Aubree Valentine writes contemporary romance featuring police officers, firefighters, military veterans, bodyguards, cowboys, athletes, royal families, single parents, and holiday communities.

Her best-known books belong to Too Hot to Handle, a first-responder romance world that began with Hot Cop. Her later catalog includes Texas romantic suspense, military and cowboy romance, royal romantic comedy, hockey romance, and several multi-author small-town projects.
Affiliate Disclosure
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This article may contain affiliate links. If you click one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Most of Valentine’s books follow a different couple and provide a complete romantic ending. Reading order matters mainly when relatives, colleagues, teammates, or residents of the same town return in later books.
For a first book, begin with Hot Cop. It opens her longest established series and gives the clearest introduction to her combination of humor, heat, protective heroes, and recurring friendships.
Four Facts That Prevent Most Reading-Order Mistakes
Too Hot to Handle has more than one phase: The original books begin with Hot Cop. Later listings use Too Hot to Handle 2.0 for a newer group of characters.
Christmas Inn and Christmas in Mistletoe Bay are different series: Both are holiday romances, but they use separate settings and casts.
The 425 Madison books can stand alone: They belong to a multi-author New York apartment-building project, not a series written entirely by Aubree Valentine.
Possessive Bodyguard Summer was not yet published on this update date: Its confirmed release date is August 6, 2026, one day after this article was updated.
Too Hot to Handle Books in Order
Too Hot to Handle follows police officers, firefighters, federal agents, and their close friends. Each installment centers on a different relationship, but recurring first responders create a shared social and professional world.
Current catalogs do not always agree on the numbering of the later books. The most stable approach is to begin with the four original police romances, then add the later security and first-responder stories in publication order.
Double Shot
Double Shot: This short prequel introduces the friendships and first-responder circle behind Too Hot to Handle before the main romances begin.
Status: Optional newsletter prequel
It is useful background, but Hot Cop remains the better public starting point.
1. Hot Cop
Hot Cop (2018): A woman trying to move beyond a failed relationship becomes involved with an attractive police officer whose humor and protective instincts make a casual encounter increasingly serious.
The book introduces the police department and friends who support later couples.
2. Cop Tease
Cop Tease (2018): Dylan Smith pursues a woman determined to resist him, turning teasing, workplace connections, and mutual attraction into a relationship neither can dismiss as harmless flirtation.
Some newer promotional material uses the title S.W.A.T. Tease. It is the same central story rather than an additional sequel.
3. Strip Search
Strip Search (2018): A police officer becomes attracted to Molly, a woman considered off-limits because of her connection to someone close to him.
The romance combines a forbidden relationship with the professional dangers surrounding the series’ officers.
4. Cop Blocked
Cop Blocked (2019): Another member of the first-responder circle finds his romantic plans repeatedly obstructed by personal complications, outside interference, and feelings stronger than he expected.
This completes the original four-book police sequence.
5. Covert Affair
Covert Affair (2022): A covert operative or investigator enters a dangerous relationship where hidden identities and professional secrecy make trust difficult.
The book expands Too Hot to Handle beyond the original local police romances.
6. Wild Fire
Wild Fire (2022): A firefighter faces a romance as unpredictable as the emergencies he handles, forcing him to balance professional risk with emotional commitment.
Some catalogs exclude this title from the primary numbered list, but it is commonly grouped with the wider Too Hot to Handle collection.
7. Ex-Con
Ex-Con (2022): A man rebuilding his life after incarceration meets a woman whose trust and affection offer a future beyond the reputation attached to his past.
The story broadens the series from first responders to the friends and complicated men around them.
8. Fed Up
Fed Up (2022): A federal agent or law-enforcement figure reaches the limit of his patience when a difficult assignment and an equally challenging attraction become impossible to separate.
Its exact numbering varies, so it is safest to read it after Ex-Con.
Too Hot to Handle Reading Recommendation
Use this sequence:
- Double Shot
- Hot Cop
- Cop Tease
- Strip Search
- Cop Blocked
- Covert Affair
- Wild Fire
- Ex-Con
- Fed Up
The prequel is optional. The later titles are more loosely numbered than the original four books, but they belong after the established police romances.
Too Hot to Handle 2.0 Books in Order
Too Hot to Handle 2.0 introduces a later generation or new branch of Valentine’s first-responder and friends universe.
The stories are designed as separate romances, but readers familiar with the original books may recognize names, occupations, or family connections.
1. Rookie Year
Rookie Year (2023): A younger hero beginning a demanding professional or athletic chapter enters a forbidden relationship that complicates his first important year.
The book opens the 2.0 label with a fresh central couple.
2. Under Arrest
Under Arrest: A workplace romance places two people on opposite sides of professional rules, where attraction threatens both their jobs and the boundaries intended to keep them apart.
This is commonly listed as the second Too Hot to Handle 2.0 book.
Public catalog information for the complete 2.0 sequence is less consistent than for the original series. These two titles should remain separate from the original numbering.
Texas Heat Books in Order
Texas Heat is a romantic suspense trilogy about women in danger and the protective men who become part of their lives.
Each book resolves a new romance, but the shared Texas setting and returning protectors make publication order the clearest option.
1. Justice for Danielle
Justice for Danielle (2020): Danielle faces a threat or injustice that ordinary solutions cannot correct, drawing a determined protector into both her case and her life.
The novel establishes the suspense-driven Texas world.
2. Rescuing Harlow
Rescuing Harlow (2021): Harlow becomes the focus of a rescue when danger closes around her, forcing a protective hero to confront how personally invested he has become.
Earlier Texas Heat characters may return in supporting roles.
3. Saving Sadie
Saving Sadie (2022): Sadie needs protection from a threat tied to her past, and the man determined to save her must earn the trust required for their relationship to survive.
This completes the published trilogy.
Day and Knight Books in Order
Day and Knight is a two-book contemporary romance series centered on men whose names provide the titles.
The books feature different lead characters within one connected world.
1. Damon
Damon (2021): Damon enters a romance shaped by personal responsibility, emotional resistance, and the woman capable of disrupting his carefully managed life.
The book establishes the people and relationships used in the second installment.
2. Knight
Knight (2021): Knight receives his own romance after appearing within Damon’s circle, facing a relationship that requires more openness than his guarded personality usually allows.
Read it second for the returning-character context.
Back to Texas Books in Order
Back to Texas began as a military and small-town romance project.
Only one securely published Aubree Valentine title is currently confirmed under the series label.
1. Come Back to Me
Come Back to Me (2021): A military hero returns to Texas and confronts the relationship he left behind, turning homecoming into a chance to repair old pain and claim a lasting future.
Status: Standalone series opener
Some catalogs suggest a two-book series, but a second title with stable, consistent publication details could not be verified reliably.
Christmas Inn Books in Order
Christmas Inn is a three-book holiday series. Each title is named for the location of a different seasonal inn.
The books contain separate couples and settings, so they can stand alone. Publication order provides the intended progression.
1. Christmas Inn Lancaster
Christmas Inn Lancaster (2022): A stay at a Lancaster holiday inn brings two people together through seasonal traditions, close proximity, and a relationship neither expected to carry beyond Christmas.
This begins the collection of destination holiday romances.
2. Christmas Inn Blue Ridge
Christmas Inn Blue Ridge (2022): A Blue Ridge inn becomes the setting for a winter romance involving mountain isolation, holiday comfort, and the possibility of starting over.
The central couple is separate from the Lancaster story.
3. Christmas Inn Pigeon Forge
Christmas Inn Pigeon Forge (2023): A Christmas visit to Pigeon Forge creates another romance through festive activities, travel complications, and feelings that outlast the vacation.
This completes the confirmed trilogy.
Rexford Royals Books in Order
Rexford Royals follows members of a fictional royal family whose public duties collide with private relationships.
The two books are romantic comedies with wealth, scandal, family expectations, and unconventional routes toward commitment.
1. Royally F*cked
Royally F*cked (2022): A royal hero’s privileged and highly visible life is disrupted by a woman who refuses to behave according to palace expectations.
The book introduces the Rexford family and the pressures attached to its public position.
2. Royally Scr*wed
Royally Scr*wed (2022): Another royal relationship goes wrong in public before the central couple can decide whether the apparent disaster might lead to the future they actually want.
Read it after Royally Fcked* for the family context.
Addington Ranch Books in Order
Addington Ranch combines military romance, cowboys, family land, and heroes returning from dangerous careers.
The first two published titles follow men identified by their military names or call signs.
1. Shadow
Shadow (2025): A guarded military veteran connected to Addington Ranch returns to a quieter life, where a relationship forces him to confront memories and instincts he cannot simply leave behind.
The book introduces the ranch and its protective family circle.
2. Ranger
Ranger (2025): A military-trained cowboy must balance ranch responsibilities, loyalty, and the woman whose presence challenges his belief that he is better suited to protecting others than building a life of his own.
Read it after Shadow for the shared setting.
Saints and Sinners Book
Pucking Tangled
Pucking Tangled (2025): A woman becomes emotionally and physically involved with multiple hockey players, creating a why-choose romance where friendship, trust, and team dynamics make choosing only one man impossible.
The novel is associated with the Saints and Sinners hockey world.
Status: Standalone series entry
It provides its own romantic arc and does not require Valentine’s earlier sports books.
Pucking Forever
Pucking Forever (2026): Reporter Brooke becomes involved with two hockey players and must decide whether she can trust a relationship that refuses to follow a conventional one-couple structure.
The ménage romance focuses on jealousy, communication, emotional risk, and building a future larger than any one partnership.
Status: Standalone hockey romance
It is thematically compatible with Pucking Tangled, but current primary catalogs list it separately rather than as a firmly numbered Saints and Sinners sequel.
Christmas in Mistletoe Bay Books in Order
Christmas in Mistletoe Bay is a multi-author holiday community. Aubree Valentine has written four entries set in the shared coastal town.
The wider project includes additional books by other authors. Valentine’s contributions can be read as standalones, although recurring town traditions make the publication sequence useful.
Mistletoe & Mischief
Mistletoe & Mischief (2025): Holiday pranks and small-town interference bring a Mistletoe Bay couple together when seasonal trouble begins revealing sincere attraction.
Tinsel & Timber
Tinsel & Timber (2025): Christmas decorations and a timber or construction-centered hero create a romance built around practical work, festive pressure, and unexpected closeness.
Kindled Hearts
Kindled Hearts (2025): A relationship begins or reignites during Christmas as warmth, community, and shared vulnerability allow two guarded people to connect.
This title is numbered later in the full multi-author project, but no outside books are needed to understand its couple.
Christmas Fixer Upper
Christmas Fixer Upper (2025): A holiday renovation forces two people into close proximity, where repairing a property also exposes the emotional parts of their lives that need attention.
This was Valentine’s latest confirmed 2025 release.
The Best Mistletoe Bay Order
For Aubree Valentine’s books only, read:
- Mistletoe & Mischief
- Tinsel & Timber
- Kindled Hearts
- Christmas Fixer Upper
The numerical positions shown by some retailers refer to the full multi-author series, not four consecutive books written solely by Valentine.
425 Madison Books
425 Madison is a multi-author romance universe set around a New York City apartment building.
Aubree Valentine contributed two books. They feature different couples but share the building and its broader community.
Love Under Construction
Love Under Construction (2019): A construction or renovation project at 425 Madison brings together two people whose professional contact becomes a personal relationship.
This is book six in the full shared-world sequence.
Love Under Protection
Love Under Protection (2020): A protective hero becomes involved with a woman connected to the 425 Madison community when danger or personal vulnerability makes his role increasingly intimate.
This is book fifteen in the multi-author sequence.
The other 425 Madison books are optional. Both Valentine titles explain their own couples and can be read independently.
Other Multi-Author and Shared-World Books
Surrender
Surrender (2020): A high-heat relationship involving control, trust, and consensual surrender unfolds inside the Sin City Fets shared world.
Aubree Valentine coauthored the book with Elizabeth Knox.
Status: Sin City Fets book two
Drunk Dial
Drunk Dial (2022): An impulsive phone call made under the influence reconnects or introduces two people whose unexpected conversation becomes the beginning of a real relationship.
Status: Sycamore Mountain shared-world romance
Tied Up in Sin
Tied Up in Sin (2022): Desire and restraint collide in a romance involving secrets, temptation, and the consequences of entering a relationship already surrounded by sin.
Status: Sinful 8 shared-world book seven
Sugar Cookie Kisses
Sugar Cookie Kisses (2022): A curvy heroine finds holiday romance through Christmas baking, seasonal gatherings, and a hero who appreciates her without asking her to change.
Status: Curves for Christmas 2022 shared-world romance
Loves Me Knot
Loves Me Knot (2023): A romantic knot, misunderstanding, or marriage-related complication brings a couple together in the tropical Candy Cane Key holiday setting.
Status: Candy Cane Key shared-world romance
Possessive Bodyguard Summer
Possessive Bodyguard Summer (Expected August 6, 2026): A protective bodyguard and the person under his care enter a high-heat beach romance where professional boundaries are threatened by danger and possessive attraction.
Status: Sunbreak Harbor Security shared-world romance
It was still forthcoming on August 5, 2026.
Standalone and Early Books
Take Back My Heart
Take Back My Heart (2016): A woman tries to reclaim her emotional future after heartbreak, only for love and unfinished history to complicate her attempt to move on.
This is Aubree Valentine’s earliest confirmed published novel.
Status: Standalone
Collections and Anthologies
Too Hot to Handle: Books 1 to 3
Too Hot to Handle: Books 1 to 3 (2020): This bundle contains Hot Cop, Cop Tease, and Strip Search.
It does not add a fourth story.
Victory Is Sweet
Victory Is Sweet (2019): A multi-author sports romance collection contains separate stories centered on competition and romantic success.
Status: Optional anthology
Rocked to the Core
Rocked to the Core (2020): Multiple authors contribute music or rock-star romances to this collection.
Status: Optional anthology
Playing to Win
Playing to Win (2020): This sports-themed collection gathers romances involving athletes, competition, and the emotional cost of pursuing victory.
Status: Optional anthology
Evil Queen
Evil Queen (2022): A multi-author collection reimagines powerful or morally complicated queens through separate dark or fantasy-influenced stories.
Status: Optional anthology
Blue Collar Babes
Blue Collar Babes (2023): This collection features romances involving working-class heroes and the women who fall for them.
Status: Optional anthology
One Love: Volume 2
One Love: Volume 2 (2025): A collaborative anthology celebrates varied romantic relationships through stories by multiple authors.
Status: Optional collection
Anthology stories may later be republished separately. Check the contents before buying both versions.
Aubree Valentine Books in Broad Publication Order
This chronology counts original novels and individually listed shared-world books. Collections are excluded.
2016
- Take Back My Heart (2016): A woman attempts to reclaim her future after heartbreak and unfinished love.
2018
- Hot Cop (2018): A protective police officer turns a rebound encounter into a serious romance.
- Cop Tease (2018): Dylan’s persistent flirting becomes a relationship with genuine emotional stakes.
- Strip Search (2018): An officer falls for a woman he has been told is off-limits.
2019
- Cop Blocked (2019): Personal and professional complications obstruct another police romance.
- Love Under Construction (2019): A building project at 425 Madison creates an unexpected relationship.
2020
- Justice for Danielle (2020): Danielle needs justice and the protection of a man willing to fight for her.
- Surrender (2020): Trust and consensual control shape a coauthored Sin City romance.
- Love Under Protection (2020): A protector becomes personally involved with a woman at 425 Madison.
2021
- Rescuing Harlow (2021): A dangerous situation turns Harlow’s rescue into a lasting connection.
- Damon (2021): Damon’s guarded life is disrupted by a serious romance.
- Knight (2021): Knight follows with another relationship in the connected world.
- Come Back to Me (2021): A military homecoming revives a Texas love story.
2022
- Saving Sadie (2022): Sadie’s protector must earn her trust while confronting the danger around her.
- Covert Affair (2022): Secrecy and undercover work complicate a high-risk romance.
- Wild Fire (2022): A firefighter faces a relationship as difficult to control as his work.
- Ex-Con (2022): A former prisoner searches for love and a future beyond his past.
- Fed Up (2022): A federal agent’s patience and professional distance collapse under romantic pressure.
- Christmas Inn Lancaster (2022): A seasonal inn creates a Christmas romance in Lancaster.
- Christmas Inn Blue Ridge (2022): A mountain holiday stay gives another couple a new beginning.
- Royally F*cked (2022): Royal duty collides with an unconventional romantic partner.
- Royally Scr*wed (2022): Another Rexford relationship becomes a public and private complication.
- Drunk Dial (2022): One impulsive call opens an unexpected emotional connection.
- Tied Up in Sin (2022): Temptation and secrets shape a shared-world romance.
- Sugar Cookie Kisses (2022): Baking and holiday warmth bring a curvy heroine together with her hero.
2023
- Christmas Inn Pigeon Forge (2023): A Pigeon Forge holiday becomes a lasting romance.
- Loves Me Knot (2023): A romantic complication unfolds within Candy Cane Key.
- Rookie Year (2023): A forbidden relationship disrupts a younger hero’s crucial first year.
2025
- Shadow (2025): A military veteran faces his past and a new relationship at Addington Ranch.
- Ranger (2025): A military cowboy discovers that protecting others is easier than accepting love.
- Mistletoe & Mischief (2025): Holiday trouble turns into romance in Mistletoe Bay.
- Tinsel & Timber (2025): Construction and Christmas create forced proximity.
- Kindled Hearts (2025): A seasonal connection warms two guarded hearts.
- Christmas Fixer Upper (2025): A renovation project becomes a romantic repair job.
- Pucking Tangled (2025): A woman falls for multiple hockey players in a why-choose romance.
2026
- Pucking Forever (2026): Brooke risks a future with two hockey players rather than choosing between them.
- Possessive Bodyguard Summer (Expected August 6, 2026): A bodyguard romance combines beach heat with romantic suspense.
Is There One Chronological Reading Order?
No.
Too Hot to Handle, Texas Heat, Day and Knight, Rexford Royals, Addington Ranch, and the holiday series occupy separate or only loosely connected worlds.
The multi-author books also belong to continuities created with other writers. Their series numbers do not establish a timeline across Valentine’s personal catalog.
Use these rules instead:
- Read Too Hot to Handle in its internal order.
- Keep Texas Heat together.
- Read Damon before Knight.
- Complete the Rexford Royals pair in order.
- Read Shadow before Ranger.
- Treat holiday shared worlds as independent seasonal routes.
- Count collections and alternate titles only once.
Recommended Routes Through the Catalog
For First Responders
Read the original Too Hot to Handle books from Hot Cop through Cop Blocked, then continue with the later related titles.
This is Valentine’s most established author-owned world.
For Romantic Suspense
Read:
- Justice for Danielle
- Rescuing Harlow
- Saving Sadie
- Possessive Bodyguard Summer
The bodyguard book is a separate shared-world story, but it suits readers looking for the same protection-centered tone.
For Military and Cowboy Romance
Read:
- Come Back to Me
- Shadow
- Ranger
The first book belongs to a separate Texas series, while the Addington Ranch books share their own setting.
For Hockey Romance
Read:
- Pucking Tangled
- Pucking Forever
They are not securely numbered as one series, but both feature high-heat relationships involving more than two partners and professional hockey.
For Christmas Romance
Choose either the three Christmas Inn books or Valentine’s four Christmas in Mistletoe Bay contributions.
The two holiday groups do not share a required continuity.
Latest Aubree Valentine Book
As of August 5, 2026, Aubree Valentine’s latest confirmed published novel is Pucking Forever, released on April 29, 2026.
The next release is Possessive Bodyguard Summer, scheduled for August 6, 2026.
Because its publication date falls one day after this article’s update, it should remain labeled forthcoming rather than already released.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Was Aubree Valentine’s First Book?
Take Back My Heart was published in 2016.
It is an independent contemporary romance rather than the opening of Too Hot to Handle.
What Is the Best Aubree Valentine Book to Start With?
Begin with Hot Cop for first-responder romance and the author’s most established series.
Choose Justice for Danielle for romantic suspense, Shadow for military cowboy romance, or Pucking Tangled for why-choose hockey romance.
Do the Too Hot to Handle Books Need to Be Read in Order?
Each book follows a different couple.
Order is still helpful because the police officers, firefighters, agents, and friends appear across multiple stories.
Is Cop Tease the Same as S.W.A.T. Tease?
Current author promotion sometimes uses S.W.A.T. Tease for the book originally published as Cop Tease.
Treat them as the same story unless an edition clearly states that it contains new material.
How Many Original Too Hot to Handle Books Are There?
Four books form the stable original police sequence:
- Hot Cop
- Cop Tease
- Strip Search
- Cop Blocked
Later catalogs add Covert Affair, Wild Fire, Ex-Con, and Fed Up to the wider world.
What Is Too Hot to Handle 2.0?
It is a newer branch beginning with Rookie Year.
It should not replace or renumber the original first-responder books.
Are Texas Heat and Too Hot to Handle Connected?
They share protective heroes and romantic suspense themes, but they are listed as separate series.
No Too Hot to Handle book is required before Justice for Danielle.
Is Come Back to Me Part of Addington Ranch?
No.
Come Back to Me belongs to Back to Texas. Shadow and Ranger form the confirmed Addington Ranch sequence.
Are Pucking Tangled and Pucking Forever Connected?
Both are why-choose or ménage hockey romances, and they are natural companion reads.
Current catalogs do not consistently number them as one continuing series, so each should be treated as an independently understandable romance.
Are Christmas Inn and Christmas in Mistletoe Bay the Same Series?
No.
Christmas Inn contains three destination romances. Christmas in Mistletoe Bay is a multi-author coastal holiday project.
Must the Other Mistletoe Bay Books Be Read?
No.
Aubree Valentine’s contributions explain their own couples and can be read without the other authors’ installments.
Are Love Under Construction and Love Under Protection Connected?
Both belong to the 425 Madison multi-author universe.
They follow different couples, and the books written by other authors are optional.
Is Surrender Written Only by Aubree Valentine?
No.
She coauthored it with Elizabeth Knox.
Is Possessive Bodyguard Summer Published?
Not on this article’s August 5, 2026 update date.
Its scheduled release is August 6, 2026.
Are Anthologies New Series Installments?
No.
Collections such as Victory Is Sweet, Playing to Win, and Blue Collar Babes contain stories by multiple authors and should remain outside the numbered series orders.
Final Recommendation
Begin with Hot Cop, then follow the original Too Hot to Handle police romances through Cop Blocked. Add the later first-responder and law-enforcement stories afterward, since their numbering varies more between catalogs.
For a shorter completed route, choose the Texas Heat trilogy and read from Justice for Danielle through Saving Sadie. Readers wanting cowboys and military veterans should begin with Shadow and follow it with Ranger.
The safest overall approach is to keep each short series together, treat multi-author projects as separate continuities, and verify alternate titles before purchasing older editions. This avoids duplicate copies and prevents shared-world numbering from being mistaken for Aubree Valentine’s personal series order.
Frank is the editor of BookSeries.blog, focusing on publication order, chronological timelines, and spoiler-free reading guides for book series and fictional universes.

