Colleen Helme Books in Order
This page lists Colleen Helme books in order, with Shelby Nichols and other series, short summaries, series background, and easy where-to-start advice.
Last updated: June 30, 2026
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Publication Order
30 books
Songbird
by Colleen Helme
2010
A woman with a magical voice lives as a prized captive in a cruel king's palace. When a foreign spy tries to free her, rebellion, trust, and dangerous desire collide in a fantasy romance with real stakes.
Carrots
by Colleen Helme
2011
A grocery run turns Shelby Nichols' life upside down when a bank robber's bullet leaves her able to hear thoughts. Her new gift makes her useful, vulnerable, and suddenly tangled up with killers and organized crime.
Fast Money
by Colleen Helme
2011
Five million dollars appears in Shelby's bank account, and trouble follows immediately. With Uncle Joey back in the picture and a killer circling, she has to sort out ransom, lies, and murder before she becomes the next target.
Flame of Destiny
by Colleen Helme
2011
Callista joins the Elite Guard to hunt the murderer who destroyed her family. At the Academy she discovers legendary powers, meets the man whose fate will tangle with hers, and steps into a darker fight than she expected.
The Relic
by Colleen Helme
2011
After a devastating battle, Callista becomes guardian of a dark crystal that keeps growing stronger. As she searches for a way to save the shadowbeasts and stop the relic's corruption, she risks losing herself and Justin.
Lie or Die
by Colleen Helme
2012
Opening a mind-reading agency sounds smart until Shelby gets trapped between stolen money, shady clients, and an enemy from her past. To stay alive, she has to lean on every trick she has, including a few lies.
Secrets That Kill
by Colleen Helme
2013
What starts as a simple favor for a mob boss pulls Shelby into a rival crime ring and a deadly game of secrets. Her psychic edge helps at the card table, but it may not be enough to keep her alive.
Trapped By Revenge
by Colleen Helme
2013
Framed for murder, Shelby has to find the real killer before the police close in for good. Her link to the mob does her no favors, and every step toward the truth puts her in deeper danger.
Deep In Death
by Colleen Helme
2014
Shelby never believed in ghosts until one asks for help. While tracking a missing woman and untangling a darker mystery, she has to face bodies, mob business, and a restless spirit that refuses to be ignored.
Crossing Danger
by Colleen Helme
2015
Shelby's latest troubles include a missing child, a nosy reporter, and corruption inside the police department. Her mind-reading gift helps, but it also drags her deeper into a case where every answer opens a new risk.
Devious Minds
by Colleen Helme
2016
Shelby heads to Paris and lands in the middle of an international plot involving a rogue agent and looming violence. Out of her element but never out of nerve, she races to stop an attack before the stakes turn global.
Hidden Deception
by Colleen Helme
2016
A stash of missing diamonds leads Shelby into a murder case packed with secrets and shifting motives. The deeper she digs, the more dangerous the truth becomes, especially when the biggest threat is not the one she expects.
Laced In Lies
by Colleen Helme
2017
Shelby is still hiding too much from her husband when Ramos needs her help again. Between mind-reading, mob trouble, and mounting lies, she has to solve the case without blowing up her family or her future.
A Midsummer Night's Murder
by Colleen Helme
2018
Shelby tackles a murder case in this quick novella, with a sharp-tongued prosecuting attorney making everything harder. To save the wrong man from prison, she has to outthink the law and catch the real killer.
Deadly Escape
by Colleen Helme
2018
An escaped convict puts Uncle Joey in danger just as a federal agent from Shelby's past reappears. Between mob trouble and fresh threats, Shelby must trust her instincts and survive another case that keeps getting worse.
Devil in a Black Suit
by Colleen Helme
2018
Alejandro Ramos is pulled back into his past when a government agent asks for a favor he cannot refuse. In Cuba, he teams up with a dangerous spy and uncovers family secrets that could get them both killed.
Marked for Murder
by Colleen Helme
2019
When a friend's desperate call draws Shelby into a vicious scheme, someone starts attacking both her name and her life. She has to expose the truth fast, before a killer finishes ruining her for good.
Dying Wishes
by Colleen Helme
2020
Shelby wants a break, but promises to her kids, pressure from the police, and bad news from Uncle Joey say otherwise. Then a dying wish turns into a murder investigation, and her quiet week disappears completely.
Ghostly Serenade
by Colleen Helme
2020
Shelby's New York vacation turns into a murder case, a mob feud, and one very inconvenient ghost. With Uncle Joey's family under threat, she must juggle psychic clues and rising danger before revenge claims another victim.
Angel Falls
by Colleen Helme
2021
Trauma nurse Ella St. John is sent away after a decision that ruins her career and haunts her conscience. When a battered stranger lands in her path, her uncanny gift pulls her into danger, desire, and a chance at redemption.
High Stakes Crime
by Colleen Helme
2021
A reporter, a poker tournament, and a buried treasure story shove Shelby into another deadly mess. While helping Uncle Joey and dodging a killer, she has to bluff her way through secrets that could get her killed.
Desert Devil
by Colleen Helme
2022
Ella St. John wants a fresh start, but a ruthless enemy from her past tears that hope apart. As the man she loves becomes a target, she is pulled into a brutal fight where survival may cost her more than safety.
License to Steal
by Colleen Helme
2022
Fresh off getting her PI license, Shelby takes on a stolen figurine case that quickly turns deadly. Between a private eye, a mob boss, and a wealthy philanthropist, everyone has motives and nobody seems clean.
Ties That Bind
by Colleen Helme
2022
What starts as harmless interest in cryptocurrency becomes murder, threats, and a vanished killer. Shelby has to follow the money fast, because once her family is in danger, every bad investment turns personal.
Grave Duty
by Colleen Helme
2023
A rose left on a grave pulls Shelby into a revenge plot far deadlier than it first looks. While police and mob worlds close around her, one wrong move could bury her alongside the truth.
Presumed Dead
by Colleen Helme
2024
A search-and-rescue trip turns into kidnapping and a race through the woods when the man Shelby loves is taken. This time her psychic edge, loyal allies, and stubborn courage may still not be enough.
Poisoned Truth
by Colleen Helme
2025
Poisoned pastries, cyberattacks, and too many lies make this one of Shelby's messiest cases yet. Reading minds should help, but when everyone is hiding something, Shelby has to find the truth before it kills her.
The Hitman and the Psychic
by Colleen Helme
2025
Psychic Serenity Jones is assigned to protect Stone, a deadly hitman who hates needing help. Close quarters, dangerous enemies, and very inconvenient chemistry turn the job into a funny, steamy fight for survival.
Imitation Alien
by Colleen Helme
2026
Sagittarius has spent years trying not to stand out, despite a strange birthmark and stranger rumors. When a frightened visitor is taken by the military, she starts uncovering signals, secrets, and a past that may not be human.
The Mob Boss and the Assassin
by Colleen Helme
2026
Julia goes undercover as Quentin Vanetti's executive assistant to prove he killed her father. The job gets harder when Quentin may be innocent, and even harder when their professional friction starts feeling a lot like attraction.
Where should I start?
If you want the main mystery series: Carrots → Fast Money → Lie or Die → Secrets That Kill
If you want bigger Shelby stakes: Ghostly Serenade → Dying Wishes → Presumed Dead → Poisoned Truth
If you want romantic suspense: Angel Falls → Desert Devil
If you want fantasy or sci-fi: Flame of Destiny → The Relic, or try Imitation Alien
If you want mob-world romance: The Hitman and the Psychic → The Mob Boss and the Assassin
Author bio
Colleen Helme is a USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author best known for the Shelby Nichols Adventures, a long-running series that mixes mystery, humor, romance, and a touch of the paranormal. Her books tend to move fast, keep the danger close, and make room for family life, banter, and a little chaos.
She did not start with Shelby. Her early work included the fantasy novel Flame of Destiny, and that fantasy streak still shows up all across her catalog. Even when she is writing crime stories, there is usually a twist, a gift, or one impossible problem that pushes an ordinary life off its rails.
Then carrots got involved.
Helme has said that the idea for Carrots came after a trip to the grocery store, when she overheard talk about a robbery that had happened there the week before. That everyday errand turned into the setup for Shelby Nichols, a married mother of two who survives a robbery, gets grazed by a bullet, and wakes up able to hear what people are thinking. From there came Fast Money, Lie or Die, and a whole shelf of later adventures.
Readers usually come to Helme for Shelby, but they stay for the cast around her. Shelby's world makes room for cops, mob bosses, hitmen, husbands, kids, and friends, often all in the same chapter. The books have murders and kidnappings and real danger, but they also have awkward family moments, shopping trips, arguments, and jokes that keep the whole thing from getting too heavy.
Shelby is a trouble magnet, and that is very much the point.
As the series grew, so did the range. Books like Deep In Death, Ghostly Serenade, Presumed Dead, and Poisoned Truth take Shelby from local messes to ghosts, rival mobs, cyber trouble, and high-stakes rescues, but the heart of the series stays the same. Helme likes capable women under pressure, messy loyalties, and the kind of secret that makes everything harder before it makes anything better.
She has also branched out in other directions. The Sand and Shadows books, beginning with Angel Falls, follow Ella St. John, a trauma nurse with an uncanny touch, into darker romantic suspense. The Hitman and the Psychic and The Mob Boss and the Assassin lean harder into mob-world romance and sharp banter. Songbird shows her fantasy side, and Imitation Alien moves into young adult science fiction with government secrets, strange signals, and a teen trying to figure out who she really is.
Her work habits sound a lot like her plots, busy and hard to switch off. In her FAQ and author bios, Helme says she tries to write every day, spends a lot of time thinking through story problems when she is away from the page, and keeps a notebook by her bed for ideas that show up late at night. She has also said that fans who keep asking for one more chapter are a big part of what keeps her going.
She lives with her family in the Rocky Mountains. In author bios, she mentions reading, hiking, biking, and playing board and card games.
That last part feels about right. Helme's books often read like they were written by someone who enjoys movement, mischief, and seeing what happens when a good person gets pushed into a very bad situation. Start with Carrots if you want the full Shelby experience, or try Angel Falls if you want suspense with a stronger romantic edge. Either way, you will meet characters who rarely get the quiet life they planned.
Edited by
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