The Raiders Books in Order

The Raiders series is a family saga with guitars, record shops and rock and roll running through it. It follows the fictional band The Raiders and the people tied to them, beginning in the late 1950s and then moving through the 1960s, 1980s and beyond. Fame is part of the picture, but the books are just as interested in marriages, children, jealousy and the long memory of a close-knit community.

The songs may be lively. The relationships are complicated.

Chronologically, the story begins with That'll Be The Day, set in 1959 in Mersey Square, Stockport. Jane Wilson falls for rebellious young drummer Eddie Mellor, despite her parents' fears that he will only bring trouble. Their romance, and Eddie's hopes for a life in music, create the foundations for the wider story.

Three Steps To Heaven moves into the early 1960s, when Eddie and the other Raiders are on the edge of bigger things. The excitement of the music scene is balanced by the pressure of responsibility. Eddie's love for Jane, his connection to his young son, and his uneasy past shape the choices he makes as the band starts to rise.

The series then lets time pass. In I Kissed You, the Raiders reunite after retirement, and younger characters begin to carry their own emotional burdens. Always on My Mind focuses on Olivia Grant, Roy Cantello and the daughter Olivia gave up as a baby. Not Fade Away continues the story as Roy's choices affect more than one household.

The band grows older, but its history keeps playing in the background.

The Raiders are not presented as untouchable stars. They are men whose work can take them away from home and whose old friendships can be both a comfort and a source of trouble. Eddie, Roy, Jane, Sammy, Olivia and their children are connected by love, resentment, loyalty and secrets that do not stay buried as neatly as anyone hopes.

The series has a strong sense of popular music changing with the times. Early rock and roll shapes the first books, while later installments show what happens when the people who once chased fame become parents and grandparents. The shifts in era give the books a soap-opera-style sweep without losing sight of domestic life.

For the clearest journey, begin with That'll Be The Day and continue in chronological order. Readers who like family drama, romance and the behind-the-scenes consequences of a life in music will find plenty to follow.