Jack Ketchum Reading Order
7 series · 88 books · Born 10 Nov 1946
Jack Ketchum, the pen name of Dallas William Mayr, was a prolific American author known for his compelling and often unsettling horror fiction. With a remarkable catalog of 88 works spanning seven series—including *Off Season*—as well as standalone novels, novellas, and non-fiction, Ketchum made a significant mark on the genre during his active years from 1974 to 2019. His contributions earned him multiple Bram Stoker Awards, establishing him as a vital figure in the horror literary community.
Anthologies Series
Complete42 books (1990–2019)
Start with Triage, the first of 42 books in the Anthologies series.
| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 |  Triage 1990Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 2 | Deadly After Dark 1994Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 3 |  Vampire Detectives 1995Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 4 | Fear the Fever 1996Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 5 |  October Dreams 2000Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 6 |  Skull Full of Spurs 2000Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 7 |  Fourteenth Annual Collection 2001Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 8 | Tails of Wonder and Imagination 2001Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 9 |  Shivers 2002Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 10 |  Stranger: Dark Tales of Eerie Encounters 2002Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 11 |  Tales from a Darker State 2003Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 12 |  Fear of the Unknown 2005Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 13 | Masques V 2006Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 14 |  Mondo Zombie 2006Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 15 |  In Laymon's Terms 2008Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 16 |  Jack Haringa Must Die! 2008Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 17 |  The Best of Cemetery Dance II 2008Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 18 |  The World Is Dead 2009Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 19 |  Zombies: Encounters with the Hungry Dead 2009Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 20 |  A Hacked-Up Holiday Massacre 2011Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 21 |  Chiral Mad 2012Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 22 |  Fear the Abyss 2012Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 23 |  Horror for Good 2012Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 24 | Psychos 2012Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 25 |  Beware the Dark #1 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 26 |  Chiral Mad 2 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 27 |  Mister October, Volume II 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 28 |  Shock Totem 6: Curious Tales of the Macabre and Twisted 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 29 |  Sixty-Five Stirrup Iron Road 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 30 |  Turn Down the Lights 2013Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 31 | Cemetery Dance: Issue 71 2014Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 32 | Horror 101: The Way Forward 2014Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 33 | Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror 2014Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 34 |  Piercing the Darkness 2014Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 35 |  Suspended In Dusk 2014Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 36 | Insidious Assassins 2015Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 37 |  Beast:Revelations - A Dark Ethology - Volume 2 2016Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 38 |  Cemetery Riots 2016Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 39 | Chiral Mad 3 2016Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 40 |  Dark Places, Evil Faces 2017Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 41 | Chiral Mad 4 2018Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 42 |  Freedom of Screech 2019Buy 🇺🇸 |
D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Anthology Series
Complete3 books (2011–2017)
Start with D.O.A. and read in order.
Non-Fiction Series
Complete2 books (2013–2015)
Start with Turning Japanese and read in order.
Off Season Series
Complete3 books (1980–2010)
Start with Off Season and read in order.
Short Stories/Novellas Series
Complete9 books (1994–2019)
Start with The Box, the first of 9 books in the Short Stories/Novellas series.
Short Story Collections Series
Complete9 books (1998–2015)
Start with Right to Life, the first of 9 books in the Short Story Collections series.
Standalone Novels Series
Complete20 books (1974–2016)
Start with Laramie Plains, the first of 20 books in the Standalone Novels series.
| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 |  Laramie Plains 1974Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 2 | Border Dawn 1976Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 3 |  Hide and Seek 1980Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 4 |  Dead or alive 1982Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 5 |  The Guns of Amarillo 1982Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 6 |  Winchester pass 1982Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 7 |  Cover 1987Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 8 | She Wakes 1989Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 9 |  The Girl Next Door 1989Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 10 |  Trail to Nowhere 1991Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 11 |  Joyride / Road Kill 1994Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 12 |  Only Child 1995Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 13 |  Stranglehold 1995Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 14 |  Red 1996Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 15 | The Passenger 1996Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 16 |  Ladies' Night 1997Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 17 | Station Two 2001Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 18 |  The Lost 2001Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 19 |  Old Flames 2008Buy 🇺🇸 |
| 20 |  The Secret Life of Souls(With: Lucky McKee) 2016Buy 🇺🇸 |
Frequently Asked Questions
- How many books has Jack Ketchum written?
- Jack Ketchum has written 88 books across 7 series. Their published works span from 1974 to 2019.
- 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.