Kate Burkholder Series in Order: All Books & Short Stories

By T.L. BransonMystery

If you’re looking for Kate Burkholder series in order, Sworn to Silence is the first book. From there, I recommend following Linda Castillo’s Amish-country mystery series in publication order. Each murder investigation reaches a resolution, but Kate’s relationships, family history, and life in Painters Mill continue across the books.

The short stories are optional, but they add compact cases and important personal moments between the novels. You’ll find the novels and short stories in separate lists first, followed by one complete reading order that places every story where it belongs.

This guide focuses entirely on Kate Burkholder. For Castillo’s romantic suspense, shared-series books, and standalone novels, see my Linda Castillo Books in Order guide.

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Kate Burkholder Books in Order

Use this list if you only want the full-length novels. Most cases resolve within one book, so you can understand an individual mystery on its own. Even so, I recommend publication order. Kate’s relationship with John Tomasetti, her ties to her Amish family, and several personal milestones carry from book to book.

  1. Sworn to Silence (2009)
  2. Pray for Silence (2010)
  3. Breaking Silence (2011)
  4. Gone Missing (2012)
  5. Her Last Breath (2013)
  6. The Dead Will Tell (2014)
  7. After the Storm (2015)
  8. Among the Wicked (2016)
  9. Down a Dark Road (2017)
  10. A Gathering of Secrets (2018)
  11. Shamed (2019)
  12. Outsider (2020)
  13. Fallen (2021)
  14. The Hidden One (2022)
  15. An Evil Heart (2023)
  16. The Burning (2024)
  17. Rage (2025)

A Dark Path: And Other Kate Burkholder Short Stories is a 2026 collection rather than another full-length novel. Its new title story appears in the short-story and complete reading-order lists below.

Kate Burkholder Short Stories in Order

The Kate Burkholder short stories are optional interludes, not required chapters of the main series. Most give Kate a compact investigation between novels, while several spend more time with Tomasetti or her Amish past. I’d read them in publication order.

  1. Long Lost (2013) (Short Story)
  2. A Hidden Secret (2015) (Short Story)
  3. Seeds of Deception (2016) (Short Story)
  4. Only the Lucky (2017) (Short Story)
  5. In Dark Company (2018) (Short Story)
  6. In Plain Sight (2019) (Short Story)
  7. The Pact (2020) (Short Story)
  8. Disappeared (2021) (Short Story)
  9. Blood Moon (2022) (Short Story)
  10. Hallowed Ground (2023) (Short Story)
  11. Dark Storm Rising (2024) (Short Story)
  12. A Dark Path (2026) (Short Story) (found in A Dark Path: And Other Kate Burkholder Short Stories)

Hallowed Ground won the 2024 Edgar Award for Best Short Story. A Dark Path first appeared in the 2026 collection and does not have a separate ebook edition.

Complete Kate Burkholder Reading Order

This is the order I’d use if you want every Kate Burkholder installment. The full-length novels keep their official series numbers, while each optional short story is nested beneath the novel after which it should be read. That keeps the numbered list aligned with the novels and still shows you exactly where every story fits.

Chronological order: Seeds of Deception is the only title that moves. It follows fourteen-year-old Katie Burkholder, so read it before Sworn to Silence. Then begin the list below and skip Seeds of Deception when you reach its 2016 publication position. For a first read, I still prefer publication order because the prequel has more impact once you know the adult Kate.

  1. Sworn to Silence (2009)
  2. Pray for Silence (2010)
  3. Breaking Silence (2011)
  4. Gone Missing (2012)
  5. Her Last Breath (2013)
  6. The Dead Will Tell (2014)
  7. After the Storm (2015)
  8. Among the Wicked (2016)
  9. Down a Dark Road (2017)
  10. A Gathering of Secrets (2018)
  11. Shamed (2019)
  12. Outsider (2020)
  13. Fallen (2021)
  14. The Hidden One (2022)
  15. An Evil Heart (2023)
  16. The Burning (2024)
  17. Rage (2025)

The collected editions themselves don’t appear as additional steps because they reprint stories already included in the list. The title story “A Dark Path” is the only new story introduced inside a collection.

Kate Burkholder Short Story Collections

The collections are alternate ways to buy the short fiction, not additional steps in the series. Check the contents before purchasing, especially if you already own the individual ebooks. If you prefer collected editions, A Simple Murder and A Dark Path are the simplest two-volume option.

  1. Kate Burkholder: Three Novellas (2016)
  2. A Simple Murder (2021)
  3. A Dark Path: And Other Kate Burkholder Short Stories (2026)

Kate Burkholder: Three Novellas is an earlier ebook bundle containing “Long Lost,” “A Hidden Secret,” and “Seeds of Deception.” All three also appear in A Simple Murder, along with “Only the Lucky,” “In Dark Company,” and “In Plain Sight.”

A Dark Path: And Other Kate Burkholder Short Stories contains “The Pact,” “Disappeared,” “Blood Moon,” “Hallowed Ground,” “Dark Storm Rising,” and the new title story. I recommend A Simple Murder and A Dark Path if you want every short story in two collected volumes. Together, they include all twelve stories without overlap.

Kate Burkholder TV Adaptation

An Amish Murder adapts Sworn to Silence and stars Neve Campbell as Kate Burkholder. The title changed for television, but the story is based on the first novel. It was produced as a standalone Lifetime movie rather than the start of an ongoing series.

About Linda Castillo’s Kate Burkholder Series

Linda Castillo introduced Kate in Sworn to Silence. Kate was born and raised Amish in fictional Painters Mill, Ohio, left the church at eighteen, and later returned as the town’s chief of police. Her knowledge of Amish customs and Pennsylvania Dutch gives her access and insight that other investigators often lack, but leaving the faith also keeps her at an uncomfortable distance from the community and her own family.

The books combine police procedure, murder mystery, and thriller pacing. John Tomasetti begins as a state agent who assists Kate, then becomes one of the series’ most important continuing characters. Their relationship develops gradually, which is another reason I recommend publication order even though each central case is resolved within its own novel.

Most investigations bring Kate back into Painters Mill’s Amish and “English” communities, but the series also sends her beyond Ohio when a case connects to her past or her particular background. That mix of recurring personal stakes and self-contained mysteries keeps the books connected without turning every novel into one unfinished case.

Looking for similar books in order?

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

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