Jane Thornley Books in Order
Explore Jane Thornley books in order, with short summaries, series guides, and where to start across her historical thrillers, suspense, and time-slip fiction.
Last updated: July 6, 2026
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).
Publication Order
24 books
Frozen Angel
by Jane Thornley
2013
Performance artist Armelle plays a stone angel in New Orleans, but her strange lapses hurl her into the eighteenth century and toward a murder in the present. To survive, she must untangle a bond that refuses to stay in one time.
Rogue Wave
by Jane Thornley
2014
Phoebe will do anything to find her missing brother, even walk into the schemes of thieves and killers in Bermuda. Treasure, family lies, and shifting loyalties make this an energetic start to her long-running arc.
The Warp in the Weave
by Jane Thornley
2015
Following clues through central Turkey's underground cities and textile history, Phoebe gets pulled deeper into the antiquities trade. Ancient shrines, betrayal, and competing loyalties make this a tense search for truth.
Beautiful Survivor
by Jane Thornley
2016
Phoebe arrives on the Amalfi Coast to assess a neglected villa and finds missing valuables, a vanished countess, and a dangerous family mess. The deeper she digs, the more the dead and the living start fighting back.
The Greater of Two Evils
by Jane Thornley
2016
A wealthy Russian client pressures Phoebe into a heist at Sir Rupert Fox's costume ball. To stop a ruthless grab for power in the black market, she has to play along, keep her nerve, and strike back at the right moment.
Downside Up
by Jane Thornley
2017
Back in London after her uncle's death, Jenna Elson returns to the rooftops of her childhood to test her aunt's claim of murder. A fall, damaged memory, and dangerous family secrets turn her search into a nerve-racking trap.
The Plunge
by Jane Thornley
2018
Phoebe wants a normal life, but a missing Raphael and questions about her loved ones' Robin Hood crimes send her racing back to Italy. Secrets, divided loyalties, and one hard decision push her to a turning point.
Heart of the Storm
by Jane Thornley
2019
Lady Emma Aston survives kidnapping, betrayal, and murder at sea, then strikes a bargain with pirate Lord Jack Winston. Set along Nova Scotia's coast, this is a historical adventure with treasure, danger, and a heroine who will not be cornered.
Consider Me Gone
by Jane Thornley
2020
Romy is an overworked history student until sudden visions throw her into eighteenth-century New Orleans and another woman's life. When a murder in the present seems tied to old soul damage, she must face both timelines at once.
DownPlay
by Jane Thornley
2020
When a girl falls from a London roof during a vampire play, Jenna Elson refuses to accept an easy answer. Undercover among teens, texts, and lies, she finds a darker threat stalking the cast and closing in fast.
The Carpet Cipher
by Jane Thornley
2020
The murder of a Venetian heir pulls art historian Phoebe McCabe into a hunt sparked by a missing painting and hidden symbols. Venice, Marrakech, and a dangerous secret about ownership and history make this a lively series opener.
The Artemis Key
by Jane Thornley
2021
After returning a marble head of Athena to the Acropolis, Phoebe finds herself targeted by people who think she can lead them to buried treasures. Myth, greed, and ancient art close in fast, with Phoebe at the center of the trap.
The Crown that Lost its Head
by Jane Thornley
2021
A stolen skull from a fifteenth-century tomb sends Phoebe McCabe chasing a mystery buried in royal politics, religious fanaticism, and an old sisterhood. Portugal and Spain become the backdrop for a sharp, fast-moving hunt through Europe's past.
The Florentine's Secret
by Jane Thornley
2021
A hidden sketch linked to Botticelli resurfaces decades after its theft, drawing Phoebe into Florence's old intrigues and modern violence. As an arms cartel closes in, art, textiles, and family ghosts collide in a dangerous search.
Spirit in the Fold
by Jane Thornley
2022
In Renaissance Florence, gifted seamstress Gabriela di Domenico hides dangerous meaning in cloth as Medici power falters. In another century, a woman facing her own breakdown must unravel the same pattern before both lives come apart.
The Shadow of the Emperor
by Jane Thornley
2022
A kidnapping pulls Phoebe into a hunt for a treasure hidden by Cleopatra, Livia Drusilla, and the Vestal Virgins. Rome, Pompeii, and old enemies turn the search into a dangerous test of conscience as much as survival.
The Thread of the Unicorn
by Jane Thornley
2022
Phoebe McCabe is hired to find a rumored seventh Lady and the Unicorn tapestry for an actress with tangled family loyalties. The hunt sends her through France, into crypts and rival schemes, and toward a story tied to Joan d'Arc.
The Cosmati Prophecy
by Jane Thornley
2023
A body on Westminster Abbey's Cosmati Pavement draws archaeologist Dr. Geri Woodworth into a murder and a prophecy about the end of the world. Ancient stonework, spirits, and dry humor give this fantasy mystery its spark.
The Zambezi Code
by Jane Thornley
2023
A Victorian journal, stolen African art, and old Shona stories draw Phoebe into a case that reaches from London to Zimbabwe. The search is rich with folklore, danger, and clues hidden inside a lost expedition.
Hunt for Red Kangaroo Dreaming
by Jane Thornley
2024
Phoebe's missing godfather and the return of Noel Halloran send the Agency to Australia on a brutal game of clues. Aboriginal art, desert danger, and old obsessions make this one of the series' toughest missions.
The Cosmati Connection
by Jane Thornley
2024
Geri heads back to medieval Italy to find Petrus and repair the first Cosmati pavements before larger forces break loose. Her trip comes with unexpected baggage, which makes an already unstable mission even riskier.
The Templar's Daughter
by Jane Thornley
2024
When a theft and shooting at Temple Church point toward Sir Rupert Fox, Phoebe digs into a manuscript that may map the Templars' lost treasure. Cyprus, timewalking, and a relentless rival keep the pressure high.
Sigrid's Hoard
by Jane Thornley
2025
In Ireland, Phoebe, Evan, and Sir Rupert investigate a collector buying stolen art and uncover a scandal far bigger than expected. As Phoebe keeps slipping toward the eighth century, old ghosts and Noel close in.
Timewalker: A Step Beyond
by Jane Thornley
2025
Phoebe now lives with visions of people from other centuries walking beside the present. When one of them notices her and reaches back, history stops feeling distant and starts feeling dangerous.
Where should I start?
For Phoebe McCabe from the beginning: Rogue Wave → The Warp in the Weave → Beautiful Survivor → The Greater of Two Evils → The Plunge
If you want the newer art-history thrillers: The Carpet Cipher → The Crown that Lost its Head → The Florentine's Secret → The Artemis Key
For London psychological suspense: Downside Up → DownPlay
For time-slip mystery: Frozen Angel → Consider Me Gone → Timewalker: A Step Beyond
For paranormal historical fantasy: The Cosmati Prophecy → The Cosmati Connection
Author bio
Jane Thornley has been telling stories for as long as she can remember. One of her favorite early inventions was a flying horse she said she kept in a closet, a tale that delighted her friends and taught her, fairly quickly, the difference between fiction and lying. That playful mix of imagination, nerve, and momentum still shows up in her fiction.
The storyteller came first.
Adult life, though, took her through a long list of other jobs before writing settled into the center. Over the years she has worked as an artist, teacher, librarian, knitwear designer, software consultant, tour host, and school superintendent. It is a varied resume, but it makes sense once you read the books. Her fiction is packed with practical intelligence, sharp observation, crafted objects, and women who learn fast because they have to.
Travel matters, too. Thornley has said that she and her husband travel widely, and that habit is all over the page. Her stories move through Bermuda, Turkey, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Zimbabwe, Australia, New Orleans, and Nova Scotia without feeling like travel brochures. She notices texture first, stone floors, old cloth, weather, alleyways, church interiors, and the clues people leave in plain sight.
Many readers meet her through Phoebe McCabe, the textile-minded sleuth at the heart of Rogue Wave, The Warp in the Weave, The Plunge, and the later Agency novels that begin with The Carpet Cipher. Those books mix art theft, black market intrigue, hidden history, and a lot of forward motion. If you like mysteries that care about who owns the past, and who gets written out of it, this is where Thornley does some of her most recognizable work. Phoebe is smart, bruised, stubborn, and always in motion, which gives the novels their pulse.
But Thornley does not stay in one lane. Downside Up and DownPlay shift into tighter London suspense, built around rooftops, damaged memory, and family secrets. Consider Me Gone and Spirit in the Fold lean into dual timelines and soul memory, with history refusing to stay buried. Then The Cosmati Prophecy opens the door even wider, mixing archaeology, prophecy, humor, and the supernatural through Dr. Geri Woodworth. Across these books, Thornley keeps returning to the same question: what happens when the past stops behaving like the past and starts pressing on the present?
She also has a long background in textile and knitwear design, which helps explain why fabric, pattern, and craft show up so naturally in her fiction. In her hands, a carpet, tapestry, sleeve, or stone floor can become evidence, code, inheritance, or all four.
She likes big ideas, but she does not forget to tell a brisk story.
These days Thornley lives by a river in Nova Scotia and still draws on travel for new work. She has also noted that some of her fantasy appears under the name Lynn Woodbury. No matter the genre, the through line is easy to spot: curiosity, movement, and a deep interest in the way old stories keep leaking into modern lives. Out of all her jobs, writing still sounds like the one she means when she calls it her default position.
Edited by
Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.










































Comments
Did we miss something? Have feedback?
Help us improve this page by sharing your thoughts