Susan Stoker Books in Order (Updated April 16, 2026)

Susan Stoker writes interconnected romantic suspense, but not every corner of her bibliography sits in the same continuity. The safest approach is to begin with the original foundation series, then branch outward into the connected teams, family lines, and next-generation books.

Her own guidance is flexible, but it still points new readers toward SEAL of Protection first, then usually Badge of Honor or Delta Force Heroes. After that, you can read more freely without losing the larger shape of the world.

Quick answer

Start with Protecting Caroline.

If you want the smoothest first read, use this path:

1. SEAL of Protection
2. Badge of Honor or Delta Force Heroes
3. Ace Security
4. Mountain Mercenaries
5. Delta Team Two
6. Then continue into SEAL of Protection: Legacy, SEAL Team Hawaii, Silverstone, Eagle Point Search & Rescue, The Refuge, SEAL of Protection: Alliance, Rescue Angels, Alpha Cove, and Delta Force Heroes: Guardians

Best Susan Stoker reading order for most readers

This is the best balance between clarity and flexibility:

1. Read SEAL of Protection first.
2. Then choose Badge of Honor or Delta Force Heroes.
3. Read Ace Security, which sits comfortably after the early connected books.
4. Continue with Mountain Mercenaries and Delta Team Two.
5. After that, treat the later branches as open lanes unless you want to preserve every crossover in the neatest possible order.

This works because the early books do the heavy lifting. They introduce the protective-team setup, the emotional tone, and the recurring-network feel that later series assume you already understand.

Publication-style series order

SEAL of Protection

1. Protecting Caroline: The best starting point for new readers, this opener establishes Stoker’s protective-romantic suspense formula and the series foundation later books keep building on.
2. Protecting Alabama: The second book widens the team dynamic and reinforces the linked-character structure that becomes important across the broader universe.
3. Protecting Fiona: This entry settles the rhythm of the original team and strengthens the sense that these books are meant to be read as part of a larger network.
4. Marrying Caroline: A bridge-style entry that follows earlier character developments and is best read in place rather than skipped as an optional extra.
5. Protecting Summer: The series moves forward with another high-protection romance while continuing to deepen the core cast’s interconnected world.
6. Protecting Cheyenne: This book keeps the original SEAL framework intact while expanding the emotional and team-based continuity of the series.
7. Protecting Jessyka: A later core installment that still benefits from reading the earlier books because the group dynamic is already well established by this point.
8. Protecting Julie: More of a continuity-supporting entry than a hard reset, this one fits best when read in sequence with the surrounding novels.
9. Protecting Melody: The series continues its familiar blend of danger, rescue, and relationship development while tightening the sense of a lived-in shared world.
10. Protecting the Future: A title that signals the series’ growing concern with legacy, family, and what these protectors are building beyond a single case.
11. Protecting Alabama’s Kids: This is not a detached side story; it works best as a follow-up for readers already invested in earlier relationships and family developments.
12. Protecting Kiera: A later-series entry that still leans on the emotional history of the original cast.
13. Protecting Dakota: By this point the books reward readers who have stayed in order, because recurring bonds and references carry more weight.
14. Protecting Tex: A very late return to the original line that reads best once you already know the long-running history behind the series.

Badge of Honor

1. Justice for Mackenzie: A strong second-step series after SEAL of Protection, opening the law-enforcement side of Stoker’s connected world.
2. Justice for Mickie: The series quickly settles into its police-centered protective structure while keeping the same romance-suspense balance.
3. Justice for Corrie: This entry continues building the team identity and makes the series feel increasingly cumulative rather than episodic.
4. Justice for Laine: Another in-order book that works best when the reader already knows the group and its protective instincts.
5. Shelter for Elizabeth: The title marks a slight tonal variation, but it still belongs firmly inside the same connected run.
6. Justice for Boone: This keeps the series moving through the team while reinforcing the sense of an expanding shared cast.
7. Shelter for Adeline: A later-series installment that benefits from the continuity already established in the earlier books.
8. Shelter for Sophie: The emotional stakes stay personal, but the cumulative effect of recurring characters matters more by this point.
9. Justice for Erin: This continues the series’ alternating emphasis on threat, rescue, and found-family support.
10. Justice for Milena: A useful example of why order helps, since the larger cast dynamic is now part of the appeal.
11. Shelter for Blythe: The series is fully settled into its protective-team rhythm here, making prior familiarity especially rewarding.
12. Justice for Hope: This late entry keeps the line consistent while leaning on the trust readers have built with the group.
13. Shelter for Quinn: A continuation book that reads most smoothly when taken in sequence with the rest of the series.
14. Shelter for Koren: The penultimate stretch of the series works best for readers already oriented to the established team.
15. Shelter for Penelope: A late-series book best approached after the earlier Badge of Honor novels rather than as an isolated sample.

Delta Force Heroes

1. Rescuing Rayne: This is the best entry point into the military-rescue branch of Stoker’s world and one of the strongest places to go after SEAL of Protection.
2. Rescuing Emily: The series builds momentum quickly, keeping the same rescue-heavy tone while tightening team continuity.
3. Rescuing Harley: Another early core entry that helps define the series’ identity before later crossovers and callbacks accumulate.
4. Marrying Emily: A bridge-style follow-up that works better in sequence than as a detached bonus read.
5. Rescuing Kassie: The line continues to broaden its emotional scope while still relying on the established team structure.
6. Rescuing Bryn: By now the series is clearly cumulative, with each new romance also reinforcing the larger group dynamic.
7. Rescuing Casey: This keeps the military-protection formula steady while rewarding readers who have followed the earlier rescues.
8. Rescuing Sadie: A continuity-rich entry tied to existing relationships, making it smarter to read in place than to treat it as optional filler.
9. Rescuing Wendy: The series continues its rescue-first energy while leaning more heavily on the built-up cast network.
10. Rescuing Mary: Another later entry where familiarity with the team meaningfully improves the reading experience.
11. Rescuing Aimee: This pushes the line forward without changing its core promise of danger, loyalty, and highly personal stakes.
12. Rescuing Macie: A near-end installment that lands better once the reader already knows the emotional history of the group.
13. Rescuing Annie: A much later return that fits best for readers who want to stay current with one of Stoker’s central connected series.

Ace Security

1. Claiming Grace: This opens a shorter connected branch and works well after the earliest foundation series.
2. Claiming Alexis: The security-firm setup locks into place here, giving the series its own identity without losing the wider shared-world feel.
3. Claiming Bailey: A mid-series installment that keeps the protective-romance formula familiar and accessible.
4. Claiming Felicity: This later entry continues the line’s security-centered focus while staying easy to follow in order.
5. Claiming Sarah: The final main entry completes the compact Ace Security run and is best read after the first four books.

Mountain Mercenaries

1. Defending Allye: One of the better later starting points if you want a newer-feeling branch without losing the larger connected-world appeal.
2. Defending Chloe: The series quickly defines its own team chemistry while staying recognizably Susan Stoker.
3. Defending Morgan: A good example of the series’ balance between action setup and relationship-forward payoff.
4. Defending Harlow: By this point the mercenary team is established enough that in-order reading adds emotional texture.
5. Defending Everly: The shared-team structure matters more now, so reading out of sequence is possible but less satisfying.
6. Defending Zara: A late-series installment that keeps the same protective intensity and found-family atmosphere.
7. Defending Raven: The final main book pays off the team’s accumulated history and works best at the end of the run.

Delta Team Two

1. Shielding Gillian: This opens another connected military branch and reads best after readers already know Stoker’s larger style and world.
2. Shielding Kinley: The series settles into a rapid team-based rhythm, emphasizing continuity over standalone distance.
3. Shielding Aspen: A mid-run entry that benefits from the groundwork laid by the first two books.
4. Shielding Jayme: The team dynamic is now part of the draw, making in-order reading the stronger choice.
5. Shielding Riley: This keeps the line moving without changing its core military-protective structure.
6. Shielding Devyn: A later entry where the reward is as much the familiar team as the central romance.
7. Shielding Ember: Near the end of the series, continuity matters more than it did at the start.
8. Shielding Sierra: The last book works best as a payoff to the full Delta Team Two run.

SEAL of Protection: Legacy

1. Securing Caite: This next-generation branch is best read after the original SEAL of Protection books because legacy is part of the point.
2. Securing Brenae: The series continues that handoff effect, linking old familiarity with newer leads.
3. Securing Sidney: A good continuation entry that benefits from readers already knowing the background relationships around it.
4. Securing Piper: The legacy framing becomes more meaningful as the series progresses.
5. Securing Zoey: This late-middle installment works best for readers already invested in the broader family-and-team network.
6. Securing Avery: Another continuity-forward book that rewards familiarity with the older generation of characters.
7. Securing Kalee: The later the series goes, the more the “legacy” aspect shapes the reading experience.
8. Securing Jane: The final current entry reads like a culmination of this next-wave branch rather than a fresh starting point.

Silverstone

1. Trusting Skylar: This starts a compact connected series with a strong team-and-trust emphasis.
2. Trusting Taylor: The second book reinforces the line’s relationship between personal danger and group support.
3. Trusting Molly: A later entry that fits the same protective pattern while leaning more on the established cast.
4. Trusting Cassidy: The series closes with the kind of cumulative emotional payoff that makes sequence worthwhile.

SEAL Team Hawaii

1. Finding Elodie: This opens the Hawaii branch and works best once you already know Stoker’s wider approach to connected suspense romance.
2. Finding Lexie: The series continues its island-based team setup while keeping familiar protective stakes.
3. Finding Kenna: A middle entry that benefits from the cast familiarity built in the first two books.
4. Finding Monica: By this stage the team identity is part of the appeal, not just the individual romance.
5. Finding Carly: The continuity remains light enough to follow, but still stronger in order than out of order.
6. Finding Ashlyn: A later book that rewards readers who have stayed with the whole team.
7. Finding Jodelle: The final current entry works best as the close of the full Hawaii run.

Eagle Point Search & Rescue

1. Searching for Lilly: This begins the search-and-rescue branch and gives Stoker’s world a slightly different operational angle.
2. Searching for Elsie: The second entry builds team familiarity and keeps the rescue-centered momentum going.
3. Searching for Bristol: A mid-series installment that relies more on the established group than the opener did.
4. Searching for Caryn: The series continues with the same blend of danger, support, and tightly focused romance.
5. Searching for Finley: By this point the team framework is central to the reading experience.
6. Searching for Heather: A late entry that lands best for readers already following the Eagle Point crew.
7. Searching for Khloe: The close of the series reads as payoff rather than a standalone gateway.

The Refuge

1. Deserving Alaska: This opens a later connected branch with a slightly more refuge-centered framing around safety and recovery.
2. Deserving Henley: The second book continues the pattern of emotional rebuilding inside a protective setting.
3. Deserving Reese: A middle entry that strengthens the series’ group identity.
4. Deserving Cora: The line continues to build around healing, safety, and the people who make both possible.
5. Deserving Lara: By now the shared setting matters as much as the individual central couple.
6. Deserving Maisy: A later installment that works best for readers already invested in the broader refuge dynamic.
7. Deserving Ryleigh: The final current book closes the series’ existing run with the strongest continuity payoff.

SEAL of Protection: Alliance

1. Protecting Remi: This is a separate branch from the original SEAL of Protection line and should be treated as its own later connected series.
2. Protecting Wren: The Alliance books continue the protective structure while clearly belonging to a newer phase of the world.
3. Protecting Josie: A mid-series entry that benefits from readers already knowing Stoker’s older core books.
4. Protecting Maggie: The series keeps the familiar rescue-and-romance model while leaning into newer character groupings.
5. Protecting Addison: By this point Alliance reads best as a continuation branch, not a starting lane.
6. Protecting Kelli: The later books reward readers who are already comfortable with Stoker’s wider continuity.
7. Protecting Bree: The current final Alliance title works best as the cap to this distinct sub-series.

Rescue Angels

1. Keeping Laryn: One of Stoker’s newer major branches, this opens the series cleanly but still sits inside her wider connected romantic-suspense world.
2. Keeping Amanda: The second book builds the team and makes the series feel more cumulative.
3. Keeping Zita: A mid-run installment that continues the rescue-focused pattern and strengthens the cast network.
4. Keeping Penny: This keeps the series moving while reinforcing the emotional family feel of the Rescue Angels team.
5. Keeping Kara: A later entry that benefits from readers already knowing the group dynamic.
6. Keeping Jennifer: Listed as the sixth and final Rescue Angels book, this reads like the closing payoff to the line.

Alpha Cove

1. The Soldier: This starts a newer family-oriented branch and works well after readers are already comfortable with Stoker’s style.
2. The Sailor: The second book continues the Alpha Cove line with another protector-centered romance inside the same family framework.
3. The Pilot: This upcoming third entry continues the sibling-centered structure of the series.
4. The Guardsman: Officially described as the fourth and last Alpha Cove story, this is positioned as the series finale.

Delta Force Heroes: Guardians

1. Rescuing Brinley: This opens a newer offshoot connected to the Delta Force Heroes side of Stoker’s bibliography.
2. Rescuing Cypress: The second Guardians book continues the same rescue-centered branch.
3. Rescuing Talia: This is the planned third book in the Guardians line and should be read after the first two.

Game of Chance

1. The Protector: This starts a separate later series rather than functioning as a new foundation for the whole Stoker universe.
2. The Royal: The second book continues the line’s newer-series identity and is best read in sequence.
3. The Hero: A mid-series entry that builds on the setup established in the first two novels.
4. The Lumberjack: The fourth current book continues the Game of Chance run and works best after the earlier titles.

Standalones, side projects, and collections

These are best treated as separate or optional, not part of the main first-pass reading order.

• Falling for the Delta: A connected short story written with Riley Edwards, best approached as an extra rather than a core continuity stop.
• A Moment in Time: A short-story collection featuring familiar characters and bonus material for readers who already know parts of Stoker’s world.
• Another Moment in Time: A follow-up collection of shorter pieces that works best as added-value reading after the main novels.
• A Third Moment in Time: Another collection, mixing previously published shorter work with additional material and a Silverstone-related novella.
• A Fourth Moment in Time: A later collection of three stories, useful for completists rather than essential first-time readers.
• Stepbrother Virgin: A separate standalone title that should not be confused with the main romantic-suspense continuity.
• A Princess for Cale: Another separate title better treated as outside the core interconnected reading path.
• The Guardian Mist: A standalone with a supernatural element, clearly apart from the main team-based suspense world.
• Nature’s Rift: A young adult project, separate in tone and scope from the main Susan Stoker romantic-suspense catalog.

Do you need a chronological order?

Not really.

Susan Stoker is much easier in series order than in a strict in-world chronology. The key question is not “what happened first on a timeline,” but “which team, family, or legacy thread do I need to know before this one?” That makes publication-style series order the most useful guide for most readers.

Latest release status

As of April 16, 2026, the current and upcoming books clearly promoted on Susan Stoker’s official site include:

• Keeping Penny – May 5, 2026
• Keeping Kara – July 7, 2026
• The Pilot – August 4, 2026
• Rescuing Cypress – January 5, 2027
• The Guardsman – March 9, 2027

Her official series pages also show Keeping Jennifer, Rescuing Talia, and the later Alpha Cove and Guardians lines as active parts of the current catalog, even where full blurbs or fuller release detail are still limited.

FAQs

What is the best Susan Stoker book to start with?

Protecting Caroline is still the safest first book.

Which Susan Stoker series should I read first?

Start with SEAL of Protection, then move to Badge of Honor or Delta Force Heroes.

Are Susan Stoker books all connected?

Many of the romantic-suspense series are connected, but not every standalone or side project belongs to that same continuity.

Can I start with a newer series?

Yes, especially with Keeping Laryn or Defending Allye, but you will lose some crossover context.

Is SEAL of Protection: Alliance the same as SEAL of Protection?

No. It is related, but it is better treated as a separate later branch, not as part of the original fourteen-book core run.

Final recommendation

If you only want one clear instruction, it is this: start with Protecting Caroline, then keep reading through SEAL of Protection before branching out.

That gives you the cleanest introduction to Susan Stoker’s world, preserves the emotional payoff of later connected books, and makes every newer branch easier to place.