Catherine Gayle writes contemporary hockey romance and Regency historical romance. Her two largest modern series, Portland Storm and Tulsa Thunderbirds, share a professional hockey continuity, while her historical books are divided among several Regency families and social circles.
Her catalog requires more care than a simple publication list suggests. Portland Storm contains full-length novels, novellas, holiday stories, prequels, and follow-ups to earlier couples. Tulsa Thunderbirds is a direct spin-off and is best read after readers have entered the Portland hockey world.
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The historical romances are much more flexible. Most follow different couples and can be read as connected standalones within their individual series.
The Three Reading Decisions
Readers only need to make three decisions before starting.
- For the complete hockey continuity, begin with Breakaway, continue through Portland Storm in publication order, then read Tulsa Thunderbirds.
- For Catherine Gayle’s Regency romances, begin with Twice a Rake. It opens Lord Rotheby’s Influence and provides the clearest introduction to her historical style.
- For a shorter historical route, choose one of the smaller family series, such as the Cavendish Brothers or Devilish Devalles, and keep its books in order.
Publication order is more important in the hockey books because players are traded, relationships become established, families grow, and supporting characters later become protagonists.
Catherine Gayle’s Hockey Continuity
Portland Storm is the parent series. Tulsa Thunderbirds branches from the same professional hockey world and uses a darker, more intense tone.
The recommended broad order is:
- Portland Storm
- Tulsa Thunderbirds
The two series were published alongside each other for several years, so completionists may interleave them by release date. New readers usually get a smoother experience by establishing Portland first and then moving to Tulsa.
Portland Storm Books in Order
Portland Storm follows players, coaches, staff members, relatives, and partners connected to a professional hockey organization. Most books introduce a new central couple, but several shorter installments return to relationships established earlier.
A strict numbered list can be misleading because novellas are sometimes given fractional numbers. The order below places every confirmed story where it functions best.
Ice Breaker
Ice Breaker: This short prequel introduces the Portland Storm world before Breakaway, offering additional background for readers who want the earliest available point in the team’s continuity.
The story has generally been distributed as mailing-list bonus material rather than as a standard full-length release.
Status: Optional prequel.
1. Breakaway
Breakaway (2013): Eric must decide whether to protect his hockey career or pursue a future with Dana, opening the series through a romance shaped by grief, healing, and a difficult choice about what comes after loss.
This book establishes the Portland Storm organization and introduces players who remain important throughout the series.
Best starting point: Breakaway.
2. On the Fly
On the Fly (2014): Rachel Shaw attempts to create a more stable future for herself and her children, while her connection to a Portland player brings romance, family responsibilities, and professional hockey into the same household.
The book broadens the series beyond the rink by showing how a player’s choices affect children and an established family structure.
2.5. Taking a Shot
Taking a Shot (2014): This novella gives another Portland Storm couple a focused romance while advancing the team relationships between the second and third main novels.
Its shorter format does not make it separate from the series. Read it after On the Fly.
Status: Included novella.
3. Light the Lamp
Light the Lamp (2014): A Portland player faces a relationship complicated by emotional history and the demands of professional hockey, continuing the series as earlier teammates and couples settle into new roles.
The book works as a complete romance, but the team connections are clearer after the first two novels.
4. Delay of Game
Delay of Game (2014): An on-ice confrontation lands a Portland player in trouble, while the coach’s strong-willed daughter challenges both his behavior and the direction of his personal life.
The coach’s-daughter relationship raises professional consequences that extend beyond the central couple.
4.5. Double Major
Double Major (2014): This novella revisits an established Portland Storm relationship at an important milestone, showing the couple after their original romantic resolution.
Read it after Delay of Game. It is follow-up material rather than a new entry point.
Status: Included follow-up novella.
5. In the Zone
In the Zone (2014): Another Portland player becomes the center of a romance involving personal vulnerability, public pressure, and the challenge of maintaining a relationship within the team’s close social circle.
Previous players and partners continue to appear, making publication order increasingly useful.
5.5. Holiday Hat Trick
Holiday Hat Trick (2014): A holiday novella returns to the Portland Storm cast during the Christmas season, adding a shorter relationship story and seasonal developments between the main novels.
It belongs after In the Zone.
Status: Optional but correctly placed novella.
6. Comeback
Comeback (2015): A Portland Storm player attempts to rebuild his life while facing addiction, recovery, and the possibility that returning to hockey may not be enough to repair what has been damaged.
The book marks one of the series’ heavier emotional turns and relies on the team support network established earlier.
7. Dropping Gloves
Dropping Gloves (2015): A familiar Portland player receives his central romance as professional competition and personal conflict force him to reconsider the defenses he uses both on and off the ice.
The story moves the series forward while retaining earlier couples as part of the team community.
8. Home Ice
Home Ice (2015): This shorter installment centers on a Portland Storm relationship affected by home, family, and the need to build a life that can survive the instability of a professional hockey career.
Its placement after Dropping Gloves preserves the development of the returning cast.
Status: Included novella.
9. Mistletoe Misconduct
Mistletoe Misconduct (2015): A Christmas romance brings two connected Portland Storm characters together during a season when professional boundaries and private attraction become increasingly difficult to maintain.
Although some editions list a 2016 publication date, it belongs in this position within the series sequence.
Status: Holiday novella.
10. Losing an Edge
Losing an Edge (2016): Levi struggles with comparison, rivalry, and the feeling that he is living in another player’s shadow, while his central relationship forces him to define success on his own terms.
The book continues the team’s next generation of personal and professional conflicts.
11. Game Breaker
Game Breaker (2016): A Portland player’s improving performance on the ice collides with a relationship that demands more emotional honesty than he has previously been willing to offer.
The romance develops against the increasingly established network of Storm couples and families.
12. Defensive Zone
Defensive Zone (2017): A player accustomed to protecting his position must confront a personal situation that cannot be solved through aggression, distance, or the habits that serve him during a game.
The novel begins the later phase of Portland Storm while preserving the consequences of earlier team stories.
13. Power Play
Power Play (2017): Hockey influence, family loyalties, and romantic pressure converge as another member of the Portland organization takes control of his own story.
The title reflects both strategic play on the ice and the imbalance of power complicating the central relationship.
14. Neutral Zone
Neutral Zone (2017): This story reaches back to events that occur before much of the main Portland sequence, providing earlier history for characters whose later circumstances are already familiar.
Chronologically, it can be placed before Breakaway. First-time readers should still save it for its publication position because later knowledge gives the backstory more meaning.
15. Free Agent
Free Agent (2018): A player facing uncertainty about his future must also confront whether he can accept love when his own sense of worth has never been secure.
The free-agent situation gives the romance both professional urgency and a strong personal identity conflict.
16. Overtime
Overtime (2018): A Portland relationship develops beyond the limits of an ordinary season, asking whether the couple can create a future after time, injury, or earlier choices have complicated the expected path.
This later installment works best after Free Agent because the team and its established families continue around the central romance.
17. Journeyman
Journeyman (2018): A veteran player whose career has involved movement and uncertainty must decide where he belongs, both within hockey and with the person offering him a more permanent home.
The novel closes the main numbered Portland Storm sequence.
One of the Boys
One of the Boys (2019): This connected shorter work focuses on a woman navigating the male-dominated world surrounding professional hockey and the relationship that develops within that environment.
It belongs after the main Portland Storm novels rather than at the beginning of the series.
Status: Optional connected story.
Sleigh Bells and Slap Shots
Sleigh Bells and Slap Shots (2018): This holiday collection or shorter seasonal release brings hockey and Christmas together through material connected to Catherine Gayle’s sports-romance world.
It should be treated as supplementary reading rather than a separately numbered Portland Storm novel.
Status: Optional holiday material.
The Most Reliable Portland Storm Order
Readers who want the complete practical sequence should use:
- Ice Breaker, optional prequel
- Breakaway
- On the Fly
- Taking a Shot
- Light the Lamp
- Delay of Game
- Double Major
- In the Zone
- Holiday Hat Trick
- Comeback
- Dropping Gloves
- Home Ice
- Mistletoe Misconduct
- Losing an Edge
- Game Breaker
- Defensive Zone
- Power Play
- Neutral Zone
- Free Agent
- Overtime
- Journeyman
- One of the Boys, optional
- Sleigh Bells and Slap Shots, optional seasonal material
This order favors the reader’s experience over attempting to force every bonus story into a rigid numbering system.
Should Neutral Zone Be Read First?
Neutral Zone is chronologically earlier than the main Portland Storm sequence.
Reading it before Breakaway follows the internal timeline, but that is not the recommended first-time order. The book was written after readers already knew the wider team and its relationships.
Publication order preserves character introductions and allows the earlier-set story to function as expanded background rather than premature explanation.
For new readers, keep Neutral Zone between Power Play and Free Agent.
Portland Storm Boxed Sets
The Portland Storm boxed sets collect existing novels and novellas into larger editions.
The First Period: This collection packages the opening portion of Portland Storm, beginning with Breakaway and continuing through the early books and shorter stories.
The Second Period: This collection continues the team’s middle sequence using previously published installments.
The Third Period: This set contains later Portland Storm material, including Dropping Gloves, Home Ice, Mistletoe Misconduct, Losing an Edge, and Game Breaker.
Boxed sets are alternate formats. They do not add new numbered romances unless an edition description explicitly identifies bonus material.
Tulsa Thunderbirds Books in Order
Tulsa Thunderbirds is a spin-off from Portland Storm. It follows another professional hockey organization and generally handles darker personal histories, including trauma, abuse, exploitation, recovery, and difficult family relationships.
The central couple changes with each book. Publication order is strongly recommended because players, relatives, team changes, and the consequences of earlier stories carry through the series.
1. Bury the Hatchet
Bury the Hatchet (2015): Hockey player Hunter becomes connected to Oklahoma pageant favorite Tallulah Belle Roth, while marriage, family conflict, and his difficult relationship with his brother force him to confront resentments he has carried for years.
The novel introduces the Tulsa Thunderbirds and establishes the spin-off’s more intense emotional tone.
2. Smoke Signals
Smoke Signals (2015): Another Tulsa player enters a relationship complicated by hidden warnings, communication failures, and personal history that neither person can continue avoiding.
The book expands the Thunderbirds roster while keeping Hunter, Tallie, and the newly established team community in view.
3. Ghost Dance
Ghost Dance (2016): A relationship is shaped by memories and trauma that continue to influence the present, forcing the central characters to face what has been haunting them rather than simply moving forward.
The novel develops several themes introduced in the first two Thunderbirds books.
4. Rites of Passage
Rites of Passage (2016): A Tulsa player and his partner reach a period of major personal transition, where adulthood, family expectations, and emotional responsibility become inseparable from the romance.
The story belongs after Ghost Dance because the surrounding team relationships continue to develop.
5. Rain Dance
Rain Dance (2017): This emotionally heavier installment follows characters affected by severe personal trauma, placing survival, trust, and the difficult process of recovery at the center of the romance.
Readers sensitive to abuse-related material may wish to review content guidance before beginning.
6. Dream Catcher
Dream Catcher (2019): A Tulsa player confronts the distance between the future he imagined and the life he is actually living, while a developing relationship offers both hope and new emotional risks.
The book continues directly from the team environment established in Rain Dance.
7. On the Warpath
On the Warpath (2019): The final main Thunderbirds novel brings another player’s conflict into focus as anger, loyalty, and the instinct to fight threaten the possibility of a stable relationship.
The book closes the published Tulsa sequence and gathers together the team relationships developed across the series.
Correcting the Square Pegs Confusion
Square Pegs is sometimes displayed as though it were a seventh Tulsa Thunderbirds novel.
It is a boxed-set title associated with a collection of existing books, not the final original romance. The main series order concludes with:
- Dream Catcher
- On the Warpath
Tulsa Thunderbirds: Square One: This boxed set collects Bury the Hatchet, Smoke Signals, and Ghost Dance.
Tulsa Thunderbirds: Square Pegs: This collection packages later Thunderbirds novels rather than adding another central couple.
When to Start Tulsa Thunderbirds
Readers can understand Bury the Hatchet without completing all of Portland Storm. The new team, leading couple, and immediate conflicts are introduced clearly.
Reading Portland Storm first is still preferable because Tulsa is explicitly a spin-off. Team movement, professional hockey context, and returning names carry more weight when the parent series is already familiar.
The safest route is Portland Storm first, followed by Tulsa Thunderbirds.
Catherine Gayle’s Regency Romance Continuities
Catherine Gayle’s historical catalog is divided among multiple smaller series:
- Lord Rotheby’s Influence
- The Old Maids’ Club
- Wanton Wives
- Cardiff Siblings
- Devilish Devalles
- Cavendish Brothers
- Bexley-Smythe Quintet
These books share Regency settings and may contain social overlap, but they do not form one confirmed continuous master sequence.
Each group should be read in its own publication order.
Lord Rotheby’s Influence Books in Order
Lord Rotheby’s Influence is a three-book Regency romance series connected by the demands, arrangements, and consequences created by Lord Rotheby.
1. Twice a Rake
Twice a Rake (2011): Aurora Hyatt loses a private journal containing scandalous fantasies about Baron Quinton, and his discovery of it leads to a public kiss, a forced marriage, and questions about whether he can become the husband she imagined.
The novel establishes Lord Rotheby’s role and opens Catherine Gayle’s earliest historical series.
2. Saving Grace
Saving Grace (2011): A Regency woman facing a difficult future becomes involved with a gentleman whose choices may either protect her or deepen the social danger surrounding them.
The book follows a new central couple while retaining the influence and social connections established in Twice a Rake.
3. Merely a Miss
Merely a Miss (2011): A heroine regarded as socially ordinary or insufficiently important becomes the center of a romance that challenges assumptions about rank, marriage, and who deserves to be noticed.
The book completes Lord Rotheby’s Influence by resolving the final central relationship within the connected circle.
The Old Maids’ Club Books in Order
The Old Maids’ Club follows women who have been overlooked, rejected, or placed outside the usual expectations of the marriage market.
1. Wallflower
Wallflower (2011): A woman accustomed to remaining unnoticed enters a romance that forces both her and the hero to look beyond the social judgments that have kept her at the edge of the ballroom.
The book introduces the club’s focus on women who do not fit the fashionable ideal.
2. Pariah
Pariah (2012): A heroine treated as an outsider faces reputation, exclusion, and the possibility of love with someone willing to challenge the society that has rejected her.
Read it after Wallflower for the clearest progression of the club and its connected social circle.
Some catalogs mention a third Old Maids’ Club work, but only Wallflower and Pariah are consistently confirmed as main separately published novels.
Wanton Wives Books in Order
Wanton Wives is a group of five linked Regency stories originally collected together. Each focuses on a married or marriage-bound woman confronting desire, loneliness, or the restrictions of her social role.
1. Of Love and Lust
Of Love and Lust (2011): A woman must distinguish between physical desire and lasting attachment when the expectations surrounding marriage no longer match what she truly wants.
The story introduces the collection’s interest in wives claiming emotional and romantic agency.
2. One Lonely Night
One Lonely Night (2011): Loneliness and an unexpected encounter push a woman to reconsider the compromises she has accepted in her private life.
The shorter story develops independently while preserving the collection’s Regency setting and mature-marriage themes.
3. A Perfect Pearl
A Perfect Pearl (2011): A heroine valued for appearing polished and proper begins to reveal the needs and imperfections hidden beneath her carefully maintained social image.
The romance questions whether perfection is a source of security or another form of confinement.
4. Leg-Shackled
Leg-Shackled (2011): Marriage is treated as both a binding obligation and a possible path to genuine intimacy when the central couple must confront what their union actually means.
The title reflects the tension between social duty and chosen commitment.
5. Uninhibited
Uninhibited (2011): A woman steps beyond the restraints that have shaped her behavior, allowing desire and honesty to alter the terms of her relationship.
This final story completes the Wanton Wives collection.
Wanton Wives Collection
Wanton Wives (2011): This collected edition contains the five linked stories rather than adding a sixth romance.
Readers who own the collection do not need to purchase Of Love and Lust, One Lonely Night, A Perfect Pearl, Leg-Shackled, and Uninhibited separately unless they prefer individual editions.
Cardiff Siblings Books in Order
Only one separately published Cardiff Siblings title is consistently confirmed.
1. Seven Minutes in Devon
Seven Minutes in Devon (2012): A brief encounter governed by a social game creates lasting consequences when attraction, reputation, and family connections refuse to remain confined to seven minutes.
The novel can be read independently.
Series status: One confirmed published installment.
Devilish Devalles Books in Order
The Devilish Devalles follows members of the Devalle family and the scandalous reputations surrounding them.
1. The Devil to Pay
The Devil to Pay (2013): A member of the Devalle family faces a romance complicated by reputation, obligation, and the possibility that past behavior has finally created a price that must be paid.
The book introduces the family and its socially dangerous image.
2. A Dance with the Devil
A Dance with the Devil (2014): Another Devalle relationship develops through ballroom society, attraction, and the risk of becoming involved with someone whose family name already promises trouble.
Read it after The Devil to Pay for the intended family order.
Cavendish Brothers Books in Order
The Cavendish Brothers series contains two connected Regency romances.
1. An Unintended Journey
An Unintended Journey (2013): An unexpected journey places the central couple outside their planned lives, creating a romance shaped by travel, changed circumstances, and consequences neither anticipated.
The book introduces the Cavendish family connection.
2. To Enchant an Icy Earl
To Enchant an Icy Earl (2013): A distant and emotionally guarded earl encounters a woman capable of challenging his reserve, turning an apparently cold aristocrat into the center of a warmer and more vulnerable romance.
The second book expands the Cavendish family and should be read after An Unintended Journey.
Bexley-Smythe Books in Order
The series is sometimes called the Bexley-Smythe Quintet, although only three installments are consistently listed as published.
1. Flight of Fancy
Flight of Fancy (2013): A Regency heroine’s hopes and imagined future collide with practical social expectations when a developing romance forces her to decide which dreams can become real.
The book establishes the Bexley-Smythe family and its connected circle.
2. Rhyme and Reason
Rhyme and Reason (2013): Emotion and logic pull a central couple in opposing directions, creating a romance where sensible decisions do not necessarily lead to the desired outcome.
Read it after Flight of Fancy for the intended family progression.
3. Thick as Thieves
Thick as Thieves (2014): A close alliance, shared scheme, or long-standing loyalty develops into a romance complicated by trust and the possibility that one partner has not revealed everything.
The book is the third confirmed Bexley-Smythe installment.
Despite the word “Quintet” in some series titles, two additional completed novels have not been reliably confirmed. The stable published order therefore contains three books.
Charming and Just a Bit Disarming
Charming and Just a Bit Disarming (2012): This historical romance collection gathers shorter Catherine Gayle stories featuring charm, courtship, social complications, and heroes or heroines capable of unsettling carefully maintained defenses.
It should be treated as a collection rather than another numbered entry in Lord Rotheby’s Influence or The Old Maids’ Club.
Status: Optional collection.
Seduced by the Game
Seduced by the Game (2014): This multi-author hockey-romance anthology contains work by Catherine Gayle alongside stories from several other sports-romance writers.
It is supplementary to the Portland Storm era but is not a numbered Portland Storm novel.
Status: Optional multi-author anthology.
Historical Reading Order by Family
Readers who want Catherine Gayle’s historical romances without mixing unrelated families can follow this grouped route:
Lord Rotheby’s Influence
- Twice a Rake
- Saving Grace
- Merely a Miss
The Old Maids’ Club
- Wallflower
- Pariah
Wanton Wives
- Of Love and Lust
- One Lonely Night
- A Perfect Pearl
- Leg-Shackled
- Uninhibited
Cardiff Siblings
- Seven Minutes in Devon
Devilish Devalles
- The Devil to Pay
- A Dance with the Devil
Cavendish Brothers
- An Unintended Journey
- To Enchant an Icy Earl
Bexley-Smythe
- Flight of Fancy
- Rhyme and Reason
- Thick as Thieves
There is no compelling reason to interleave these groups chronologically.
Complete Catherine Gayle Publication Order
The publication list below shows the broad development of Catherine Gayle’s catalog. Books released in the same year may vary slightly by month or edition.
- Twice a Rake (2011): A lost journal and public scandal force Aurora and Quinton into marriage.
- Saving Grace (2011): A Regency heroine’s precarious circumstances create a romance centered on protection and trust.
- Merely a Miss (2011): A socially overlooked woman becomes the focus of an unexpected courtship.
- Wallflower (2011): A woman ignored by the marriage market is finally seen beyond her public reputation.
- Of Love and Lust (2011): A wife or marriage-bound heroine confronts the difference between desire and affection.
- One Lonely Night (2011): A single night forces a woman to reconsider the loneliness she has accepted.
- A Perfect Pearl (2011): A supposedly perfect woman reveals the needs hidden beneath her social polish.
- Leg-Shackled (2011): Marriage shifts from obligation toward genuine emotional commitment.
- Uninhibited (2011): A woman rejects restraint and speaks more honestly about desire.
- Pariah (2012): A social outsider risks trusting someone willing to challenge her exclusion.
- Seven Minutes in Devon (2012): A brief private encounter produces consequences that extend far beyond the game that caused it.
- Charming and Just a Bit Disarming (2012): A collection gathers several shorter historical courtships.
- The Devil to Pay (2013): The Devalle family’s reputation complicates a romance shaped by consequences.
- An Unintended Journey (2013): Unexpected travel redirects both the central couple’s plans and relationship.
- To Enchant an Icy Earl (2013): A guarded aristocrat is challenged by a woman unwilling to accept his emotional distance.
- Flight of Fancy (2013): Romantic hopes collide with the practical restrictions of Regency society.
- Rhyme and Reason (2013): Logic and emotion compete as another Bexley-Smythe couple considers marriage.
- Breakaway (2013): Eric and Dana open Portland Storm through a relationship shaped by loss and a career decision.
- On the Fly (2014): Rachel attempts to build a future for herself and her children within the Storm community.
- Light the Lamp (2014): Another Portland player receives a romance involving team pressure and emotional history.
- Delay of Game (2014): A player’s on-ice behavior brings him into conflict with the coach’s daughter.
- Taking a Shot (2014): A shorter Portland romance fills the space between the early main novels.
- Double Major (2014): An established Storm couple reaches another relationship milestone.
- In the Zone (2014): A Portland player confronts vulnerability as his private life becomes more serious.
- Holiday Hat Trick (2014): Christmas brings a shorter seasonal romance to the Storm cast.
- A Dance with the Devil (2014): The second Devalle romance combines social danger with ballroom attraction.
- Thick as Thieves (2014): Loyalty and secrecy complicate the third Bexley-Smythe relationship.
- Seduced by the Game (2014): A multi-author collection brings together hockey-romance stories.
- Comeback (2015): Recovery and addiction complicate a Portland player’s attempt to rebuild.
- Dropping Gloves (2015): A Storm player’s emotional defenses become as important as his on-ice conflicts.
- Home Ice (2015): A shorter story considers whether a hockey relationship can create a stable home.
- Mistletoe Misconduct (2015): A holiday romance develops within the Portland organization.
- Bury the Hatchet (2015): Hunter and Tallie introduce the Tulsa Thunderbirds spin-off.
- Smoke Signals (2015): Hidden warnings and poor communication complicate the second Tulsa romance.
- Ghost Dance (2016): Trauma and memory remain active forces in another Thunderbirds relationship.
- Rites of Passage (2016): A Tulsa couple faces major transitions in family and adulthood.
- Losing an Edge (2016): Levi struggles with rivalry and the pressure of comparison.
- Game Breaker (2016): A rising player must decide whether emotional honesty can match his professional progress.
- Defensive Zone (2017): A Portland player learns that personal conflict requires more than defensive habits.
- Power Play (2017): Influence and romantic imbalance complicate another Storm relationship.
- Neutral Zone (2017): An earlier-set Portland story reveals background best understood after the preceding novels.
- Rain Dance (2017): Severe trauma and recovery shape one of the Thunderbirds’ darkest romances.
- Free Agent (2018): Career uncertainty and low self-worth threaten a Portland player’s chance at love.
- Overtime (2018): A later Storm couple confronts the future beyond the expected limits of a season.
- Journeyman (2018): A frequently moving veteran searches for a permanent professional and emotional home.
- Sleigh Bells and Slap Shots (2018): Holiday hockey material offers supplementary seasonal reading.
- Dream Catcher (2019): A Tulsa player reassesses the future he expected and the relationship he might still build.
- One of the Boys (2019): A shorter sports-romance story focuses on belonging within hockey’s male-dominated environment.
- On the Warpath (2019): The published Thunderbirds sequence closes with anger, conflict, and the possibility of stability.
Publication order is useful for seeing Catherine Gayle’s shift from Regency romance to hockey romance. It is not one continuous fictional timeline.
Recommended Reading Order
For the Complete Hockey Experience
- Portland Storm in publication order
- Tulsa Thunderbirds in publication order
Include the Portland novellas in their listed positions. Save Neutral Zone for its publication position even though its story begins earlier.
For a Short Hockey Starting Route
- Breakaway
- On the Fly
- Taking a Shot
- Light the Lamp
These opening installments provide enough of the Portland team structure for readers to decide whether to continue the full sequence.
For Regency Romance
Begin with Lord Rotheby’s Influence:
- Twice a Rake
- Saving Grace
- Merely a Miss
After that, choose any other historical series and read its internal order.
For Short Historical Romance
Read the Wanton Wives stories in order or use the single collected edition.
The collection offers five compact Regency stories without requiring the longer family-based series.
Latest Catherine Gayle Book and Current Status
The latest confirmed original full-length novel in Catherine Gayle’s established bibliography is On the Warpath, published in 2019.
On the Warpath (2019): The seventh Tulsa Thunderbirds novel closes the team’s published sequence through a romance shaped by anger, loyalty, personal conflict, and the effort to stop treating every emotional challenge as a battle.
Catherine Gayle’s current author biography indicates plans for a small-town contemporary romance series. As of August 4, 2026, a stable title, series name, publication date, and final book order were not reliably confirmed.
No placeholder should be added to the numbered bibliography until those details are officially fixed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was Catherine Gayle’s first book?
Twice a Rake (2011): Aurora’s misplaced journal exposes her private fantasies about Baron Quinton, leading to scandal, marriage, and a test of whether the rake can become a trustworthy husband.
It is the first Lord Rotheby’s Influence novel and the earliest confirmed full-length book in her bibliography.
What is Catherine Gayle best known for?
She is particularly associated with Portland Storm, a long-running professional hockey romance series.
She also wrote several Regency romance series before moving primarily into contemporary sports romance.
What is the best Catherine Gayle book to start with?
Start with Breakaway for hockey romance.
Start with Twice a Rake for historical romance.
The two books belong to separate genres and continuities, so neither is required before the other.
Do the Portland Storm books need to be read in order?
Yes, publication order is strongly recommended.
Most books follow different couples, but players, partners, children, injuries, trades, recoveries, and family developments continue throughout the series.
Are the Portland Storm books standalones?
Each main romance generally reaches its own resolution.
They are interconnected standalones rather than isolated books. Later installments reveal earlier couples and assume familiarity with the team.
Where does Taking a Shot fit?
Taking a Shot (2014): A shorter Portland Storm romance advances the connected cast between the second and third main novels.
Read it after On the Fly and before Light the Lamp.
Where does Double Major fit?
Double Major (2014): This follow-up novella revisits an established couple at an important relationship milestone.
Read it after Delay of Game.
Should Neutral Zone be read first?
No, not for a first reading.
It occurs earlier chronologically, but publication order preserves mystery and allows its backstory to carry greater significance. Read it after Power Play.
Are Tulsa Thunderbirds and Portland Storm connected?
Yes. Tulsa Thunderbirds is a spin-off from Portland Storm.
Readers may begin with Bury the Hatchet, but completing at least the early Portland books first provides stronger professional and character context.
What order do the Tulsa Thunderbirds books go in?
Read:
- Bury the Hatchet
- Smoke Signals
- Ghost Dance
- Rites of Passage
- Rain Dance
- Dream Catcher
- On the Warpath
This is the stable main-series sequence.
Is Square Pegs a Tulsa Thunderbirds novel?
No. Square Pegs is associated with a boxed collection of existing Thunderbirds books.
It should not replace On the Warpath as the seventh original novel.
Are Catherine Gayle’s historical series connected?
They share a Regency setting and may have social overlap, but they are organized as separate family or thematic series.
Readers do not need to complete Lord Rotheby’s Influence before beginning the Cavendish Brothers or Devilish Devalles.
Is Wanton Wives one book or five?
Both descriptions may appear in catalogs.
There are five individual stories: Of Love and Lust, One Lonely Night, A Perfect Pearl, Leg-Shackled, and Uninhibited. They are also available together as the Wanton Wives collection.
Why is Bexley-Smythe called a quintet if only three books are listed?
The series name suggests five intended installments, but only three books are consistently confirmed as published:
- Flight of Fancy
- Rhyme and Reason
- Thick as Thieves
Unconfirmed or unpublished titles should not be added to a reference reading order.
How many Old Maids’ Club books are there?
Two main novels are consistently confirmed:
- Wallflower
- Pariah
Some catalog records count the series differently, but no additional main novel has been reliably established.
What is Catherine Gayle’s latest book?
The latest confirmed original novel is On the Warpath, published in 2019.
A future small-town romance project has been mentioned, but a reliable title and release date were not confirmed as of August 4, 2026.
Conclusion
Catherine Gayle’s bibliography divides cleanly into two reading experiences.
For contemporary hockey romance, begin with Breakaway, follow Portland Storm in publication order, and continue to the Tulsa Thunderbirds spin-off. Keep the novellas in their listed positions, and save the chronologically earlier Neutral Zone for its publication slot.
For Regency romance, begin with Twice a Rake or choose any of the smaller family series. The historical books are more flexible, but publication order within each group still provides the clearest introductions and relationship outcomes.
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