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Series · thriller
Colter Shaw
The Colter Shaw series by Jeffery Deaver has 10 known books (10 published). It is best read in publication order, starting with Captivated (2019). The Bookkeeper is the latest book with a fully recorded publication date. The next announced book, Freeze Frame, is due 4 May 2027.
- Books
- 10 known books (5 novels + 5 novellas)
- Published
- 10
- First published
- 2019
- Status
- ongoing
- Shelved under
- Thriller
Start here: Captivated (2019)
— then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Captivated
Captivated, a 43-page novella, is one of the short digital entries Jeffery Deaver alternates with his full Colter Shaw novels, filling in a side case for the professional reward-seeker outside the main numbered books. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Captivated - Book 2:
The Never Game
The Never Game, published in 2019, launches Jeffery Deaver's Colter Shaw series, introducing the reward seeker who tracks missing people purely for cash using survival and tracking skills drilled into him by his paranoid, off-the-grid survivalist father. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Never Game - Book 3:
The Second Hostage
The Second Hostage, a 56-page novella published in 2020, is one of the short digital side stories Deaver alternates with the main Colter Shaw novels, unspooling more of Shaw's family backstory between cases. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Second Hostage - Book 4:
The Goodbye Man
The Goodbye Man, running 594 pages, is the second Colter Shaw novel, published in 2020. Shaw's rootless, RV-based life on the road across America continues as his father's hidden secrets keep unspooling alongside each new case. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Goodbye Man - Book 5:
Forgotten
Forgotten, a digital novella published in 2021, slots in between the main Colter Shaw novels -- one of the short side cases Jeffery Deaver alternates with the full-length books. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Forgotten - Book 6:
The Final Twist
The Final Twist, running 528 pages, is book three of the Colter Shaw series, published in 2021. Deaver continues escalating Shaw's family backstory -- his father's death, hidden secrets in his childhood compound -- alongside the case at hand. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Final Twist - Book 7:
The Deadline Clock
The Deadline Clock, a digital novella released in 2022, is one of the short side cases Jeffery Deaver alternates between full Colter Shaw novels, optional reading that fills gaps in the main timeline. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Deadline Clock - Book 8:
Hunting Time
Hunting Time, running 603 pages, holds the fourth spot in the Colter Shaw series, published in 2022. It continues Deaver's puzzle-plot approach, now set against the road-trip backdrop that distinguishes Shaw from his Lincoln Rhyme novels. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Hunting Time - Book 9:
South of Nowhere
South of Nowhere, running 402 pages, holds the fifth spot in the Colter Shaw series and was published in May 2025 -- around the same period the Amazon Prime Video adaptation Tracker, starring Justin Hartley, raised the series' profile. Alternative text for cover: Cover of South of Nowhere - Book 10:
The Bookkeeper
The Bookkeeper, a 61-page novella, slots in at position 5.5 in the Colter Shaw series, continuing Jeffery Deaver's pattern of short digital side cases between the main novels. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Bookkeeper
Key facts about the Colter Shaw series
The Colter Shaw series has 10 books on our list. Since all 10 are out now, you can read the whole list today. 5 are novels, while the rest are 5 novellas.
Start with Captivated, since it opens the publication order in 2019. The Never Game is book 2, from 2019. The Second Hostage is book 3, from 2020.
The Goodbye Man is book 4, from 2020. Forgotten is book 5, from 2021. The Final Twist is book 6, from 2021.
The Deadline Clock is book 7, from 2022, while Hunting Time is book 8, from 2022. South of Nowhere is book 9, from 2025. The Bookkeeper is book 10, from 2026.
Each title links to its own page, while the list keeps them in date order. Each book page shows its dates and editions.
The Bookkeeper is the latest book with a full release date, out on 4 August 2026. Meanwhile, Freeze Frame comes next, due on 4 May 2027.
The books came out between 2019 and 2026, while their length runs from 43 to 603 pages. That is a run of 7 years.
Jeffery Deaver has 58 books on our list. Additionally, they write Rune, John Pellam and Lincoln Rhyme, plus 2 more series. We shelve the books under thriller.
About the Colter Shaw series
Colter Shaw is a professional "reward seeker" — not a cop, private investigator or bounty hunter, but someone who tracks missing people and solves cases purely for the cash rewards offered, using survival and tracking skills drilled into him by his paranoid, off-the-grid survivalist father. Jeffery Deaver launched the series with The Never Game in 2019, giving Shaw a rootless, RV-based life on the road across America and a family backstory — his father's death, hidden secrets in his childhood compound — that unspools gradually across the novels alongside each case.
Deaver alternates full novels with shorter digital novellas (Captivated, The Second Hostage, Forgotten, The Deadline Clock) that fill in side cases between the main books. The series became the basis for the Amazon Prime Video show Tracker, starring Justin Hartley, which significantly raised its profile. Fans of survivalist and wilderness-skills thrillers, or of Deaver's puzzle-plot Lincoln Rhyme novels wanting a road-trip setting instead of a lab, are the natural audience.
Frequently asked questions
How many Colter Shaw books are there?
Five full novels (The Never Game through South of Nowhere) plus five shorter digital novellas, for ten entries total as of The Bookkeeper (2026).
What order should I read the Colter Shaw books in?
Publication order, starting with The Never Game. The novellas are optional side stories that slot in between the numbered novels but aren't required reading.
Is Colter Shaw connected to the TV show Tracker?
Yes. Amazon Prime Video's Tracker, starring Justin Hartley, is based on the Colter Shaw novels, beginning with The Never Game.
Do I need to read the Colter Shaw novellas?
No. Captivated, The Second Hostage, Forgotten, The Deadline Clock and The Bookkeeper are shorter side stories; they add texture but the five main novels tell the complete arc on their own.
Is there a new Colter Shaw book coming?
The Bookkeeper, a digital novella, was published August 4, 2026; no new full-length novel has been announced since South of Nowhere (2025).
If you like the Colter Shaw series
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