JT Sawyer Books in Order
Browse JT Sawyer books in order, with series lists, short summaries, and clear tips on where to start with his post-apocalyptic and action thrillers.
Last updated: June 8, 2026
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Publication Order
49 books
First Wave
by JT Sawyer
2014
Travis Combs is finishing a long rafting trip through the Grand Canyon when he learns a pandemic has destroyed the world beyond the river. To get out alive, he must lead civilians across the Arizona desert past zombies, bikers, and a rogue agency.
Hell Week
by JT Sawyer
2014
After a bioweapon attack wrecks Los Angeles, former SEAL James Enroy and a battered team take the fight to the undead. Their mission leads straight into a brutal city ruled by a criminal kingpin and a zombie arena.
No Place To Hide
by JT Sawyer
2014
Travis Combs leads his battered group toward a secret lab in Durango, hoping to secure a vaccine before rival forces do. Faster zombies and a possible traitor inside the team make the journey even deadlier.
The Longest Day
by JT Sawyer
2014
After guiding survivors through the desert, Travis Combs wants only to reach Denver and his son. A new force gathering around Flagstaff has other plans, and Travis is forced back into the fight.
Until Morning Comes
by JT Sawyer
2014
Secret Service agent Carlie Simmons is in Tucson when a deadly virus shatters the city and her extraction mission collapses. To survive the night and save the president's daughter, she has to outthink mutants, panic, and impossible moral choices.
Dead in Their Tracks
by JT Sawyer
2015
Mitch Kearns expects a quiet spell after teaching a tracking course, until his mentor's daughter shows up carrying secrets people will kill for. On the run through the desert, he has to keep her alive long enough to stop a terrorist plot.
In Too Deep
by JT Sawyer
2015
After escaping Tucson with the president's daughter, Secret Service agent Carlie Simmons heads for safety, then gets pulled into a mission to trace the virus's origins. Zombies, Cold War secrets, and friction inside her own team make every move dangerous.
One Final Mission
by JT Sawyer
2015
Carlie and Shane head to Japan to retrieve a device that could help mass-produce the antidote. But ruined Osaka, dwindling supplies, and ruthless survivors turn the final mission into a desperate test of loyalty and endurance.
The Gathering Darkness
by JT Sawyer
2015
At Fort Lewis, Carlie's team races to support antidote research as a vicious splinter force rises in southeastern Washington. Led by Lt. Colonel Ryan Mitchell and backed by weaponized mutants, the enemy threatens everything the survivors have built.
The Way Back
by JT Sawyer
2015
Carlie, Shane, Jared, and the rest of the group fight their way through the Caribbean while Eliza struggles to survive after Air Force One goes down in Idaho. Their separate journeys collide in a brutal showdown where tactics alone may not be enough.
Blindsided
by JT Sawyer
2016
Mitch and Dev are framed for a murder that threatens to destroy Gideon and upend Israeli politics. With enemies closing in on every side, the only way out is to follow a trail of secrets into the past.
Counter-Strike
by JT Sawyer
2016
Mitch Kearns and Dev Leitner chase a deadly pathogen from Sweden to Indonesia after it falls into the wrong hands. To stop a global catastrophe, they need to outmaneuver an enemy as slippery as they are.
The Kill List
by JT Sawyer
2016
A quiet visit to Colorado turns lethal when Mitch Kearns realizes a killer is hiding inside the group around him. Trapped in a storm-bound canyon, they have to unmask the traitor before night turns worse.
Borderlands
by JT Sawyer
2017
An abduction on the Arizona border pulls Mitch Kearns into a race against cartel gunmen and competing agendas. The captive holds access to the Southwest power grid, so failure could mean disaster far beyond the border.
Deadly Harvest
by JT Sawyer
2017
Years before the main series, Mitch Kearns is pushed to his limit on a wilderness survival course with his Special Forces unit. The training turns real when he tangles with two notorious bear poachers in Idaho.
Infection
by JT Sawyer
2017
CIA operative Will Reisner hunts a lost ship of bioweapons in the South China Sea just as a nightmare virus starts remaking the infected. With Selene Munroe, he tries to stop a hive-minded plague before it reaches the West.
Infestation
by JT Sawyer
2017
As the pandemic spreads, the undead evolve into something smarter and more dangerous. Will Reisner fights through swarming Paras and a looming cyberattack while Selene searches for a way to slow extinction.
Without Mercy
by JT Sawyer
2017
A trip to Thailand turns ugly when Mitch, Dev, and the Gideon team cross paths with human traffickers. To save the captives, they must take on pirates and fight through a mission where mercy is a luxury.
Eradication
by JT Sawyer
2018
With the Paras spreading to nuclear bases, Will Reisner and Selene Munroe race to finish a bioweapon before the last military units are overrun. The enemy is changing fast, and its new leadership is thinking far bigger.
Extinction
by JT Sawyer
2018
After the battle at MacDill, Will Reisner hunts the super-alpha Roland while the military pieces together a counterstrike. Roland has plans of his own, and they could unleash something worse than the Paras.
Incursion
by JT Sawyer
2018
Will Reisner and his team escape one battlefield only to get trapped in the ruined streets of Los Angeles. Hunted by Paras and cut off from rescue, they have to keep moving or be swallowed by the city.
Annihilation
by JT Sawyer
2019
Will Reisner is still recovering when the war shifts again, with the Gulf fleet short on fuel and a powerful new alpha hiding close to the survivors. Selene's research may change everything, if Nick doesn't strike first.
High-Risk
by JT Sawyer
2019
Mitch Kearns is sent into Belarus to snatch a condemned arms dealer and reach the Polish border on foot. The target is wanted by everyone, and a traitor nearby makes the escape even more dangerous.
The Alpha Solution
by JT Sawyer
2019
Stranded near Cuba, Will Reisner and the remaining survivors regroup around Selene's latest breakthrough. But while they scramble for the material to use it, the super-alpha Nick begins shaping a far darker future.
Ballistic
by JT Sawyer
2020
Mitch Kearns is thrown into a sanctioned hunt for rogue mercenaries, where every lead comes with gunfire and shifting loyalties. As the mission gets more personal, his tracking skills become the only edge that matters.
Blood and Honor
by JT Sawyer
2020
Mitch Kearns and Dev Leitner head to the Philippines to protect a Japanese energy deal, only to find a Yakuza hit team already on the move. The chase runs from jungle ground to Tokyo, with lives and global markets both at stake.
Blood On The Mesa
by JT Sawyer
2020
Before the main series, FBI mantracker Mitch Kearns investigates the murder of an informant in the Arizona high desert. The case leads him into the black-market trade in prehistoric artifacts and a trail that could get him killed.
Fallout
by JT Sawyer
2020
Months after a new virus seems to turn the war, humanity finally has a little breathing room. Then Will Reisner learns the super-alpha has a fresh plan, and the next phase of the fight could be even worse.
Hell Week II: Isle of the Undead
by JT Sawyer
2020
After escaping Los Angeles, James Enroy and his ragged group sail to Catalina Island looking for Krista's sister. Instead they find thugs, a stranded cruise ship, and thousands of zombies ready to turn the island into a trap.
Horror From Below
by JT Sawyer
2020
When strange corpses begin washing up on San Diego beaches, Detective Lindsey Brant needs help from horror writer James Archer. Their investigation uncovers a buried virus, a swarm of killers, and a lot more undead than either expected.
Horror From Within
by JT Sawyer
2020
Lindsey Brant and James Archer join the covert team ZEST when an abduction, a strange cult, and a zombie attack point to a bigger threat. To stop a terrorist creating undead killers, they have to survive each other first.
Island of Horror
by JT Sawyer
2020
Brant and Archer head to the Philippines with ZEST to stop Doctor X before he finishes a new virus. Assassins, a double-agent, and an island full of undead turn the mission into open war.
Lethal Conduct
by JT Sawyer
2021
This short prequel shows Cal Shepard before the main series, when black-ops work and hard choices still define his days. It adds extra context to the man readers meet in Search and Destroy.
Manhunt
by JT Sawyer
2021
Another mission turns into a relentless pursuit as Mitch Kearns tracks dangerous prey through hostile ground and political pressure. The focus stays on fieldcraft, survival, and the moment hunters become the hunted.
Search and Destroy
by JT Sawyer
2021
Cal Shepard thinks his black-ops days are over until he's framed for murder after a deadly bombing. Hunted across the country, he goes after the conspiracy that destroyed his home life and turned him into a target.
The Perseus Protocol
by JT Sawyer
2021
Cal Shepard resurfaces in India with dangerous code and a kill order on his head. As multiple factions close in, he races to stop a terrorist strike before the software behind Perseus is turned against the United States.
Critical Response
by JT Sawyer
2022
Cal Shepard heads into Mexico to rescue an abducted scientist, but the mission quickly splinters into cartel warfare, shifting loyalties, and a wider international threat. To get out, his team has to fight and run in equal measure.
The Kill Squad
by JT Sawyer
2022
When Cal Shepard's plane is forced down near Thailand, he and Derrick Nolan become prey in a deadly training ground run by a master assassin. What starts as survival soon ties into a much bigger plot.
Escape & Evade
by JT Sawyer
2023
Former CIA operative Nate Hendrix has been hiding under the name Nick Mercer in rural Utah. When his aliases leak, he has to disappear into canyon country and outrun assassins, a CIA grab team, and his own past.
Havoc
by JT Sawyer
2023
A theoretical chemical attack becomes terrifyingly real when Cal Shepard and the Critical Response Team uncover a live plot on U.S. soil. Stopping it means beating an enemy as skilled and ruthless as they are.
Trigger Effect
by JT Sawyer
2023
Nate Hendrix expects a quick trip to Colombia to retrieve a data file from a journalist, then everything goes sideways in gunfire. Suddenly he's a fugitive in dangerous country, chasing answers through jungle and betrayal.
Hunted
by JT Sawyer
2024
Cal Shepard's team travels into Namibia to retrieve a crashed satellite, only to lose all tech when its EMP payload goes live. Stranded in the desert and stalked by Russians and militants, they have to survive the old-fashioned way.
Knife Edge
by JT Sawyer
2024
Kyle Payne comes to Arizona after a friend's death looks more suspicious than accidental. What he finds is a hard little town full of secrets, bad men, and a fight he can't walk away from.
Vendetta
by JT Sawyer
2024
A scientific expedition in Nicaragua turns into a firefight when mercenaries descend on a jungle research station. Nate Hendrix survives the ambush, then carries the battle back home as revenge and politics start to tangle.
Blood Trail
by JT Sawyer
2025
Kyle Payne is wrongly arrested for murder in a California town and decides to help the victim's sister uncover the truth. Their search leads to a sinister agricultural operation with global stakes and plenty of killers.
Kill Shot
by JT Sawyer
2025
Kyle Payne teams up with Special Agent Carrie Walker after fake FBI agents come after them both. The trail leads to a rogue CIA operator, weaponized drones, and a remote Idaho compound poised to launch something catastrophic.
Savage Game
by JT Sawyer
2025
Kyle Payne goes to Alaska looking for peace and instead finds a massacre, a teenage survivor, and a gold-fueled conspiracy. In the backcountry, he has to keep the witness alive long enough to expose the people behind it.
What Kills You
by JT Sawyer
2025
Professor Tyler Dawson wakes up in the Panamanian jungle as part of a sick hunt staged for wealthy thrill-seekers. To get out, he has to survive trained killers, bad terrain, and fellow prey he may not be able to trust.
Take Down
by JT Sawyer
2026
A broken motorcycle leaves Kyle Payne stranded in Kansas City, where one bad moment drops him into a mob war. With a deadly device in his neck and targets on his list, he has almost no time to turn the trap around.
Where should I start?
If you want zombie survival: Until Morning Comes → In Too Deep → The Way Back
If you want a harder post-apocalyptic trek: First Wave → The Longest Day → No Place To Hide
If you want military sci-fi horror: Infection → Infestation → Incursion
If you want black-ops espionage: Search and Destroy → The Perseus Protocol → Critical Response
If you want survival thriller action: Escape & Evade → Trigger Effect → Vendetta
Author bio
JT Sawyer is the pen name of Tony Nester, and his fiction makes a lot more sense once you know what he did before writing thrillers. For decades he taught survival courses and guided trips across the Four Corners region and the wider American West. Long before his books were full of trackers, black-ops operators, and people trying to stay alive in hard country, that was already his day job.
He also built a life around teaching. Nester founded Ancient Pathways in 1989 and spent years running courses in desert survival, bushcraft, and long-term field living. His students have included military special operations personnel, the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Marshals, the NTSB, the FAA, and other federal agencies. Public biographical notes also say that, before turning to fiction full time, he sometimes spent around 220 days a year living and working outdoors.
That is a lot of nights outside.
He has a BA in anthropology, worked as an EMT, and wrote a long run of nonfiction survival books under his own name before building up his thriller catalog. He has also done consulting work for film and television, including work connected to Into the Wild. The pattern is easy to spot. He likes practical skills, tough environments, and people who have to think clearly when things go wrong.
When he started publishing fiction as JT Sawyer, he did not leave that background behind. He pushed it straight onto the page. Early books like First Wave and Until Morning Comes showed where his interests were headed: outbreaks, collapse, rough terrain, and protagonists who survive by fieldcraft as much as firepower. Later books widened the scope, but the core stayed much the same.
You can see that clearly in Infection, which turns a global plague into a military horror story, and in Dead in Their Tracks, where tracking skills matter as much as guns. Search and Destroy leans into espionage and revenge, while Escape & Evade and Knife Edge strip things back and let a skilled loner work through danger one hard decision at a time. Readers who stick with Sawyer usually come for the speed and the action, but they also seem to like the grounded details: what to pack, where to move, how to read terrain, how to keep going when the plan falls apart.
He writes people who get tired, dirty, and cornered.
His books also return to the same pressure points again and again. Harsh landscapes matter. Small teams matter. Loyalty matters. A lot of his heroes are former operators, trackers, agents, or drifters who know violence but would rather use preparation and skill to stay one step ahead. Even when the stories go big, with global conspiracies or mutant hordes, they usually stay close to the practical question of who can adapt fastest.
Outside of fiction, Nester has kept one foot in the training world. Public bios say he has spoken at wilderness and desert events, stayed active in the survival field, and trained for years in martial arts. He now lives in Colorado Springs with his family. From there, he has kept building a large thriller catalog under the JT Sawyer name while staying close to the survival work that shaped it. If you pick up one of his series, you are not getting armchair disaster fiction. You are getting stories from a writer who clearly knows what a bad landscape can do to people, and what kind of person might make it through.
Edited by
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