John Jakes Reading Order

19 books (1967–2016)

John Jakes edited eighteen anthologies published between 1967 and 2016, spanning genres including science fiction, fantasy, mystery, westerns, and spy fiction. The series is complete and should be read in publication order, beginning with Orbit 3. These collections feature short stories and plays from various authors, offering diverse tales across multiple genres throughout their fifty-year publication span.

Start with Orbit 3, the first of 18 books in the Anthologies series.

#	Title
1	Orbit 3 1967Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Science Fiction Greats #15 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Swords Against Tomorrow 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Flashing Swords! #2 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Fantastic Stories Special - 1975 Sword & Sorcery Annual 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	Six Science Fiction Plays 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Deadly Arts 1985Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	Tales of Mystery 1986Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	New Trails: Twenty-Three Original Stories 1994Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	The Mammoth Book of Short Spy Novels 1996Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	100 Sneaky Little Sleuth Stories 1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	Hollywood Fantasies: Ten Surreal Visions of Tinsel Town 1997Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	The Best of the American West II 1999Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	A Century of Great Western Stories 2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	The Spider Chronicles 2007Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	Law of the Gun 2010Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	Science Fiction Gems, Vol. One 2011Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Science Fiction Gems, Volume 9 2015Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Silent Night, Deadly Night 2016Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

5 books (1968–1985)

John Jakes' Brak the Barbarian series spans five complete books published between 1968 and 1985. The series should be read in publication order, beginning with Brak the Barbarian and continuing through Brak vs. The Sorceress / Witch of the Four Winds, Brak vs. the Mark of the Demons, When the Idols Walked, and concluding with The Fortunes of Brak. This finished series follows a barbarian hero through sword-and-sorcery adventures across a fantasy world.

Start with Brak the Barbarian, the first of 5 books in the Brak the Barbarian series.

#	Title
1	Brak the Barbarian 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Brak vs. The Sorceress / Witch of the Four Winds 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Brak vs. the Mark of the Demons 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	When the Idols Walked 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Fortunes of Brak 1985Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

1 book (1972–1972)

3 books (1969–1969)

This three-book science fiction series by John Jakes consists of The Planet Wizard, The Wagered World, and Tonight We Steal the Stars, all published in 1969. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with The Planet Wizard and proceeding through each subsequent installment. These standalone yet connected stories form a finished trilogy from the author's science fiction catalog.

Start with The Planet Wizard and read in order.

#	Title
1	The Planet Wizard 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The Wagered World 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Tonight We Steal the Stars 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

4 books (1960–1968)

The Johnny Havoc series consists of four complete books published between 1960 and 1968 by John Jakes. These novels should be read in publication order, beginning with Johnny Havoc and continuing through Havoc for Sale, Holiday for Havoc, and Johnny Havoc and the Siren in Red. The series concluded in 1968 and is no longer ongoing.

Start with Johnny Havoc, the first of 4 books in the Johnny Havoc series.

#	Title
1	Johnny Havoc 1960Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Havoc for Sale / Havoc Meets Zelda 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Holiday for Havoc / And The Doll Who Had 'It' 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Johnny Havoc and the Siren in Red / Making It Big 1968Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

8 books (1974–1979)

The Kent Family series by John Jakes comprises eight historical novels published between 1974 and 1979, following the saga across multiple generations of the Kent family through American history. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with The Bastard and concluding with The Americans. This finished series offers a sweeping narrative arc across the early decades of the United States.

Start with The Bastard, the first of 8 books in the Kent Family series.

#	Title
1	The Bastard 1974Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The Rebels 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Seekers 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Furies 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	The Titans 1976Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	The Warriors 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	The Lawless 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	The Americans 1979Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

3 books (1961–1962)

John Jakes's Lou Largo series comprises three complete novels published between 1961 and 1962. The trilogy should be read in publication order, beginning with Make Mine Mavis, followed by And So to Bed and Give Me This Woman. This finished series explores its subject matter across the three interconnected entries.

Start with Make Mine Mavis and read in order.

3 books (1967–1969)

John Jakes' three-book non-fiction series spans from 1967 to 1969 and covers diverse historical subjects including pioneering achievements in sports, notable female journalists, and a biography of the Mohawk leader Joseph Brant. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with Famous Firsts in Sports.

Start with Famous Firsts in Sports and read in order.

3 books (1982–1987)

John Jakes' North and South trilogy is a complete historical fiction series spanning three volumes published between 1982 and 1987. The three books—North and South, Love and War, and Heaven and Hell—should be read in publication order to follow the interconnected narrative. This sweeping saga chronicles the American Civil War era and its aftermath through the intertwined fates of two families, one from the industrial North and one from the agrarian South.

Start with North and South and read in order.

#	Title
1	North and South 1982Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Love and War 1984Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Heaven and Hell 1987Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

5 books (1963–2001)

The Planet of the Apes series consists of five novelizations based on the classic film franchise, published between 1963 and 2001. Written by various authors including Pierre Boulle, Michael Avallone, Jerry Pournelle, and William T. Quick, these books should be read in publication order to follow the story's progression. The series is complete and each entry adapts the corresponding film in the cinematic universe.

Start with Planet of the Apes(By: Pierre Boulle), the first of 5 books in the Planet of the Apes series.

#	Title
1	Planet of the Apes(By: Pierre Boulle) 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Beneath The Planet of The Apes(By: Michael Avallone) 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	Escape from the Planet of the Apes(By: Jerry Pournelle) 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	Conquest of the Planet of the Apes 1974Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	Planet of the Apes Movie Novelization(By: William T. Quick) 2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

1 book (1998–1998)

#	Title
1	Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol 1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

1 book (1973–1973)

2 books (1977–1991)

John Jakes's two-book short story collection series spans from 1977 to 1991 and is now complete. These volumes should be read in publication order, beginning with The Best of John Jakes followed by The Best Western Stories of John Jakes. Each collection gathers selected short fiction from across the author's career.

Start with The Best of John Jakes and read in order.

#	Title
1	The Best of John Jakes 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	The Best Western Stories of John Jakes 1991Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

35 books (1952–2006)

John Jakes wrote 35 standalone novels between 1952 and 2006, completing this diverse collection of independent stories. These books span multiple genres and should be read in publication order, beginning with The Texans Ride North and continuing through titles like Wear a Fast Gun, I, Barbarian, and Secrets of Stardeep. The series is complete, offering readers a substantial body of work to explore at their own pace, with each novel functioning as its own contained narrative.

Start with The Texans Ride North, the first of 35 books in the Standalone Novels series.

#	Title
1	The Texans Ride North 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	Wear a Fast Gun 1952Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
3	The Devil Has Four Faces 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
4	The Seventh Man 1958Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
5	I, Barbarian 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
6	The Imposter 1959Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
7	Strike the Black Flag 1961Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
8	Sir Scoundrel 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
9	Veils of Salome 1962Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
10	Arena 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
11	G. I. Girls 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
12	The Man from Cannae 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
13	Traitors' Legion 1963Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
14	Secrets of Stardeep 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
15	The Asylum World 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
16	The Hybrid 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
17	The Last Magicians 1969Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
18	Black in Time 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
19	Monte Cristo #99 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
20	Six-Gun Planet 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
21	The Star Virus/Mask of Chaos 1970Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
22	Mention My Name in Atlantis 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
23	Time Gate 1972Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
24	On Wheels 1973Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
25	Fortune's Whirlwind 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
26	To an Unknown Shore 1975Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
27	King's Crusader 1977Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
28	A Night for Treason 1978Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
29	Excalibur!(With: Gil Kane) 1980Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
30	California Gold 1989Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
31	On Secret Service 2000Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
32	The Bold Frontier 2001Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
33	Charleston 2002Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
34	Savannah, or A Gift for Mr. Lincoln / Savannah Christmas 2004Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
35	The Gods of Newport 2006Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible

2 books (1993–1998)

John Jakes' Crown Family Saga comprises two historical novels published between 1993 and 1998. The complete series should be read in publication order, beginning with Homeland followed by American Dreams. These sweeping narratives chronicle an American family's experiences across generations, offering an epic scope characteristic of Jakes' fiction writing.

Start with Homeland and read in order.

#	Title
1	Homeland 1993Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible
2	American Dreams 1998Buy 🇺🇸🎧 Audible