C.J. Box Books in Order: Complete List

C.J. Box may be best known for Joe Pickett, but a full C.J. Box books in order guide goes beyond one series. Alongside the long-running Wyoming game warden novels, Box has also written the Cody Hoyt and Cassie Dewell books, plus a smaller group of standalones and short fiction that can be harder to place once you get past the obvious titles.

Below, you’ll find C.J. Box’s books in order by series and standalone titles, so you can see the full bibliography at a glance and choose the reading path that makes the most sense for you.

Jump to:

• C.J. Box Books in Order by Series
  • Joe Pickett Series
  • Cody Hoyt and Cassie Dewell Series
• Standalone Books
• Short Fiction and Anthologies
• C.J. Box Adaptations
• C.J. Box Books FAQ

C.J. Box Books in Order by Series

Joe Pickett Series

Joe Pickett is the series C.J. Box is best known for, following a Wyoming game warden whose stubborn sense of right and wrong keeps pulling him into bigger and more dangerous problems. Each novel tells its own story, but Joe’s family life, career, and personal arc do carry forward from book to book.

Because of that, the best way to read the Joe Pickett books is in publication order. You’ll get the strongest sense of Joe’s development and avoid spoilers for major events along the way. For a fuller breakdown, check out our dedicated Joe Pickett books in order article.

1. Open Season (2001)
2. Savage Run (2002)
3. Winterkill (2003)
4. Trophy Hunt (2004)
   Dull Knife (2005, Short Story in Shots Fired)
5. Out of Range (2005)
6. In Plain Sight (2006)
7. Free Fire (2007)
8. Blood Trail (2008)
9. Below Zero (2009)
10. Nowhere to Run (2010)
    The Master Falconer (2011, Short Story in Shots Fired)
11. Cold Wind (2011)
12. Force of Nature (2012)
13. Breaking Point (2013)
14. Stone Cold (2013)
    Shots Fired (2014, Short Story Collection)
15. Endangered (2015)
16. Off The Grid (2016)
17. Vicious Circle (2017)
    Honor & … (2017, MatchUp Collection) – It features Sandra Brown’s character Lee Coburn.
18. The Disappeared (2018)
19. Wolf Pack (2019)
20. Long Range (2020)
21. Dark Sky (2021)
22. Shadows Reel (2022)
23. Storm Watch (2023)
24. Three-Inch Teeth (2024)
25. Battle Mountain (2025)
26. The Crossroads (2026)

Cody Hoyt and Cassie Dewell Series

These books are often grouped together under the name The Highway series, but they really begin as Cody Hoyt novels before shifting into Cassie Dewell’s story. Cody enters first as a Montana investigator trying to stay sober while looking into the suspicious death of his friend and AA sponsor, Hank. From there, Cassie Dewell joins the picture, and the series gradually becomes more closely associated with her.

Even though each book centers on a different case, this is a series that works best in publication order. The character arcs carry over, the relationships evolve, and later books land better when you’ve seen how Cody and Cassie got there.

1. Back of Beyond (2011)
2. The Highway (2013)
3. Badlands (2015)
4. Paradise Valley (2017)
5. The Bitterroots (2019)
6. Treasure State (2022)

Standalone Books

Outside his series fiction, C.J. Box has also written a small number of standalone novels. These books offer a good entry point for readers who want to try Box’s writing without starting a long-running series, while still getting the same tension, dark secrets, and high-stakes suspense that define much of his work.

1. Blue Heaven (2007)
2. Three Weeks to Say Goodbye (2008)

Short Fiction and Anthologies

Beyond his novels, C.J. Box has also contributed to short fiction and anthology projects. These works are separate from his main series and are best treated as supplemental reading.

Short Fiction

1. Pronghorns of the Third Reich (2012)

Anthologies

1. Birds of Prey (2026, anthology co-edited by Harlan Coben and C.J. Box)

C.J. Box Adaptations

C.J. Box’s books have produced two television adaptations so far. The first was Big Sky, which premiered on ABC on November 17, 2020. Developed by David E. Kelley and drawn from The Highway and Box’s Cassie Dewell world, the series starred Kylie Bunbury as Cassie Dewell and Ryan Phillippe as Cody Hoyt. It ran for three seasons, with its final episode airing on January 18, 2023, before ABC canceled it in May 2023.

Box’s second adaptation was Joe Pickett, which premiered on December 6, 2021. Starring Michael Dorman as Joe Pickett and Julianna Guill as Marybeth Pickett, the series ran for two seasons, with season two debuting on Paramount+ on June 4, 2023. C.J. Box served as an executive producer on both shows, and Joe Pickett was canceled in October 2023 after its two-season run.

C.J. Box Books FAQ

What is the best order to read C.J. Box books?

The easiest way to read C.J. Box is in publication order within each series. For most readers, that means starting with the Joe Pickett novels, then moving into the Cody Hoyt and Cassie Dewell books, since those series are where most of Box’s recurring characters and long-running storylines live.

What book should I start with if I’m new to C.J. Box?

For most readers, the best place to start is Open Season. It was Box’s debut novel in 2001 and introduced Joe Pickett, the character most closely associated with his work.

What book is Big Sky based on?

Big Sky is primarily based on The Highway, but C.J. Box’s official FAQ notes that the show also pulled from other Cassie Dewell novels, including Badlands, Paradise Valley, and The Bitterroots.

Is Joe Pickett based on a real person?

Joe Pickett is a fictional character, not a real Wyoming game warden. That said, Box has written that he rode on patrol with game wardens to make the books feel grounded in the real work, landscape, and culture of Wyoming.

Looking for similar books in order?

If you want more thriller authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Thriller Books in Order index.

• Books in Order (Full Index)
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