Knotty Pines Books in Order

Knotty Pines is a historical romance sequence built around the Lassiter family and the small Texas town that becomes important to them. The stories have the warm, faith-centered feeling found in many Winnie Griggs books, but the characters bring plenty of old hurt, stubbornness, and practical problems with them.

Family history matters here.

The series begins with The Christmas Journey. Philadelphia lawyer Ryland Lassiter is ready for a home and family after becoming guardian to a friend's young daughter. Josephine Wylie thinks he would be an ideal husband for her sister, but Ryland's attention keeps returning to Josie instead. It is a Christmas-set story, but its real engine is the question of whether two people who have spent years putting others first can make room for their own happiness.

The Proper Wife shifts the focus to Ryland's sister Sadie. Sadie wants a love match, while banker Eli Reynolds wants a wife who will fit neatly into his orderly plans. A storm forces them into a situation that threatens Sadie's reputation, and their practical marriage begins with very different expectations. Their contrasting temperaments carry much of the story, especially as they learn that stability and affection are not opposites.

The remaining books broaden the town and family connections. Second Chance Family follows sheriff Mitch Hammond and Cora Beth Collins, whose plan to protect two runaway orphans leads to a marriage in name only. In the novella Home for Thanksgiving, included in Once Upon a Thanksgiving, Ruby Anne Tuggle seeks a way out of town and finds an unexpected traveling companion in Griff Lassiter.

Knotty Pines is less about one long mystery than a shared setting and the lives crossing through it. People arrive burdened by grief, scandal, fear, or the sense that they have failed at the life they expected. The books give them time to work, travel, care for children, and learn whether they can trust another person.

The tone is gentle historical romance with a strong sense of home. Begin with The Christmas Journey to meet Ryland and Josie, then continue in order for Sadie, Griff, and the surrounding Knotty Pines community.