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Order of Lisa Jackson Books
When it comes to heart-pounding suspense, unforgettable twists, and strong female leads tangled in life-or-death stakes, Lisa Jackson doesn’t just write the story—she owns the genre. With more than 85 novels under her belt, many of which have topped the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly bestseller lists, Lisa Jackson has carved her name into the granite of modern suspense literature.
But before she was the reigning empress of romantic thrillers, she was just Susan Lisa Jackson, born on August 16, 1952, in Molalla, Oregon—a tiny town whose peaceful surface may have secretly helped inspire the sinister shadows in her novels. It’s almost poetic that someone who would grow up to terrify readers with serial killers and small-town secrets was raised in a place that seemed almost too quiet to be real.
Lisa Jackson’s journey to literary royalty wasn’t instant. She studied English literature at Oregon State University, though life soon pulled her in a different direction. With a growing family and the realities of bills to pay, she found herself working jobs far from glamorous—yet never far from a typewriter. Alongside her sister, Nancy Bush (herself a well-known author), Lisa hatched a plan to write her way into a new life. Together, they initially co-wrote historical romances, pounding out pages during naptimes and midnight hours, long before Netflix existed to distract.
Her earliest novels were published in the 1980s under the Silhouette and Harlequin banners, giving readers a taste of the emotional tension that would later evolve into the darker, more twisted terrain of her contemporary thrillers. While many authors flinch at the thought of reinventing themselves, Lisa Jackson did so effortlessly, leaping from bodice-ripping romance to psychological thrillers like a writer with nothing to lose—and everything to gain.
And she gained everything. Her transition was marked by books like Hot Blooded and Cold Blooded, which introduced the beloved and tormented New Orleans detectives Rick Bentz and Reuben Montoya. These novels weren’t just popular—they became obsessions. Lisa Jackson had figured out the secret sauce: gritty murder mysteries soaked in atmosphere, layered with emotional intensity, and spiced up with forbidden passion. Readers couldn’t look away, even as the body count rose.
Her recurring theme? Secrets—big ones, buried deep. Whether it’s an estranged family hiding a murderous legacy, a forgotten twin returning with a grudge, or a small-town sheriff’s office trying to cover up decades-old crimes, Jackson’s stories make one thing clear: the past never stays buried. And her readers have learned the hard way—never trust the nice neighbor, never assume the killer is dead, and never read a Lisa Jackson novel before bed.
Though she’s very much alive and still writing (so no, don’t start planning a posthumous tribute yet), Lisa Jackson often disappears from the spotlight, letting her characters steal the show. She’s notoriously private, rarely engaging in the kind of media circus that surrounds many bestselling authors. But that only adds to the intrigue. The woman who can write a serial killer so convincingly that you double-check your locks at night… lives among us.
As for education? Well, Jackson may not hold an Ivy League diploma, but she’s a master of human psychology in her own right. Her characters suffer trauma, chase justice, and flirt with danger—sometimes all at once. And her fans? They keep coming back, year after year, book after book, needing their next fix like it's the last cigarette in a noir detective's trench coat.
So who is Lisa Jackson, really?
She’s the kind of author whose books you think you’ll read one chapter of before bed… until it’s 3 a.m. and you’re clutching the pages like a life raft. She’s the woman who proved that romantic suspense doesn’t have to be soft—it can have claws. She’s a mother, a sister, a survivor of the publishing world’s brutal churn—and most importantly, a storyteller who never plays it safe.
And here’s the ironic twist: while most of her characters are haunted by their past, Lisa Jackson built her empire by embracing hers. The grit, the hustle, the quiet Oregon nights that probably held more secrets than we’ll ever know… they all seep into every novel.
The woman who writes killers for a living?
She’s done more than survive—she’s thrived. And if you haven’t read her books yet, be warned: once you start, there’s no going back.
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