Order of Allen Eskens Books

When you think of crime fiction, the names that pop into your head are often the classics—Connelly, Grisham, and the like. But then there’s Allen Eskens—an unassuming, sharp-witted storyteller whose quiet, introspective thrillers sneak up on you like a whisper in a courtroom… and hit you with the impact of a gavel drop. If you're just discovering him, you're in for a ride that’s less of a rollercoaster and more of a psychological dive—intimate, tense, and piercing.

Born in Missouri in 1963, Allen Eskens didn’t immediately launch into the literary world with a pen in one hand and a publishing contract in the other. Oh no, his path to becoming one of America’s most compelling mystery and thriller authors was circuitous, deliberate, and dripping with irony. In fact, before he ever penned a bestselling novel, Eskens was knee-deep in law books and courtrooms, practicing as a criminal defense attorney. Yes, the man who’d later craft morally complex fictional defendants was once advocating for real ones.

But here’s where it gets poetic: Eskens was educated to dissect truth in the courtroom—and then went on to fictionalize it better than most ever could.

Educational Background: The Author Behind the Briefcase

Allen Eskens’s academic journey is as diverse as his characters. He studied creative writing at the University of Iowa, one of the top writing schools in the world, where he sharpened his narrative claws. But that wasn’t all—he also studied at Minnesota State University - Mankato, University of Minnesota, and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. If you're counting, that’s more writing education than most full-time authors ever pursue. But Eskens wasn’t about shortcuts. He believed in the craft, the slow burn of learning the power of storytelling word by word.

Ironically, while his legal background gave him material rich in real-life moral ambiguity, it was his formal creative writing training that allowed him to distill that chaos into intimate, emotionally taut stories. His novels don’t just unravel mysteries—they unravel people.

From Law to Literature: The Big Shift

Practicing law wasn’t a fallback for Eskens. In fact, he was very good at it. But the desire to write never left him. Like one of his quietly obsessed protagonists, he kept writing on the side while managing his legal career. For years, he wrote in the margins of his life—during lunch breaks, after court hours, before dawn. And finally, in 2014, he burst into the literary scene with a debut novel that would earn accolades and reader loyalty almost instantly: "The Life We Bury."

That novel didn’t just make waves—it caused a literary landslide.

Not Just Another Crime Novelist

If you haven’t read Eskens yet, don’t expect explosions and endless car chases. His thrillers are smart, introspective, and deeply human. They’re the kind of books where the villain could be your neighbor and the hero isn’t trying to save the world—just someone he loves. His writing is emotionally raw, often diving into themes of redemption, guilt, justice, and trauma, with characters who don’t always have clean resolutions. They linger. Like memories. Or scars.

A Master of the Human Puzzle

Eskens has been nominated for—and has won—multiple awards, including the Barry Award, Minnesota Book Award, and Edgar nominations. But he doesn’t flaunt the trophies. His real reward? Readers who reach the last page and feel like they’ve been through something. Like they’ve lived another life.

Despite his success, Eskens keeps a low profile. There’s no extravagant author persona, no over-the-top social media blitzes. Just a man, his words, and the moral questions he quietly leaves echoing in our minds.

The Irony, the Legacy, the Cliffhanger...

Here’s the final twist—Allen Eskens, the man who built a career defending people in real courtrooms, ended up putting them on trial in our hearts and minds instead. He left behind legal briefs for fictional grief. And in doing so, created stories that might just haunt you longer than any verdict ever could.

So if you haven’t read him yet, ask yourself this: What are you waiting for?
Because Eskens doesn’t just write thrillers.
He writes truth in fiction.
And every single book feels like a confession.