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Standalone Books in Order
Below you'll find the complete list of Standalone books in publication order. This is generally the recommended reading order for the series.
Reading order verified: April 2026
Quick Answer
What order should I read the Standalone series? Start with "Red Highway / The Oklahoma Punk" (1976) and follow publication order through all 53 books.
The complete Standalone reading order is listed below in publication sequence.
Publication Order

Red Highway / The Oklahoma Punk
1976

The Hider
1980

Aces and Eights
1981

The Wolfer
1983

Mister St. John
1983

This Old Bill
1984

Gun Man
1985

Bloody Season
1987

Peeper
1989

Sudden Country
1991

Billy Gashade
1997

Journey of the Dead
1998

The Rocky Mountain Moving Picture Association
1999

The Master Executioner
2001

Black Powder, White Smoke
2002

The Undertaker's Wife
2005

The Adventures of Johnny Vermillion
2006

Gas City
2008

The Branch and the Scaffold
2009

Roy & Lillie: A Love Story
2010

The Confessions of Al Capone
2013

Ragtime Cowboys
2014

The Long High Noon
2015

Nearly Nero
2017

The Ballad of Black Bart
2017

The Eagle and the Viper
2021
Dead Soldier
1982
Greektown
1983
Eight Mile and Dequindre
1985

I’m in the Book
1986

Bodyguards Shoot Second
1987
The Man Who Loved Noir
1991
Cigarette Stop
1991

Safe House
1992

The Crooked Way
1993

Slipstream
1994

The Alchemist
1999

Lady on Ice
2003
Square One
2006
Trust Me
2007

Kill the Cat
2007

The Bandit
2012

Sob Sister
2015

The Best Western Stories of Loren D. Estleman
1989

Valentino: Film Detective
2011

The Bandit & Others
2012

Evil Grows & Other Thrilling Tales
2012

The Perils of Sherlock Holmes
2012

Sons of Moriarty and More Stories of Sherlock Holmes
2013

The Adventure of the Plated Spoon and Other Tales of Sherlock Holmes
2014

Desperate Detroit and Stories of Other Dire Places
2016

Contention and Other Frontier Stories
2019

Legend (With: Johnny D. Boggs)
2019
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