Shelly Alexander Books in Order
Browse Shelly Alexander’s books in order, with summaries, series guides, and where to start tips for Red River Valley, Checkmate, Inc., and Angel Fire Falls.
Last updated: July 12, 2026
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Shelly Alexander books in publication order
13 books
It's In His Heart
by Shelly Alexander
2015
Widowed Ella Dennings heads to her late husband’s Red River cabin to grieve in peace, only to find Cooper Wells already there. Old friction turns into forced closeness, and Ella’s secret life as a romance writer raises the stakes even higher.
It's In His Touch
by Shelly Alexander
2015
Tough attorney Angelique Barbetta comes to Red River for an easy case after heartbreak and illness, then meets Blake Holloway, the man on the other side. As she falls for the town and its people, winning may cost her more than she expected.
ForePlay
by Shelly Alexander
2016
When protests slam the reputation of Checkmate, Inc., CEO Leo Foxx brings in PR pro Chloe Evers to clean up the mess. Their close-quarters strategy sessions spark a risky attraction that could damage both business and hearts.
It's in His Smile
by Shelly Alexander
2016
Miranda Cruz is finally ready to reopen a rundown Victorian inn, if she can survive a vanished contractor and a drained bank account. Then former flame Talmadge Oaks comes home, and their renewed spark complicates everything she has fought to build.
Get Wilde
by Shelly Alexander
2017
Former ballplayer Ethan Wilde needs a big win to grow his fitness business, and Adeline McAllister needs prize money to save her yoga studio. Rival coaches in the same high-stakes competition, they cannot ignore the spark or the stakes.
It's In His Arms
by Shelly Alexander
2017
Widow Lorenda Lawson has built a careful life for her sons, until Mitchell Lawson, her late husband’s troubled twin, returns to Red River. As old attraction resurfaces and suspicious fires spread through town, both their pasts refuse to stay buried.
Rookie Moves
by Shelly Alexander
2017
Dex Moore can charm the tabloids, but he cannot stop wanting Ava Foxx, his best friend’s little sister. Once Ava decides she is done waiting, friendship, loyalty, and family boundaries get very messy, very fast.
Dare Me Once
by Shelly Alexander
2018
After her family’s public collapse, Scarlett Devereaux hides out as Lily Barns and takes a job at the Remington resort. Trace Remington, a single dad with no room for complications, is the one man who makes starting over feel dangerous.
Sinful Games
by Shelly Alexander
2018
Biochemistry genius Oz Strong likes control, especially with Checkmate, Inc. on the brink of going public. His sharp-tongued new assistant Kendall "Pink" Tate does not scare easily, and their instant chemistry threatens to wreck Oz’s carefully ordered world.
Dare Me Again
by Shelly Alexander
2019
Elliott Remington agrees to help run a service-dog boot camp for veterans at his family’s resort, then learns the trainer is Rebel Tate, the ex who vanished years ago. Working side by side forces them to face old wounds and the secrets that split them apart.
It's In His Christmas Wish
by Shelly Alexander
2019
Kimberly Perez wants Red River to spend its holiday money helping kids instead of decorating town. Ross Armstrong is determined to protect Christmas traditions, and their public feud turns into a forced partnership, and maybe something more.
It's In His Forever
by Shelly Alexander
2019
Flight medic Langston Brooks has spent years loving a woman who insists their relationship stay secret. When her winter sports event keeps them working side by side in Red River, walking away gets a lot harder than either expected.
It's in His Song
by Shelly Alexander
2019
Dylan McCoy wants to prove he can take over his uncle’s bar by hosting a songwriter weekend in Red River. Hailey Hicks, the woman he left behind, is back in town too, carrying a secret that could change both their futures.
Where to start with Shelly Alexander
For a small-town starting point: It's In His Heart → It's In His Touch → It's in His Smile
For more time in Red River: It's In His Arms → It's In His Forever → It's in His Song → It's In His Christmas Wish
For a hotter workplace vibe: ForePlay → Rookie Moves → Get Wilde → Sinful Games
For a resort-town duet: Dare Me Once → Dare Me Again
Shelly Alexander sub-series and character series
Angel Fire Falls books in order
Explore this seriesCheckmate, Inc. books in order
Explore this seriesRed River Valley (Shelly Alexander) books in order
Explore this series
It's In His Heart
by Shelly Alexander
2015Red River Valley, Book 1
It's In His Touch
by Shelly Alexander
2015Red River Valley, Book 2
It's in His Smile
by Shelly Alexander
2016Red River Valley, Book 3
It's In His Arms
by Shelly Alexander
2017Red River Valley, Book 4
It's In His Christmas Wish
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 7
It's In His Forever
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 5
It's in His Song
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 6
Red River Valley (Shelly Alexander) books in chronological order

It's In His Heart
by Shelly Alexander
2015Red River Valley, Book 1
It's In His Touch
by Shelly Alexander
2015Red River Valley, Book 2
It's in His Smile
by Shelly Alexander
2016Red River Valley, Book 3
It's In His Arms
by Shelly Alexander
2017Red River Valley, Book 4
It's In His Forever
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 5
It's in His Song
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 6
It's In His Christmas Wish
by Shelly Alexander
2019Red River Valley, Book 7
Author bio
Shelly Alexander was born in Port Arthur, Texas, but her childhood was anything but rooted in one place. She grew up traveling widely and living in different countries, which gave her an early feel for culture, movement, and the strange ways people carry home with them.
One stop left a lasting mark. When she was in fifth, sixth, and seventh grade, she lived in Iran during the late 1970s as the revolution broke out. In tenth grade, she wrote about that experience for an English assignment, and her teacher told her it would make a great book and that she had the makings of a writer. Alexander has said that was the moment the idea really stuck.
It still took a while to get from wanting to write to actually doing it.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing and spent about twenty-five years in the business world. Later, while raising her family, romance novels became a way to step out of the noise for a bit. In a house full of male energy, with a husband and three sons, that reading life gave her a space that was all her own.
Then reading turned into writing.
Alexander has said she was hooked once she discovered contemporary romance, and she started trying to write the kinds of books she most wanted to read, stories with humor, heat, messy people, and emotional bruises that do not vanish in a chapter. Life gave that decision extra weight too. She has spoken openly about surviving the same serious illness that inspired It's In His Touch, and that experience pushed her to stop waiting for some perfect future moment.
Her first published novel, It's In His Heart, arrived in 2015 and introduced readers to Red River, New Mexico, a small-town setting that let her blend grief, gossip, healing, and desire. She followed it with books like It's In His Touch, It's in His Smile, and It's In His Arms, all part of the Red River Valley stories that readers often pick up for the community feel, recurring characters, and lively banter.
She did not stay in one lane. ForePlay, Rookie Moves, and Sinful Games lean hotter and faster, with workplace tension, public messes, and plenty of attitude. Dare Me Once and Dare Me Again shift to a resort setting and keep the focus on second chances, family ties, and characters trying to rebuild after public or private setbacks.
Alexander was a Golden Heart finalist in 2014 and a RITA finalist in 2019. But the simplest way to describe her work is probably the best one. She writes romances where people carry old hurt into new relationships, then have to decide whether honesty is worth the risk. That mix of sass, chemistry, and real-life baggage is what gives her books their shape.
Now based in the Southwest, Alexander has described herself as a wife, mother, traveler, reader, and hiker. She has also shared her home with a pair of tiny poodles. That everyday warmth shows up on the page too. Her books tend to love dogs, close communities, stubborn men, capable women, and the hard-earned hope that life can still surprise you in good ways.
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