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Holland Family Books in Order

Explore James Lee Burke’s Holland Family books in order, with short summaries and starting points for the connected crime novels and historical stories.

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Holland Family books in publication order

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12 books

Lay Down My Sword and Shield

by James Lee Burke

1971

In 1960s Texas, lawyer and Korean War veteran Hackberry Holland is urged to run for Congress but finds more meaning defending a former cellmate and helping migrant workers. His involvement with civil rights protests and a charismatic organizer puts him at odds with his own class and past.

Cimarron Rose

by James Lee Burke

1997

In Deaf Smith, Texas, attorney and ex Ranger Billy Bob Holland defends nineteen year old Lucas Smothers, accused of raping and murdering a local girl. The case exposes small town corruption, a psychopathic enemy, and the buried fact that Lucas may be Billy Bob's own son.

Heartwood

by James Lee Burke

1999

Billy Bob Holland takes on the defense of a rodeo cowboy accused of stealing bonds from ruthless land baron Earl Deitrich. As secrets from Billy Bob's old affair with Deitrich's wife surface, the fight in court turns into a dangerous reckoning with class, desire, and power.

Bitterroot

by James Lee Burke

2001

On a visit to Montana, Billy Bob Holland tries to help his friend Doc Voss, an environmentalist clashing with a mining operation. Soon he is facing a vengeful ex con, violent bikers, and a mob connected predator, all while his own past mistakes stalk him.

In the Moon of Red Ponies

by James Lee Burke

2004

Now practicing law in Missoula, Billy Bob Holland defends Johnny American Horse, a Native American activist charged with double murder. The case draws in a senator's daughter, a dangerously obsessed detective, and shadowy federal interests that make Montana feel like occupied territory.

Rain Gods

by James Lee Burke

2009

After nine murdered women are found in a shallow grave near a dusty border town, aging sheriff Hackberry Holland hunts the killers. An Iraq war veteran on the run, federal agents, a crime boss, and a soft spoken hit man who calls himself a preacher all collide in the desert heat.

Feast Day of Fools

by James Lee Burke

2011

Sheriff Hackberry Holland's quiet Texas county becomes a crossroads for smugglers, intelligence operatives, and a mysterious figure pursued by multiple factions. As bodies fall and Preacher Jack Collins returns, Hack must decide how much of his own soul to spend just keeping people alive.

Wayfaring Stranger

by James Lee Burke

2014

Sixteen year old Weldon Holland first crosses paths with Bonnie and Clyde, then a decade later survives the Battle of the Bulge and rescues Rosita Lowenstein. Back in Texas, their attempt to build an honest oil business draws them into conflict with ruthless men who never left the war behind.

House of the Rising Sun

by James Lee Burke

2015

In revolutionary Mexico and postwar Texas, Texas Ranger Hackberry Holland steals a mysterious chalice from an arms dealer and goes searching for his estranged son. Their struggle to reunite plays out against gunrunners, corrupt officials, and a relic some believe to be the Holy Grail.

The Jealous Kind

by James Lee Burke

2016

Houston, 1952. Seventeen year old Aaron Holland Broussard falls for Valerie Epstein and crosses a rich bully with mob ties. A missing Cadillac, stolen money, and simmering class warfare pull Aaron into a violent underworld that tests his courage and his sense of right and wrong.

Another Kind of Eden

by James Lee Burke

2021

In the early 1960s, drifting writer Aaron Holland Broussard hops a boxcar to Colorado and takes a farm job. His romance with a gifted art student draws the ire of a sadistic businessman, a cultish professor, and something stranger that stalks the wheat fields and his own damaged mind.

Every Cloak Rolled in Blood

by James Lee Burke

2022

Grieving his daughter’s death, elderly novelist Aaron Holland Broussard retreats to rural Montana, only to clash with racist vandals and a network of violent men. Guided by his daughter’s ghost and a state trooper ally, he faces threats that feel both earthly and deeply supernatural.

Where to start with Holland Family

For Billy Bob Holland’s crime novels: Cimarron Rose → Heartwood
For Sheriff Hackberry Holland: Lay Down My Sword and Shield → Rain Gods → Feast Day of Fools
For the historical family saga: Wayfaring Stranger → The Jealous Kind
For Aaron’s companion stories: Another Kind of Eden → Every Cloak Rolled in Blood

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shape MRB and its growth.

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