S.E. Green is a pen name used by Shannon Greenland, and the books under this name split into two very different reading experiences: a YA serial-killer–themed thriller series (best in order) and a run of adult suspense/thriller novels that are largely standalones. There is also a small police-procedural lane (Nell Brach) where order matters.
If you want the least friction: keep the YA series together, and treat the adult novels as pick-and-choose unless you’re following Nell Brach.
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The fastest way to pick your starting book
If you want a true “series ride” (YA, vigilante/serial-killer focus): start with Killer Instinct (2014).
If you want an adult domestic/psychological standalone entry: start with The Third Son (2022) or The Family (2023).
If you want the police-procedural lane (Nell Brach): start with Gone (2022/2025) and read forward.
Reading-order rules that prevent confusion
- Lane’s YA arc (Killer Instinct → Killer Within → Killer Among) should be read in order.
- “Killers Among” is best treated as an extension/companion to Lane’s story (it’s simplest after Killer Among).
- Nell Brach should be read in order (short prequel/intro → Book 1 → Book 2).
- Everything else below is standalone unless clearly labeled.
Lane / Killer Instinct (YA) – read in order
Killer Instinct (2014): A teen obsessed with serial killers discovers she may be capable of becoming one, launching a morally loaded vigilante arc where the “first line” she crosses changes everything.
Killer Within (2015): The fallout from Lane’s first kill doesn’t stay private, forcing her to manage consequences, copycat pressure, and the problem of who gets to decide what “guilty” means.
Killer Among (2018): A new predator closes in and Lane’s secrets stop being containable, pushing the series into sharper danger and a more exposed endgame.
Killers Among (companion sequence) – best after the Lane trilogy
These three entries are commonly grouped together because they share the same “serial-killer studies / escalating hunt” engine and are easiest when read straight through.
The Strangler (2019): A new killer’s pattern tightens around teenage victims, turning Lane’s knowledge into a liability as the case demands she risk exposure to stop the next death.
The Suicide Killer (2019): A grim new method forces the investigation to move faster than comfort allows, widening the threat from one killer to a broader fear that spreads through the community.
Vigilante (2019): Lane’s “rules” are stress-tested by a case designed to bait her, pushing her toward choices that redefine whether she’s hunting monsters, or becoming one.
Adult suspense & thrillers (mostly standalones)
Vanquished (2015): A young woman is pulled into a brutal power system where survival requires strategy, transforming “escape” into a long fight against people who don’t expect resistance.
Ultimate Sacrifice (2017): A small-town shock event rips open a family’s ordinary life, escalating from local tragedy to a wider threat that forces impossible trade-offs.
Monster (2019): A survivor with hard-earned insight is asked to help understand a predator, turning trauma into a tool and making the investigation feel dangerously intimate.
Mother May I (2021): A woman’s carefully built life becomes leverage in someone else’s game, where control, image, and secrets collide until the “right choice” disappears.
The Third Son (2022): A man engineers the perfect family, then someone inside it doesn’t fit the plan, driving a domestic thriller where belonging becomes a weapon.
The Family (2023): A long-estranged daughter’s return detonates a fragile peace, turning reunion into suspicion and forcing the mother to question what she’s really been protecting.
Sister Sister (2023): Two sisters bound by survival and ambition push each other toward increasingly ruthless choices, where loyalty becomes indistinguishable from manipulation.
Ten Years Later (2024): A decade-old event resurfaces with new angles and new consequences, forcing characters to live with the version of the past they tried to outgrow.
Consumed (2025): A new relationship feels like a reset, until obsession reveals itself as a trap, shifting the story from attraction to control to the price of being noticed.
Until You Break (2025): A seemingly stable life fractures under persistent pressure, escalating from unease to inevitability as boundaries fail one by one.
The Lady Next Door (2025): Proximity becomes the threat engine as “neighbor normal” turns predatory, forcing a confrontation with what people can hide in plain sight.
Before Eve (2025): A woman runs from a buried past that refuses to stay buried, turning escape into a tightening chase where survival depends on what she’s willing to reveal.
Nell Brach (police procedural) – read in order
Note: these titles appear with multiple release dates by format (early eBook/audiobook releases vs later print editions). The order below is the consistent story order.
Gone (2022/2025): A short entry point that introduces Nell’s voice and the emotional hook of the series, setting the tone for how grief and casework interlock.
Silence (2023/2025): A case forces Nell to pursue what others dismiss, pushing her into a procedural fight where the hardest part is proving danger before it’s visible.
Unseen (2023/2025): The investigation turns toward what can’t be easily witnessed or verified, escalating the series into higher stakes and a more personal form of pressure.
Recommended “one-lane” reading plans
Plan A (YA-first, clean and complete):
Killer Instinct → Killer Within → Killer Among → The Strangler → The Suicide Killer → Vigilante
Plan B (Adult thriller sampler, three-book spread):
The Third Son → The Family → Before Eve
Plan C (Procedural lane only):
Gone → Silence → Unseen
Latest release status
The most recently listed new novel under the S.E. Green name is Before Eve (November 2025).
Frank is the editor of BookSeries.blog, focusing on publication order, chronological timelines, and spoiler-free reading guides for book series and fictional universes.