Harlan Coben Books in Order (Updated February 18, 2026)

Harlan Coben is an American thriller writer whose work splits into a few clean lanes: the long-running Myron Bolitar novels (plus spin-offs), the Wilde books, the Mickey Bolitar YA trilogy, a short Sami Kierce pair, and a large shelf of standalones.

If you care about character arcs and recurring relationships, follow the series orders; if you just want a single twisty thriller, pick a standalone and jump in.

Quick navigation

• Best “start here” for the shared-universe books: Deal Breaker
• Best “start here” for modern standalones: Tell No One (classic entry) or I Will Find You (newer entry)
• If you want YA: Shelter

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Myron Bolitar universe (read in order)

Myron Bolitar (main series)

1. Deal Breaker (1995): Sports agent Myron Bolitar gets pulled into a missing-person case tied to his client’s past.
2. Drop Shot (1996): A rising tennis star’s world collapses, and Myron’s investigation turns personal fast.
3. Fade Away (1996): A basketball player vanishes after a shooting, and Myron chases the story behind the headlines.
4. Back Spin (1997): A high-profile kidnapping demands quiet leverage, not loud heroics, and Myron is forced to improvise.
5. One False Move (1998): A prodigy disappears, and the search exposes the machinery behind fame.
6. The Final Detail (1999): A friend’s death drags Myron into a case with loyalty tests and ugly motives.
7. Darkest Fear (2000): A family medical crisis becomes a race for truth with dangerous people watching.
8. Promise Me (2006): A teenage disappearance detonates a chain of choices Myron can’t undo.
9. Long Lost (2009): Myron is summoned into a family secret that was never meant to surface.
10. Live Wire (2011): A tabloid scandal turns into a real threat, and Myron has to separate image from reality.
11. Home (2016): Two boys vanish again years later, and the “finished” story proves it was never finished.
12. Think Twice (2024): A jolt from the past forces Myron and Win into a case that plays on old identities.

Win (spin-off, same continuity)

1. Win (2021): Windsor Horne Lockwood III takes center stage when a personal thread turns into a violent investigation.

Mickey Bolitar (YA spin-off; read in order)

1. Shelter (2011): Mickey’s new town comes with buried family truths and a mystery that won’t stay quiet.
2. Seconds Away (2012): The search widens, and Mickey learns how expensive answers can be.
3. Found (2014): The trilogy closes by tying the lingering clues back to what Mickey is really chasing.

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Wilde (read in order)

1. The Boy from the Woods (2020): Wilde, a man with an unknown origin story, is drawn into a small-town mystery with bigger stakes.
2. The Match (2022): A new case forces Wilde to confront how identities are built, broken, and traded.

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Sami Kierce (read in order)

1. Fool Me Once (2016): A brutal, personal mystery introduces Sami Kierce in the background of a wider conspiracy.
2. Nobody’s Fool (2025): Sami Kierce returns as the lead when someone from his past reappears, and nothing lines up.

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Standalone novels (no series prerequisites)

1. Play Dead (1990): A newlywed’s “accidental” loss turns into a hunt for what really happened.
2. Miracle Cure (1991): A medical breakthrough draws lethal attention, and the investigation won’t stay contained.
3. Tell No One (2001): A man’s life is upended when signs suggest his lost wife may not be lost at all.
4. Gone for Good (2002): A vanished brother and a resurfacing past force a man to question everything he believed.
5. No Second Chance (2003): After an attack, a mother fights to recover her child while the story around her keeps shifting.
6. Just One Look (2004): A single photograph detonates a marriage built on omissions.
7. The Innocent (2005): One mistake in youth ripples into a present-day nightmare of cause and consequence.
8. The Woods (2007): A new discovery reopens a camp tragedy, and the “known” answers unravel.
9. Hold Tight (2008): A family’s fears spiral when surveillance, secrets, and suspicion feed each other.
10. Caught (2010): A predator case collides with media narratives and private lives in ways that don’t behave neatly.
11. Stay Close (2012): Three people try to outrun old choices, until those choices come collecting.
12. Six Years (2013): A promise to stay away becomes impossible when the past reappears in plain sight.
13. Missing You (2014): A detective’s search crosses into a dating-site trap where people aren’t who they claim.
14. The Stranger (2015): One piece of information shatters a family’s stability and spreads outward.
15. Don’t Let Go (2017): A town’s unresolved tragedy resurfaces, and the present starts echoing the worst parts of the past.
16. Run Away (2019): A father goes looking for his daughter and learns how many versions of “help” exist.
17. I Will Find You (2023): A man serving time for his family’s murder is handed a reason to believe the story is wrong.

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Other books (separate category)

1. The Magical Fantastical Fridge (2016): A children’s picture book, separate in tone and audience from the thrillers.

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Collaboration (separate continuity)

1. Gone Before Goodbye (2025): A co-written thriller (with Reese Witherspoon) that stands apart from Coben’s series characters.

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Recommended reading order (three clean paths)

Path 1: You want the full recurring cast experience

1. Deal Breaker (1995): Start the Myron universe at the beginning so character relationships land in sequence.
2. Continue straight through the Myron list (1995 → 2024): Treat it as one long-running thread with changing stakes.
3. Win (2021): Slot this after you already know Win well, so the point of view shift pays off.
4. Shelter (2011): Read the YA spin-off once you’re comfortable with the wider world it draws from.

Path 2: You want modern Coben without commitments

1. Tell No One (2001): A classic standalone entry that teaches you his pace and reversals.
2. The Stranger (2015): A clean “domestic life fractures” setup with no series baggage.
3. I Will Find You (2023): A newer standalone with a strong high-concept hook.

Path 3: You want the newest “series starters”

1. The Boy from the Woods (2020): Open the Wilde lane.
2. The Match (2022): Keep the arc intact.
3. Nobody’s Fool (2025): Start Sami Kierce only if you’re also willing to read Fool Me Once first.

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Latest Releases

Latest Releases: The recent book released by the author is: Gone Before Goodbye (October 14, 2025).

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FAQs

Do I have to read the Myron Bolitar books in order?
If you care about character history, yes. The mysteries work book-to-book, but relationships and reveals accumulate.

Are Mickey Bolitar and Win required reading for Myron?
No. They’re optional branches. Read them when you want more time in the world, not because you “must.”

Which order preserves twists best?
Publication order inside each series lane (Myron, Wilde, Mickey, Sami Kierce). For standalones, any order works.

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Conclusion

For the most consistent long-form experience, start with Deal Breaker (1995) and keep the Myron Bolitar line in order. If you’d rather sample Coben’s standalones first, Tell No One (2001) remains the safest entry point.