Jessica Hawkins Books in Order (Updated April 10, 2026)

Jessica Hawkins does not really have one giant interconnected universe. She has several separate romance lanes: the married-and-forbidden intensity of Cityscape Affair, the billionaire arc of Explicitly Yours, the slow-burn epic of Something in the Way, the cartel romance of White Monarch, the connected-but-more-flexible Slip of the Tongue books, plus a few true standalones and shorter extras. Her official reading-order page presents those as separate paths rather than one blended chronology.

That means the best order depends on what kind of book you want first.

Pick your doorway first

1. Start with Come Undone if you want the classic Jessica Hawkins experience: forbidden love, heavy emotional fallout, and a trilogy that really does need to be read straight through. Her official site labels Cityscape Affair a trilogy that “must be read in order.”
2. Start with Something in the Way if you want the most widely recognized long-form Hawkins saga. Goodreads lists it as a four-book series, and Hawkins’ books page presents it as a complete love saga.
3. Start with Violent Delights if you want the darkest, most dangerous branch. Hawkins’ reading-order page calls White Monarch her “newest series,” built around cartel crime and rival kingpin brothers.
4. Start with Right Where I Want You if you want one book, one couple, and no sequel commitment. Both Goodreads and the official books page present it as a standalone office romance.

The best order for most readers

For a reader who wants the cleanest tour of Jessica Hawkins without jumping too wildly between tones, this is the most practical route:

1. Come Undone
2. Come Alive
3. Come Together
4. Possession
5. Domination
6. Addiction
7. Provocation
8. Obsession
9. Something in the Way
10. Somebody Else’s Sky
11. Move the Stars
12. Lake + Manning
13. Violent Delights
14. Violent Ends
15. Violent Triumphs
16. Right Where I Want You

That path works because it moves from her foundational forbidden-romance trilogy into her early billionaire series, then into her biggest emotional saga, then finishes with the later cartel trilogy and one clean standalone. The official reading-order page also separates these exact lanes rather than mixing them.

Jessica Hawkins books in order

Cityscape Affair

1. Come Undone (2013): Olivia’s marriage and sense of stability start to crack when she meets David, making this the essential starting point for Hawkins’ original forbidden-love trilogy.
2. Come Alive (2013): Book two widens the emotional consequences of the affair and should be read immediately after the opener.
3. Come Together (2014): The trilogy finale brings the central relationship to its payoff, so this one only works after the first two.

Explicitly Yours

1. Possession (2014): Hawkins’ official reading page and Goodreads both place this first in the billionaire romance series, built around Lola and Beau’s transactional setup.
2. Domination (2015): The second novel continues the same central arc and is not a standalone reset.
3. Addiction (2015): A novella labeled 2.5 on Goodreads, best treated as optional but ideally read between books two and three if you want the full picture.
4. Provocation (2015): Book three raises the emotional and relational stakes rather than starting a new couple.
5. Obsession (2016): The series finale closes the main arc and belongs last.

Night Fever / former title history

This is the one place where title history can confuse readers. Hawkins’ official site states that the former Night Fever Series was re-covered and retitled as Explicitly Yours, specifically: Possession, Domination, Provocation, Obsession. The older serial also included Night Fever, Night Call, Midnight, Night Moves, Night Edge, but the current official branding centers on the Explicitly Yours names. For a current reading-order page, use the newer titles.

Slip of the Tongue

1. Slip of the Tongue (2016): A marriage-in-crisis love triangle that anchors this connected set and is the strongest place to begin if this lane appeals to you.
2. The First Taste (2016): Hawkins’ site calls this a dual-POV spin-off and explicitly says both it and Slip of the Tongue are standalones, so it can be read before or after the opener.
3. Yours to Bare (2016): Another connected standalone in the same orbit, best saved until after Slip of the Tongue even though the books are not strictly dependent on each other.

Something in the Way

1. Something in the Way (2017): The first book begins Hawkins’ best-known slow-burn forbidden-love saga and is the clear entry point into this four-book sequence.
2. Somebody Else’s Sky (2017): Book two deepens the fallout and keeps the same central emotional line moving.
3. Move the Stars (2017): The third novel continues the same romance and should not be separated from the earlier books.
4. Lake + Manning (2018): The fourth book completes the saga and belongs last.

White Monarch

1. Violent Delights (2019): The cartel-romance opener introduces the de la Rosa conflict and is the required starting point for this darker trilogy.
2. Violent Ends (2019): Book two continues directly from the first and keeps the same dangerous family war in motion.
3. Violent Triumphs (2019): The trilogy finale closes the White Monarch arc and is the latest mainline Jessica Hawkins novel clearly visible on the official reading pages.

Standalones and short extras

1. Strictly Off Limits (2014): A forbidden office-romance novella that Hawkins’ site presents as a quick one-night read and a true separate piece, not part of a larger series.
2. Right Where I Want You (2018): An enemies-to-lovers office romance and one of the easiest Hawkins books to pick up if you do not want a trilogy.
3. Stray (2021): Hawkins’ reading-order page describes this as a steamy short story for fans of Slip of the Tongue or Cityscape Affair, so it works as optional extra material rather than a core series entry.

Recommended reading order by mood

For the most “Jessica Hawkins” starting point

1. Come Undone
2. Come Alive
3. Come Together

This is still the cleanest introduction to her signature angsty forbidden-romance style. Her own site highlights Cityscape Affair as the debut trilogy and says it must be read in order.

For the biggest emotional sweep

1. Something in the Way
2. Somebody Else’s Sky
3. Move the Stars
4. Lake + Manning

This is the best lane if you want one long, complete saga rather than a shorter trilogy.

For darker romantic suspense energy

1. Violent Delights
2. Violent Ends
3. Violent Triumphs

This is the right branch if cartel crime, family war, and higher danger matter more to you than workplace or affair drama.

For shorter commitment

1. Right Where I Want You
2. Strictly Off Limits

These are the simplest low-commitment places to sample her style without starting a series.

Do any Jessica Hawkins books require strict order?

Yes, but not all of them.

Must be read in order:

• Cityscape Affair
• Explicitly Yours
• Something in the Way
• White Monarch

Flexible or optional around the main story:

• Addiction, because it is a novella inside Explicitly Yours
• The First Taste and Yours to Bare, because Hawkins explicitly describes the connected Slip of the Tongue books as standalones/spin-offs rather than one strict serial
• Stray, because it is positioned as bonus material for existing fans

Latest release status

The most recent full mainline trilogy currently highlighted on Jessica Hawkins’ official reading pages is White Monarch, ending with Violent Triumphs (2019). Her official site also lists Stray inside the 2021 anthology Two More Days, but as a short story rather than a new full novel. I did not find a newer clearly published solo novel than the books already surfaced on the official books and reading-order pages, and the “What I’m Working On” page appears stale rather than a reliable live release tracker.

FAQs

What is the best Jessica Hawkins book to start with?
Start with Come Undone if you want her foundational forbidden-romance trilogy, or Something in the Way if you want her biggest long-form love saga.

Do I need to read Slip of the Tongue in order?
Not strictly in the same way as her trilogies. Hawkins says The First Taste is a spin-off and that both it and Slip of the Tongue are standalones.

Is Night Fever a separate series from Explicitly Yours?
In current practical terms, no. The official site says the former Night Fever Series was retitled as Explicitly Yours, so current readers should follow the newer series naming.

Is Right Where I Want You part of a series?
No. The official site and Goodreads both present it as a standalone enemies-to-lovers office romance.

Conclusion

The simplest way into Jessica Hawkins is to choose the flavor first, not the publication date. Read Cityscape Affair for classic forbidden angst, Something in the Way for the biggest emotional journey, White Monarch for dark cartel romance, or Right Where I Want You for a no-commitment standalone. Once you do that, her catalog stops looking scattered and starts looking intentionally segmented.