The Recommended Reading Path for Ellie Kline
For the best reading experience, you should follow the chronological order of Ellie Kline's career and personal life. The series features a strong overarching storyline focusing on Ellie's traumatic past as a kidnapping survivor, her hunt for the shadowy figure who abducted her at age fifteen, and her evolving partnership with FBI Special Agent Clay Lockwood. Reading the books out of order will spoil major plot points, relationship developments, and the resolution of long-term investigations.
The recommended reading path begins with the prequel short story, Cold Start, which provides critical backstory before diving into the first full-length novel, Cold Truth. From there, you should follow the books in order of publication as the overarching narrative flows sequentially without any complex chronological jumps.
Ellie Kline Books in Recommended Reading Order
- Cold Start (2020) – Prequel Novella / Book 0.5
This prequel introduces readers to Ellie's early drive to seek justice. It is available as a free ebook download for signing up to Mary Stone's official newsletter.
- Cold Truth (2020) – Book 1
The core series kicks off here. Now a detective with the Charleston Police Department, Ellie investigates a murder that shares chilling similarities with her own teenage abduction.
- Cold Hunt (2020) – Book 2
Ellie faces a dangerous human trafficking ring operating in Charleston's backwoods, while uncovering new clues about her own history.
- Cold Threat (2020) – Book 3
The stakes increase dramatically when a killer targets someone close to Ellie, forcing her to confront a villain straight out of her nightmares.
- Cold Highway (2020) – Book 4
Ellie's investigations lead her to cold cases along the highway, dealing with transit crimes and transient predators.
- Cold Grave (2020) – Book 5
Ellie uncovers secrets buried deep in the past as she digs into long-forgotten cold cases that local authorities wanted left alone.
- Cold Shadows (2020) – Book 6
A web of lies begins to unravel as Ellie balances active threats in Charleston with the lingering shadows of her teenage trauma.
- Cold Revenge (2020) – Book 7
Ellie finds herself in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse where personal vengeance and official duty collide.
- Cold Trail (2021) – Book 8
The pursuit of a elusive serial killer takes Ellie down a winding path where the clues are sparse and the danger is immediate.
- Cold Death (2021) – Book 9
A grim discovery forces the Cold Case Unit to push the boundaries of their jurisdiction to stop a serial offender.
- Cold Heart (2022) – Book 10
Ellie is forced to investigate a case close to home, testing her personal loyalties and professional ethics.
- Cold Judgment (2022) – Book 11
Legal systems and vigilante justice clash as Ellie and FBI Agent Clay Lockwood try to prevent a wrongful conviction or a targeted execution.
- Cold Intentions (2023) – Book 12
Ellie dives into the minds of complex criminals, analyzing the dark motives behind a series of seemingly unrelated crimes.
- Cold Crash (2024) – Book 13
High-society deaths and elite conspiracies pull Ellie into a dangerous collision course with Charleston's most powerful citizens.
- Cold Theory (2024) – Book 14
Ellie uses psychological profiling and forensic science to test a dangerous hypothesis about an active serial killer.
- Cold Finish (2025) – Book 15
Ellie faces her most personal crisis yet when her martial arts instructor is murdered, and her own father is accused of the crime.
What to Know Before You Start
The Ellie Kline series is co-authored by Mary Stone, a thriller writer celebrated for her strong, resilient female leads, and Donna Berdel, who collaborates to bring the dark and atmospheric setting of Charleston, South Carolina, to life. Unlike standard procedural crime fiction, this series heavily relies on serialization.
At age fifteen, Ellie Kline was kidnapped by a brilliant and sadistic serial killer, Dr. Lawrence Kingsley. She managed to escape, but the ordeal left deep psychological scars and ignited a relentless drive to become a detective in the Charleston Police Department's Cold Case Unit. Her personal mission to find Kingsley and bring closure to other families runs as a continuous thread throughout all the books.
As Ellie tackles cases ranging from human trafficking rings to high-society cover-ups, she is assisted by FBI Special Agent Clay Lockwood. Their professional partnership quickly develops a personal, romantic chemistry that forms a core emotional anchor for the series. Readers who enjoy slow-burn romance mixed with high-stakes crime profiling will find their relationship dynamics highly rewarding.
Chronological vs. Publication Order
Fortunately for readers, the publication order of the Ellie Kline books matches the chronological timeline of the story. There are no confusing flashbacks, timeline splits, or parallel narratives to worry about. The only minor decision is where to read the prequel novella, Cold Start.
While Cold Start is chronologically set before the events of Cold Truth, some fans suggest starting with the full-length novel Cold Truth to get immediately hooked by the main storyline, and then treating the prequel as a flashback companion. However, reading Cold Start first is the most logical path, as it lays down the foundations of Ellie's psychological profile and her determination to enter law enforcement.
Can the Ellie Kline Books Be Read as Standalones?
While each book features a self-contained mystery case that is resolved by the final page—such as solving a specific cold case, stopping a human trafficking cell, or catch a particular killer—the overarching narrative makes it difficult to read them as standalone novels. The development of Ellie's relationship with Clay Lockwood, her recovery from trauma, and the ongoing search for her abductor are serialized. Reading the books out of order will significantly spoil these emotional beats and recurring subplots.