The books that make up the River universe are growing – and becoming more complex, with shared plot elements, characters, and events, particularly for the books of three series: The River series, The Downwinders series, and The Dark River series.
Most of the books can be read stand-alone, especially the first in each series. However, for maximum enjoyment and to experience the shared elements of the universe, here’s a suggested reading order for those three series.
1. The Bank of the River (The River series, Book 1)
2. Residual (The River series, Book 1a. It’s a free novella, available here.)
3. A Haunting in Oregon (The River series, Book 2)
4. Ghosts of Our Fathers (The River series, Book 3)
5. Eximere (The River series, Book 4)
6. The Suicide Forest (The River series, Book 5)
7. Devil’s Throat (The River series, Book 6)
8. Blood Oath, Blood River (The Downwinders series, Book 1)
9. The Diablo Horror (The River series, Book 7)
10. The Impossible Coin (The Downwinders series, Book 2)
11. The Haunting at Grays Harbor (The River series, Book 8)
12. The Graves of Plague Canyon (The Downwinders series, Book 3)
13. It Walks At Night (The River series, Book 9)
14. A (The Dark River series, Book 1)
15. The Blackham Mansion Haunting (The Downwinders series, Book 4)
16. The Cycle of the Shen (The River series, Book 10)
17. The Blood Gardener (The Dark River series, Book 2)
18. A Christmas Haunting at Point No Point (The River series, Book 11)
19. The Massacre Mechanism (The Downwinders series, Book 5)
20. The Port of Missing Souls (The River series, Book 12)
21. The Nightmares of Quiet Grove (The Downwinders series, Book 6)
22. Capricorn (The Dark River series, Book 3)
23. The Haunting of Johansen House (The River series, Book 13)
24. Evocation (The River series, Book 14)
25. Descent Into Hell Street (The Downwinders series, Book 7)
26. The Remains (The Downwinders series, Book 8)
27. Node (The River series, Book 15)
28. Inheritance (The Downwinders series, Book 9)
29. The Dead Kingdom (The Downwinders series, Book 10)
30. Spirit Lake (The River series, Book 16)
31. Divertimento (The Dark River series, Book 4)
32. House On Fire (The Downwinders series, Book 11)
33. The Cultus Contracts (The River series, Book 17)
34. Malfunction 61 (The Dark River series, Book 5)
The next three titles are not a series per se. They tell the backstory of one of the River characters, Eliza. Best read in order.
— The Haunting of Pitmon House is a stand-alone title. No prior reading necessary.
— The Haunting of Waverly Hall is a sequel to The Haunting of Pitmon House.
— A Haunting In Wisconsin is a sequel to The Haunting of Waverly Hall.
The Mausoleum Series contains three titles and should be read in order:
I Reside Here started as a stand-alone but has become a series:
“Stand-alone” titles:
Some of these books may contain references to other characters or elements of the universe, but no knowledge of any other title or character is necessary in order to enjoy them.
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