly series consists of six mysteries published between 1999 and 2025, with the sequence still ongoing. These archaeological thrillers should be read in publication order, beginning with Thunderhead. The series blends mystery, adventure, and literary fiction as it follows the titular archaeologist through investigations spanning the American Southwest and beyond.

Start with Thunderhead, the first of 6 books in the Nora Kelly series.

#	Title
1	Thunderhead 1999Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Old Bones 2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Scorpion's Tail 2021Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Diablo Mesa 2022Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Dead Mountain 2023Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Badlands 2025Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Dead Man's Journey 2027Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

26 books (1995–2026)

Douglas Preston's Pendergast series comprises 26 mysteries and thrillers following FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast across investigations spanning from 1995 to 2026. The series is ongoing and should be read in publication order, beginning with Relic, to experience the character's development and interconnected cases. These novels blend literary fiction with action and adventure, presenting complex plots that often reference earlier entries in the saga. Fans of intelligent thriller writing will find Preston's intricate mysteries and atmospheric storytelling throughout the expanding collection.

Start with Relic, the first of 26 books in the Pendergast series.

#	Title
1	Relic 1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Reliquary 1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Cabinet of Curiosities 2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Still Life with Crows 2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Brimstone 2004Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Dance of Death 2005Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Book of the Dead 2006Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	The Wheel of Darkness 2007Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Cemetery Dance 2009Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	Fever Dream 2010Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	Cold Vengeance 2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	Extraction 2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Two Graves 2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	White Fire 2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	Blue Labyrinth 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	Crimson Shore 2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Obsidian Chamber 2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	City of Endless Night 2018Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Verses for the Dead 2018Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	The Strange Case of Monsieur Bertin 2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	Crooked River 2020Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
22	Bloodless 2021Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23	The Cabinet of Dr. Leng 2023Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
24	Angel of Vengeance 2024Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
25	Pendergast 2026Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26	The Beginning 2026Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

5 books (1994–2003)

Douglas Preston's Standalone Novels series comprises five books published between 1994 and 2003, now complete. The series should be read in publication order, beginning with Jennie, followed by four additional novels that blend mystery, thriller, and adventure elements. Preston collaborated with Lincoln Child on three of the five entries in this collection.

Start with Jennie, the first of 5 books in the Standalone Novels series.

#	Title
1	Jennie 1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Mount Dragon(With: Lincoln Child) 1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Riptide(With: Lincoln Child) 1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Ice Limit(With: Lincoln Child) 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Codex 2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (2005–2014)

The Wyman Ford series comprises four mystery and thriller novels by Douglas Preston, published between 2005 and 2014. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with Tyrannosaur Canyon and continuing through Blasphemy, Impact, and concluding with The Kraken Project. Each novel follows the adventures of protagonist Wyman Ford in standalone stories that blend action, mystery, and speculative elements.

Start with Tyrannosaur Canyon, the first of 4 books in the Wyman Ford series.

#	Title
1	Tyrannosaur Canyon 2005Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Blasphemy 2007Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Impact 2009Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Kraken Project 2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible