Peter Swanson Books in Order (Nine Lives, Henry Kimball)

Born in May 1968, Peter Swanson is an accomplished American author renowned for his gripping psychological suspense novels. He holds degrees in Creative Writing, Education, and Literature, earned from Trinity College, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and Emerson College.

Now celebrated as a best-selling author featured in both the Sunday Times and New York Times, Peter Swanson embarked on his literary journey by contributing poems, stories, and reviews to esteemed publications. His road to success was paved with dedication, as he honed his craft for a decade before securing representation and finally achieving literary acclaim with the release of his debut novel in 2014, titled “The Girl with a Clock for a Heart.”

How to read Peter Swanson’s Books in Order?

Reading The Henry Kimball Series in Order

1. The Kind Worth Killing (2015) – Ted Severson meets the beautiful and enigmatic Lily Kintner on a late-night trip from London to Boston. After a few too many martinis, the strangers start to play a game of truth in which they divulge highly personal information about themselves. Ted talks about his deteriorating marriage and his wife Miranda, who he is certain is having an extramarital affair. However, their game takes a darker turn when Ted makes a joke about killing Miranda for what she did. With no pause, Lily answers quietly, “I’d like to help.” Some people, like a lying, foul-smelling, cheating husband, are worth murdering, after all.
2. The Kind Worth Saving (2023) – There was always a little element of danger about Joan. Henry Kimball, a private investigator, can’t help but feel uneasy when she shows up at his office and requests that he look into her husband. He remembers Joan from his past life as a high school English teacher, when he was at the epicenter of a catastrophe, and just the sight of her brings back a horrible recollection.

Reading The Standalone Novels by Peter Swanson in Publication Order

• The Girl with a Clock for a Heart (2014) – She was a college student from Sweetgum, Florida, who was eighteen years old when George first met her. After becoming inseparable in their first autumn semester, George was shocked to learn that Sarah had killed herself during the holiday break. However, he recognized the girl in the picture on their mantelpiece — the one who had committed suicide — was not his fiancée as he stood in the living room of the girl’s distraught parents. He later learned the real name of the girl he had fallen in love with and what she may have done to flee her past. Now, twenty years later, she has returned and claims that George is the one person who can assist her.
• Her Every Fear (2017) – Kate Priddy had occasional anxiety episodes as a child, but after an ex-boyfriend abducted her and almost killed her, she started having full-blown panic attacks. Kate, an art student in London, accepts when Corbin Dell, a distant cousin in Boston, offers them temporary exchange flats. She does so in the hopes that some time away in a different location will help her get over the recent devastation of her life. But not long after she gets to Corbin’s opulent Beacon Hill apartment, Kate learns the startling news that Audrey Marshall, his next-door neighbor, has been killed. A terrified Kate has few answers when the police interview her about Corbin and many questions of her own.
• All the Beautiful Lies (2018) – Harry Ackerson has always thought of his stepmother Alice as “otherworldly” attractive and seductive. She has always been considerate and attentive, if a touch distant recently. Alice calls just before his college graduation to deliver some unexpected news. The police believe his father’s death to be a suicide. Harry, who is devastated, goes back to his father’s house in Maine. There, he and Alice will assist one another in putting their lives back together as they try to figure out what happened to his father. Harry encounters Grace McGowan, a strange young woman, not long after he arrives. Harry starts to wonder if Grace is really a stranger to his family even if she claims to be new to the region. She’s not the only stunning lady drawn to Harry, though. The sensual Alice is also getting closer to him and approaching him in a seductive, overtly sexual manner. Harry finds himself becoming more and more enchanted by these two women. However, the closer he gets to them, the more alone he feels. He is also becoming increasingly concerned that both ladies are lying and concealing secrets that are harmful or even fatal.

• Before She Knew Him (2019) – Hen (short for Henrietta) and her husband Lloyd have made their new home outside of Boston, Massachusetts, their peaceful home. Hen, who works as an illustrator out of a neighboring studio, has discovered the proper medications to manage her bipolar disease. She had at last discovered some security and tranquility. She notices a familiar item on the husband’s office shelf, which makes her uneasy when they meet the neighbors down the street. The sporting trophy resembles one that vanished from the residence of a young guy who was slain two years ago exactly. Hen is aware of this since she has long been entranced by the mystery surrounding this unsolved murder-an passion she no longer discusses but also can’t seem to shake.
• Eight Perfect Murders (2020) – Years ago, mystery fanatic and bookseller Malcolm Kershaw created a list of the eight “perfect murders,” or cases that are very hard to solve. He selected these cases from among the finest of the best. Mal, though, is the one who is most shocked when an FBI agent knocks on his door one snowy day in February. She’s hunting for details on a string of unsolved homicides that closely resemble the deaths on Mal’s previous list. And it’s not just the FBI agent who is curious in this bookseller who spends practically every night reading at home. He is being closely observed by the killer.
• Every Vow You Break (2021) – Years ago, mystery fanatic and bookseller Malcolm Kershaw created a list of the eight “perfect murders,” or cases that are very hard to solve. He selected these cases from among the finest of the best. Mal, though, is the one who is most shocked when an FBI agent knocks on his door one snowy day in February. She’s hunting for details on a string of unsolved homicides that closely resemble the deaths on Mal’s previous list. And it’s not just the FBI agent who is curious in this bookseller who spends practically every night reading at home. He is being closely observed by the killer.

• Nine Lives (2022) – A list containing the names of nine strangers arrives in the mail. Just a list of names on a single piece of paper; nothing else. None of the nine know the other persons on the list or have ever met them. They disregard it as junk mail or an anomaly until people on the list start experiencing really unpleasant things. Jessica Winslow, an FBI agent who happens to be on the list, is driven to learn more. Could they all be connected by a sinister secret? Or might this be the product of a deadly lunatic? These nine strangers are continuously on the lookout for the mystery sender as they wonder who would be the next person checked off…
• The Christmas Guest (2023) – Ashley Smith, a junior art student from the United States studying in London, had intended to spend Christmas alone when she received a last-minute invitation from classmate Emma Chapman to the Chapman family’s country home, Starvewood Hall. For Ashley, the Cotswold manor home, decked up in pine boughs and packed with visitors for Christmas week, is a fantasy come true. She is enthralled by Emma Chapman’s distant and attractive brother Adam as well as the warm, fire-lit home, the enormous family, and the picturesque town of Clevemoor. However, Adam is under investigation by the local police for the recent gruesome killing of a village girl, and an enigmatic figure stalks the wooded trail between Starvewood Hall and the neighborhood tavern. Ashley starts to question the type of narrative she is truly experiencing.

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