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romantic suspense
Series · romantic suspense
Stars of Mithra
The Stars of Mithra series by Nora Roberts has 3 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Hidden Star (1997).
- Books
- 3 books
- First published
- 1997
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: Hidden Star (1997) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Hidden Star
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Hidden Star - Book 2:
Captive Star
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Captive Star - Book 3:
Secret Star
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Secret Star
About the Stars of Mithra series
Nora Roberts' Stars of Mithra trilogy is a category-romance romantic suspense sequence built around three enormous, legendary blue diamonds -- the titular Stars of Mithra -- and the women who become their unwilling custodians one book at a time. In Hidden Star, Bailey James wakes with amnesia, a bag of cash, a gun and one of the diamonds in her possession, and turns to private investigator Cade Parris to piece together what happened to her before whoever set her up finds her first. Captive Star follows Bailey's fiercely independent friend M.J. O'Leary, who ends up handcuffed to bounty hunter Jack Dakota after a bail-jumping arrest goes wrong, only for the pair to discover a second Star hidden in her belongings and a set of hired killers on their trail. Secret Star closes the trilogy with homicide detective Seth Buchanan, whose murder investigation is upended when a woman he believed dead, Grace Fontaine, turns up very much alive -- carrying the third and final Star.
Each book pairs a new couple against the same escalating conspiracy chasing the diamonds, so a single overarching mystery -- who is hunting the Stars, and what they're really worth -- only resolves once all three books are read. Originally published as Silhouette Intimate Moments category romances in 1997 and 1998, the trilogy is a compact, fast-paced example of Roberts' 1990s romantic-suspense output, written well before her genre-defining single-title bestsellers of the 2000s.
Frequently asked questions
What order should I read the Stars of Mithra trilogy in?
Publication order -- Hidden Star, Captive Star, Secret Star. The three books share one continuous conspiracy plot about who is hunting the title diamonds, so reading in order matters.
What are the Stars of Mithra?
Three enormous, legendary blue diamonds tied to an ancient myth, each of which ends up in the possession of one of the trilogy's three heroines -- Bailey James, M.J. O'Leary and Grace Fontaine -- putting them in the path of the people hunting the gems.
Is the Stars of Mithra trilogy connected to any of Nora Roberts' other books?
No. It's a self-contained trilogy with its own characters and mythology, unconnected to her other series or standalones.
Were the Stars of Mithra books originally category romances?
Yes -- all three were first published as Silhouette Intimate Moments category romances in 1997 and 1998, shorter and faster-paced than Roberts' later single-title bestsellers.
Do the three heroines know each other?
Yes, Bailey James, M.J. O'Leary and Grace Fontaine are established as close friends from the start of the trilogy, and their intertwined stories are what ties the three books into one overarching plot.
If you like the Stars of Mithra series
Reading order last verified .