Reading Order List — Book Series Reading Order Guide
Jack Ketchum

Jack Ketchum Reading Order

7 series · 96 books · Born 1946-11-10

HorrorLiterary FictionNon-Fiction

Jack Ketchum was an American horror writer renowned for crafting visceral, unflinching narratives that blurred the line between genre fiction and literary art. His prolific career spanning nearly five decades produced numerous acclaimed works, including the transgressive novel Off Season and its sequel Offspring, along with the psychological thriller Red—all of which found their way to the screen. A four-time Bram Stoker Award winner and recipient of the World Horror Convention's Grand Master Award, Ketchum established himself as a master of extreme horror who refused to shy away from the darkest aspects of human nature.

Anthologies Series

Complete

49 books (1990–2021)

Start with Triage, the first of 42 books in the Anthologies series.

Start this series with Triage

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#Title
1
Cover of Triage
2
Deadly After Dark
1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3
Cover of Vampire Detectives
Vampire Detectives
1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4
Fear the Fever
1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5
Cover of October Dreams
October Dreams
2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6
Cover of Skull Full of Spurs
Skull Full of Spurs
2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7
Cover of Fourteenth Annual Collection
Fourteenth Annual Collection
2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8
Tails of Wonder and Imagination
2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9
Cover of Shivers
10
Cover of Stranger: Dark Tales of Eerie Encounters
Stranger: Dark Tales of Eerie Encounters
2002Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11
Cover of Tales from a Darker State
Tales from a Darker State
2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12
Cover of Fear of the Unknown
Fear of the Unknown
2005Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13
14
Cover of Mondo Zombie
Mondo Zombie
2006Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15
Cover of In Laymon's Terms
In Laymon's Terms
2008Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16
Cover of Jack Haringa Must Die!
Jack Haringa Must Die!
2008Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17
Cover of The Best of Cemetery Dance II
The Best of Cemetery Dance II
2008Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18
Cover of The World Is Dead
The World Is Dead
2009Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19
Cover of Zombies: Encounters with the Hungry Dead
Zombies: Encounters with the Hungry Dead
2009Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20
Cover of A Hacked-Up Holiday Massacre
A Hacked-Up Holiday Massacre
2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21
Cover of Chiral Mad
22
Cover of Fear the Abyss
Fear the Abyss
2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23
Cover of Horror for Good
Horror for Good
2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
24
25
Cover of Beware the Dark #1
Beware the Dark #1
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26
Cover of Chiral Mad 2
Chiral Mad 2
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
27
Cover of Mister October, Volume II
Mister October, Volume II
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
28
Cover of Shock Totem 6: Curious Tales of the Macabre and Twisted
Shock Totem 6: Curious Tales of the Macabre and Twisted
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
29
Cover of Sixty-Five Stirrup Iron Road
Sixty-Five Stirrup Iron Road
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
30
Cover of Turn Down the Lights
Turn Down the Lights
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
31
Cemetery Dance: Issue 71
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
32
Horror 101: The Way Forward
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
33
Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
34
Cover of Piercing the Darkness
Piercing the Darkness
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
35
Cover of Suspended In Dusk
Suspended In Dusk
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
36
Insidious Assassins
2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
37
Cover of Beast:Revelations - A Dark Ethology - Volume 2
Beast:Revelations - A Dark Ethology - Volume 2
2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
38
Cover of Cemetery Riots
Cemetery Riots
2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
39
Chiral Mad 3
2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
40
Cover of Dark Places, Evil Faces
Dark Places, Evil Faces
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
41
Garden of Fiends: Tales of Addiction Horror
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
42
Red Room Issue 1
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
43
Seas & Oceans
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
44
VS: X: US vs UK Extreme Horror
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
45
Zippered Flesh 3
2017Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
46
Chiral Mad 4
2018Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
47
A New York State of Fright: Horror Stories from the Empire State Kindle Edition
2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
48
Cover of Freedom of Screech
Freedom of Screech
2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
49
Dark Screams: Volume Three
2021Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Anthology Series

Complete

3 books (2011–2017)

Start with D.O.A. and read in order.

Start this series with D.O.A.

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
2
3

Non-Fiction Series

Complete

2 books (2013–2015)

Start with Turning Japanese and read in order.

Start this series with Turning Japanese

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
Turning Japanese
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2
Writers On Writing
2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

Off Season Series

Complete

3 books (1980–2010)

Start with Off Season and read in order.

Start this series with Off Season

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
Cover of Off Season
2
Cover of Offspring
3
Cover of The Woman(With: Lucky McKee)
The Woman(With: Lucky McKee)
2010Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

Short Stories/Novellas Series

Complete

10 books (1994–2019)

Start with The Box, the first of 9 books in the Short Stories/Novellas series.

Start this series with The Box

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
2
3
4
Cover of The Crossings
The Crossings
2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5
The Transformed Mouse
2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6
Cover of Weed Species
Weed Species
2006Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7
Book of Souls
2008Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8
Cover of I'm Not Sam(With: Lucky McKee)
I'm Not Sam(With: Lucky McKee)
2012Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9
Cover of Notes from the Cat House
Notes from the Cat House
2013Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10
Gorilla In My Room
2019Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

Short Story Collections Series

Complete

9 books (1998–2015)

Start with Right to Life, the first of 9 books in the Short Story Collections series.

Start this series with Right to Life

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
Cover of Right to Life
Right to Life
1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2
Cover of The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard
The Exit at Toledo Blade Boulevard
1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3
Cover of Broken on the Wheel of Sex
Broken on the Wheel of Sex
1999Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4
Cover of Peaceable Kingdom
Peaceable Kingdom
2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5
Sleep Disorder(With: Edward Lee)
2003Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6
Cover of Closing Time and Other Stories
Closing Time and Other Stories
2007Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7
8
Cover of Night Terrors III
Night Terrors III
2014Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9
Cover of What They Wrote
What They Wrote
2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

Standalone Novels Series

Complete

20 books (1974–2016)

Start with Laramie Plains, the first of 20 books in the Standalone Novels series.

Start this series with Laramie Plains

Buy Book 1 🇺🇸🎧 Listen free on Audible
#Title
1
Cover of Laramie Plains
Laramie Plains
1974Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2
3
Cover of Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek
1980Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4
Cover of Dead or alive
Dead or alive
1982Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5
Cover of The Guns of Amarillo
The Guns of Amarillo
1982Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6
Cover of Winchester pass
Winchester pass
1982Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7
Cover of Cover
8
9
Cover of The Girl Next Door
The Girl Next Door
1989Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10
Cover of Trail to Nowhere
Trail to Nowhere
1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11
Cover of Joyride / Road Kill
Joyride / Road Kill
1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12
Cover of Only Child
13
Cover of Stranglehold
Stranglehold
1995Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14
Cover of Red
15
The Passenger
1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16
Cover of Ladies' Night
Ladies' Night
1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17
18
Cover of The Lost
19
Cover of Old Flames
20
Cover of The Secret Life of Souls(With: Lucky McKee)
The Secret Life of Souls(With: Lucky McKee)
2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Jack Ketchum written?
Jack Ketchum has written 96 books across 7 series. Their published works span from 1974 to 2021.
What is the first book in each Jack Ketchum series?
Here are the first books in Jack Ketchum's series: Anthologies: Triage; D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Anthology: D.O.A.; Non-Fiction: Turning Japanese; Off Season: Off Season; Short Stories/Novellas: The Box.
What order should I read Jack Ketchum's books?
We recommend reading Jack Ketchum's series in publication order. Each series can be read independently.
Are Jack Ketchum's series complete?
Jack Ketchum has 7 completed series.

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