C.J. Carmichael Books in Order

Where to Start Reading C.J. Carmichael

With a career spanning over two decades, C.J. Carmichael has written a rich assortment of small-town romance, western romance, and cozy mysteries. How you start depends entirely on the genre you prefer:

• If you love cozy mysteries and romantic suspense: Start with Bitter Roots, the first book in the popular Bitter Root Mysteries. It is set in the atmospheric town of Lost Trail, Montana, and features sheriff's dispatcher Zak Waller solving local crimes.
• If you love small-town Western romance: Start with Promise Me, Cowboy, which kicks off her signature series, Carrigans of the Circle C.
• If you want a festive holiday romance: Start with A Bramble House Christmas. Not only is it a fan-favorite, but it was also adapted into a beloved Hallmark Mystery movie in 2017.

The Cozy Mystery & Suspense Series

Carmichael has a knack for blending small-town communities with dark secrets. These series should be read in chronological/publication order as the character relationships build from book to book.

Bitter Root Mysteries

Set in Lost Trail, Montana, this series follows dispatcher Zak Waller and Tiff Masterson as they investigate local secrets and cold cases.

1. Bitter Roots (2017)
2. Bitter Truth (2018)
3. Bitter End (2018)
4. Bittersweet (2019)
5. Bitter Past (2025)

Twisted Cedar Mysteries

Set in a coastal Oregon town, a true-crime writer and a local librarian team up to unravel decades-old local mysteries and cold cases.

1. Buried / A Buried Tale (2012)
2. Forgotten (2015)
3. Exposed (2016)

The Fox & Fisher Detective Agency

1. Perfect Partners? (2009)
2. The P.I. Contest (2010)
3. Receptionist Under Cover (2010)

Contemporary & Western Romance Series

Carmichael is widely recognized for her heartwarming, emotional contemporary romances. While many of these books can be read as standalones, reading them in order lets you revisit returning characters and see families grow over time.

Carrigans of the Circle C

Set in Marietta, Montana, this series focuses on the lives, loves, and struggles of the Carrigan ranching family. Note that A Bramble House Christmas serves as a transition book to her subsequent Bramble House stories.

1. Promise Me, Cowboy (2013)
2. Good Together (2014)
3. Close to Her Heart (2014)
4. Snowbound in Montana (2014)
5. A Cowgirl's Christmas (2014)
6. A Bramble House Christmas (2015)
7. Carrigan Christmas Reunion (2019)

Bramble House Chronicles

Spun out of the popularity of A Bramble House Christmas, this subseries focuses on the cozy Bramble House B&B in Marietta, Montana.

1. Promise Me Please, Cowboy (2023)
2. A Merry Bramble Christmas (2023)
3. A Baby at Bramble House (2024)

Coffee Creek, Montana

Another series set in the big sky country of Montana, featuring rugged cowboys finding second-chance love.

1. Remember Me, Cowboy (2013)
2. Her Cowboy Dilemma (2013)
3. Promise from a Cowboy (2013)
4. Big Sky Christmas (2013)

Chatsworth

1. A Daughter's Place (2000)
2. Small-Town Girl (2003)
3. For a Baby (2004)

The Shannon Sisters

1. A Second-Chance Proposal / A Cowboy's Proposal (2002)
2. A Convenient Proposal / A Convenient Christmas Proposal (2002)
3. A Lasting Proposal / A Bachelor's Proposal / A Hometown Proposal (2002)

The Birth Place

1. Sanctuary (2003)
2. Enchanting Baby (2003)
3. Christmas at Shadow Creek (2003)
4. Leaving Enchantment (2003)
5. The Homecoming Baby (2004)
6. The Midwife and the Lawman (2004)

Three Good Men

1. The Dad Next Door (2008)
2. Matthew's Children (2008)
3. Christmas with Daddy (2008)

Return to Summer Island

1. You Made Me Love You (2006)
2. A Baby Between Them (2006)
3. Secrets Between Them (2006)

Single...With Kids

1. The Sister Switch (2007)
2. Love and the Single Mom (2007)
3. The Best-Kept Secret (2007)
4. All-American Father (2007)
5. Blame It on the Dog (2007)

Twins

1. Two Sisters (2000)
2. The Wrong Brother (2000)
3. Baby, Baby (2000)
4. The Unknown Sister (2000)
5. The Real Father (2000)
6. A Sister Would Know (2001)
7. Straight from the Heart (2001)
8. Two Much Alike (2001)
9. Wife by Deception (2001)
10. The Wrong Woman (2003)
11. The Replacement (2003)
12. Suspicion (2003)
13. For The Children (2003)
14. The Right Woman (2004)
15. The Family Man (2004)
16. His Real Father (2005)
17. Comfort and Joy (2007)
18. Her Reason to Stay (2007)
19. Be My Babies (2008)
20. Twice the Chance (2011)

Understanding Multi-Author Shared Worlds & Collaborations

Like many prolific romance writers, C.J. Carmichael has contributed to collaborative publisher lines and shared-world anthologies. While databases often list all books in these series under her author profile, she actually wrote specific standalone entries in these lines:

• A Frost Family Christmas: A holiday-themed collaboration set in Carol Falls, Vermont. Carmichael co-wrote this series with Roxy Boroughs and B.C. Deeks, contributing What Child Is This (2013) and More Than A Feeling (2014).
• Love at the Chocolate Shop: Part of Tule Publishing's shared world in Marietta, Montana. Carmichael's contributions include Melt My Heart, Cowboy (2016), Montana Secret Santa (2016), and Sweet Home Cowboy (2017).
• Cooper's Corner: A multi-author Harlequin continuity line. Carmichael wrote The Legend (2002) and Trade Secrets (2003). Other titles in the series were written by authors like Jill Shalvis and Heather MacAllister.
• Code Red: A Harlequin romantic suspense continuity set in Courage Bay, California. Carmichael wrote Book 10, Next of Kin (2004).
• Bandit Creek: A shared-world series created by Carla Roma. Carmichael contributed the festive novella The Gift (2014).