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Calhoun Women

by Nora Roberts

The Calhoun Women series by Nora Roberts has 5 known books (5 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with Courting Catherine (1991).

Books
5 known books (5 novels)
Published
5
First published
1991
Status
completed
Shelved under
Romance
Last checked

Start here: Courting Catherine (1991) — then read straight through in publication order.

Book one

Cover of Courting Catherine

Courting Catherine (1991)

Reading order

The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.

  1. Courting Catherine

    Novel

    At 243 pages, Courting Catherine is the shortest book in Calhoun Women, published in 1991 and pairing eldest sister Catherine with wealthy investor Trenton St. James III as he helps restore the family's crumbling Maine coast inn -- and the mystery of a lost, cursed emerald necklace begins to surface.

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  2. A Man for Amanda

    Novel

    A Man for Amanda is the second book in Calhoun Women, published in 1991, pairing another Calhoun sister with a man drawn into the search for the family's lost emerald necklace and the ghost story of ancestor Bianca Calhoun behind it.

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  3. For the Love of Lilah

    Novel

    Calhoun Women continues with For the Love of Lilah, the third entry, released in 1991 at 320 pages, deepening the mystery of the missing emeralds as another Calhoun sister finds her match.

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  4. Suzanna's Surrender

    Novel

    Published in 1991, Suzanna's Surrender is the fourth installment of Calhoun Women at 357 pages, resolving the mystery of the family's lost emerald necklace and the ghost of Bianca Calhoun that's run beneath all four sisters' courtships.

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  5. Megan's Mate

    Novel

    Megan's Mate followed Suzanna's Surrender by five years, arriving in 1996 as a standalone follow-up bringing cousin Megan into the extended Calhoun family circle -- more an epilogue to the original quartet than an essential fifth chapter of the emerald-necklace mystery. It runs 314 pages.

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About the Calhoun Women series

The Calhoun Women follows four sisters — Catherine, Amanda, Lilah, and Suzanna — living together in their family's crumbling Victorian mansion on the Maine coast, united by a family legend: a lost emerald necklace, given to their great-grandmother by a mysterious sea captain, that's said to carry a curse until it's found and a wronged ancestor's story is set right. Courting Catherine pairs the eldest, no-nonsense Catherine, with Trenton St. James III, the wealthy investor helping restore the family's crumbling inn. A Man for Amanda, For the Love of Lilah, and Suzanna's Surrender each pair one of the remaining sisters with a man drawn into the search for the family's lost heirloom and the ghost story behind it, as the mystery of the necklace and the sisters' ancestor Bianca deepens with each book. Megan's Mate, published five years after the original quartet, catches up with a cousin, Megan, brought into the extended family circle, closing out the series with one more romance tied to the same Maine coast setting.

As in several of Roberts's early family sagas, the four original books were conceived and released together as a tight quartet, with the mystery of the missing emeralds and the ghost of Bianca Calhoun providing a shared thread beneath each sister's individual courtship.

Frequently asked questions

How many books are in the Calhoun Women series?

Five: Courting Catherine, A Man for Amanda, For the Love of Lilah, Suzanna's Surrender, and the later follow-up Megan's Mate.

What order should I read the Calhoun Women books in?

Publication order: Courting Catherine, A Man for Amanda, For the Love of Lilah, Suzanna's Surrender, then Megan's Mate. The first four form a tight quartet around a family mystery.

Do I need to read the Calhoun Women in order?

For the original four, yes — the mystery of the lost Calhoun emeralds builds across all four books. Megan's Mate is a later, more standalone addition.

Who are the four Calhoun sisters?

Catherine, Amanda, Lilah, and Suzanna — four sisters living in their family's Victorian mansion on the Maine coast, each the focus of one of the original four books.

Is Megan's Mate a true fifth Calhoun Women book?

Yes, though it was published five years after the original quartet and centers on Megan, an extended member of the Calhoun family circle, rather than one of the original four sisters.

Reading order last verified .