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Kristin Hannah Books: The Ultimate Author Guide
Are you a Kristin Hannah fan? If so, you’ve come to the right place! And if you’ve yet to read her work, let this be you’re starting point. In this ultimate reading guide to Kristin Hannah books, we’ll explore her best-sellers, her backlist books in order, and her popular series.
- Kristin Hannah Book Themes
- Kristin Hannah Books In Order Through 2024
- Printable Kristin Hannah Book List
- Firefly Lane Book Series
- How We Determined the Kristin Hannah Book Ranking
- Kristin Hannah Best Books Ranked
- Was There a New Kristin Hannah Book in 2023?
- Have Any of Kristin Hannah’s Books Been Made Into Movies?
- Other Works By Kristin Hannah
- Authors Like Kristin Hannah
- Kristin Hannah Biography
- More Kristin Hannah Books
Kristin Hannah Book Themes
As we examine Kristin Hannah’s entire library, you’ll see how her work has evolved over time. She began as a romance novelist before shifting to contemporary women’s fiction, and, most recently, historical fiction. What has remained consistent throughout is her focus on strong female characters. Her novels continue to have threads of romantic love, but this theme is usually secondary to the bonds of family and friendship. In her recent works, her characters often face challenges and tragedies set against different backdrops throughout history.
Throughout this guide, you’ll get to know the very best of Kristin Hannah’s work, from her #1 New York Times bestsellers to her deep backlist. We start with a complete list of Kristin Hannah books in order of publication. We clear up confusion about books that have been republished under new titles and which books should be read in order.
Next, we take a closer look at her most popular novels, as ranked by a vote of hundreds of our readers. Throughout this guide, we offer our insights about the themes, characters, and settings in her books. Finally, we answer some of the most frequently asked questions about author Kristin Hannah and her novels.
Kristin Hannah Books In Order Through 2024
Kristin Hannah is a New York Times bestselling author of more than 20 full-length novels spanning three decades. Her books have been translated into more than 40 languages and have sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. Nearly all of her books are stand-alone novels, and can be read in any order, with the exception of the Firefly Lane series discussed in the next section. Below we’ve listed all of her books in order of publication:
- A Handful of Heaven (1991) out of print
- The Enchantment (1992) out of print
- Once in Every Life (1992)
- If You Believe (1993)
- When Lightning Strikes (1994)
- Waiting for the Moon (1995)
- Home Again (1996)
- On Mystic Lake (1999)
- Angel Falls (2000)
- Summer Island (2001)
- Distant Shores (2002)
- Between Sisters (2003)
- The Things We Do For Love (2004); soon to be rereleased as Another Life (6/22/23)
- Comfort & Joy (2005)
- Magic Hour (2006); still available as Magic Hour, but also rereleased in print-only as Wild
- Firefly Lane (2008)
- True Colors (2009)
- Winter Garden (2010)
- Night Road (2011)
- Home Front (2012)
- Fly Away (2013)
- The Nightingale (2015)
- The Great Alone (2018)
- The Four Winds (2021)
- The Women (2024)
Printable Kristin Hannah Book List
Looking for a printable version of this chronological Kristin Hannah book list? Our Buy Me a Coffee BFF’s have access to a cute one-page printable tracker featuring the covers of all her novels! Join our membership site today for instant access to your copy, along with some other fun perks!
Firefly Lane Book Series
While the vast majority of Kristin Hannah’s works are stand-alone novels, she has authored one popular series. Firefly Lane (2008) and its sequel, Fly Away (2013), should be read in order. These books explore the relationship between two best friends, Kate and Tully, beginning in 1974 through the mid-2000s.
This book series was also adapted into a smash-hit Netflix series, starring Sarah Chalke and Katherine Heigl.
As you probably already know, we’re of the opinion that the book is always better. But there’s no denying the popularity of the adaption. It was the #1 Netflix series around the world the week it came out. While portions of the television series are faithful to the novels, there are also quite a few key differences. While the novels follow a linear timeline, the television show jumps back and forth. Additionally, there are major plot points from the novels missing in the adaptation, and others created solely for the television series.
How We Determined the Kristin Hannah Book Ranking
While all of Kristen Hannah’s books are worth reading, in August 2024 we asked our readers to vote on their favorites. We received more than 300 responses to our survey, and based on those votes, the novels below were the crowd favorites. We conducted this “readers’ favorite” survey prior to the publication of Hannah’s newest book, The Women, which is why you will not see that tile in the rankings below. We look forward to updating this survey in the future to see how The Women ranks compared to Hannah’s backlist titles.
Our readers had the option to tell us why they voted for each of their picks, so we’ve included some of their words as a part of each synopsis. Some readers had beautiful quotes but preferred to remain anonymous, so you’ll notice that some quotes have attribution and others do not, but they all came from our reader survey.
When the books have been part of one of our reading challenges, we also included reader ratings from the book logs our challenge participants submitted.
Kristin Hannah Best Books Ranked
With so many highly-rated bestsellers, we worried it would be hard to choose the best Kristin Hannah book objectively. However, the data from the 500+ readers who responded to our survey was clear!
Although 20 different Hannah books were mentioned, 62% selected The Nightingale as one of their top 3, with 35% of the respondents selecting it as #1. These results are backed up by the book’s average GoodReads rating of 4.6 out of 5, with just under 1.5 million reviews (as of 8/29/24).
Although it was clear that The Nightingale won Best Kristin Hannah Book in the eyes of our readers, there was plenty of love for her other titles as well. In fact, her 2024 release, The Women, rocketed to second place and also has a phenomenal 4.6 rating on Goodreads (as of 8/29/24)
You’ll find the synopsis for that book below, followed by the other favorites ranked in order of votes received from highest to lowest.
Was There a New Kristin Hannah Book in 2023?
On June 22, 2023, publisher Pan MacMillan, rereleased Kristin Hannah’s 2004 novel, The Things We Do For Love, under the title Another Life.
Another Life (formerly The Things We Do For Love) is a moving and uplifting story of family and what it means to be a mother. After struggling for years to get pregnant, Angie’s marriage crumbled under the strain. After her divorce, she relocates back to her coastal hometown in the Pacific Northwest to rejoin her boisterous family. She hopes to help rescue the failing family restaurant – and to find herself again, as well.
Lauren is a high school senior with big dreams of escaping her small hometown, and her alcoholic mother. She has her sights set on an Ivy League education. When Angie hires Lauren to work at the restaurant, they form an immediate connection. Angie longs for a child, while Lauren longs for motherly love. When Lauren’s mom suddenly leaves town, Angie offers Lauren a place to stay. What seems like a simple act of kindness will lead to so much more. Together they will be tested in unexpected ways, causing both to question what it truly means to be a family.
Have Any of Kristin Hannah’s Books Been Made Into Movies?
Several of Hannah’s books have been optioned for films, but none have yet been released.
The Nightingale Movie: Kristin Hannah Adaption In the Works
TriStar Picture’s film adaptation of The Nightingale appears to be moving forward, although it is far behind schedule. Starring real-life sisters Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning, the movie was originally scheduled for release on Christmas Day, 2020. Production of the WWII period drama was halted due to the pandemic, and the release date has since been pushed back several times. There is no current word on when (or if) the film will be released.
Reese Witherspoon selected The Nightingale as her March 2023 Reese’s Book Club pick. This led to some speculation regarding whether Witherspoon’s production company, Hello Sunshine, might now be involved with the adaptation. We’ll continue to follow future developments and keep you posted!
Warner Bros Acquired Rights for Movie Adaptation of The Women by Kristin Hannah
Several weeks before the publication of Kristin Hannah’s new book, The Women, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group acquired the rights to the novel about nurses who served in the Vietnam War. Early reporting indicates that the movie adaptation of The Women will be overseen by Cate Adams and Diamond McNeil.
Other Works By Kristin Hannah
In addition to her full-length novels, Kristin Hannah published a short romance/mystery novella titled The Glass Case in 2011. She also contributed a short romance story to a 1993 collection called Harvest Hearts, and to a 2002 collection titled With Love. Both of these titles are currently out of print.
After shifting her focus to historical fiction, Hannah wrote the introduction for the 2020 collaborative work titled Stories from Suffragette City. All of the stories in this book are set on October 23, 1915, when millions of women marched for the right to vote in New York City. Hannah also wrote the introduction to a 2014 historical romance anthology titled Grand Central: Original Stories of Postwar Love and Reunion, set at the close of WWII.
Authors Like Kristin Hannah
If, like many of our readers, the WWII historical fiction The Nightingale is your favorite Kristin Hannah novel, be sure to check out our list of Books Like the Nightingale. We also have a full list of more books like The Women. And if you loved The Four Winds, you may also want to browse our list of more unforgettable dust bowl books.
For fans of the historical fiction genre, other authors similar to Kristin Hannah that we highly recommend include Kelly Rimmer, Kate Quinn, Fiona Davis, Hazel Gaynor, Beatriz Williams, Kristin Harmel, and Susan Meissner.
If you like Kristin Hannah’s more contemporary-styled women’s fiction work, we think you’ll also enjoy authors like Viola Shipman, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Liane Moriarty, Katherine Center, and Jodi Picoult.
Kristin Hannah Biography
Kristin Hannah was born in Garden Grove, California, in 1960. Her family relocated to the Pacific Northwest when she was eight. She received an undergraduate degree in communications from the University of Washington. She also studied law at the University of Puget Sound School of Law.
During her final year of law school, Hannah’s mother was in the advanced stages of breast cancer. One day, while visiting her mom, Hannah complained about her classes. Her mother replied, “Don’t worry about it, you’re going to be a writer anyway.” That launched a plan for the mother-daughter duo to spend their precious time together working on a book. Hannah originally wanted to write a horror, but her mother insisted on historical romance, saying “I’m sick, I pick.” Hannah and her mother wrote side-by-side in her mom’s hospital room up until her final days.
After her mother’s death, Hannah packed their drafts and notes away in boxes and began her legal career. When she and her husband, Benjamin, were expecting their first child, she was put on bed rest for five months. That’s when she began writing again, completing the draft of a new book by the time her son was born. She decided to put her legal career on hold and sold her first novel before her son turned two. Her son has since graduated college and started a family of his own, and Hannah has never stopped writing. She lives with her husband on beautiful Bainbridge Island, near Seattle, Washington.
Whether you’re just starting out, or diving deep into Kristin Hannah’s backlist, we hope this guide has been helpful. We’d love to hear which of her novels is your favorite in the comments below.
More Kristin Hannah Books
- The Women by Kristin Hannah Book Club Questions & Guide
- 35 Quotes from The Women by Kristin Hannah
- Music From The Women by Kristin Hannah
- Best Books Like The Women by Kristin Hannah
- Summary of The Women by Kristin Hannah + Our Review
- Best Kristin Hannah Books Ranked (2024 Edition)
- Kristin Hannah Books in Order
- Kristin Hannah Books: The Ultimate Author Guide
