Tess Gerritsen Books In Order

Publication Order of Rizzoli & Isles Books

Publication Order of Rizzoli & Isles Short Stories Books

Publication Order of The Martini Club Books

Publication Order of Tavistock Family Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Her Protector Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

About Tess Gerritsen:

Dr. Tess Gerritsen is one of the premier authors in the medical and crime thriller genres. She is a dynamic and multi-talented writer, and her published material contains bright instances of humor as well as dark and intricate plots, astounding technical elements and exceptional attention to detail.

Dr. Tess Gerritsen was born in San Diego, and educated at the Stanford University and the University of California, San Francisco. She enjoys fiddling and gardening at her home in New England, and is married to Dr. Jacob Gerritsen, M.D. ,who specializes in Geriatric Medicine. Together they have two children, both sons.

About Tess Gerritsen

Born in San Diego, California to Chinese American parents, she longed for a career as a writer, but her parents were skeptical that a writer’s salary could be lucrative, leading her to pursue a different course. She studied Anthropology at her undergraduate alma mater, Stanford University, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in the year 1975.

She went on to earn her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco in the year 1979. After moving to Honolulu, she began practicing medicine full-time, while still treasuring writing as a way to escape from daily life and as a kind of therapy. After winning an award of 500 US dollars for a short story she wrote in her spare time, she decided to pursue writing less as a valued hobby and more professionally.

Early Work

While practicing medicine, Tess Gerritsen was deeply interested in reading romances, so naturally, she gravitated towards that genre for her first forays into novel writing. In the year 1987, Harlequin Publishing bought the rights to her first professional romance thriller, Call After Midnight, and for almost a decade published a steady stream of romantic thrillers written by Tess Gerritsen.

Influenced but her own extensive technical knowledge and natural talent with the English language to transition to more work with a more serious tone, abandoning the genre of romantic thrillers in 1996.

Medical Thrillers and Crime Thrillers

Tess Gerritsen’s first medical thriller, Harvest, was written after she had decided to change genres, and garnered immediate success, eventually gaining the number 13 spot of the New York Times bestseller list. It was published in the year 1996, and was inspired by a conversation she had had with a retired homicide detective.

This led to her publishing three subsequent medical thrillers, all of which became bestsellers in their own right. Her sophomore effort, the crime thriller Life Support, garnered wide critical and commercial success, and fully cemented her reputation as a premier writer in the thriller genre.

The story follows emergency room physician Dr. Toby Harper as he attempts to contain an unstoppable virus terrorizing his quiet overnight shift at the hospital. Finding a cure is paramount, as well as finding the culprits who unleashed this horrible plague. Lauded as more mature and somehow more exciting, Life Support paved the way for more medical thrillers, finally coming to an end with Gravity.

Another genre change came in 2001, we she transitioned from medical thrillers to crime thrillers and police procedural drama. Tess Gerritsen’s first crime thriller, The Surgeon, was published in the year 2001, and was the first book to feature the character Jane Rizzoli.

While only a supporting character in the novel, Det. Rizzoli would go to to become her most recognizable character, along with her counterpart and foil, Dr. Maura Isles. Nine books have been published in the Rizzoli and Isles series, with her most recent stand alone work being The Bone Garden, a historical fiction thriller based in 19th century Boston.

Rizzoli and Isles

Tess Gerritsen’s most enduring and popular novels are undoubtedly the Rizolli and Isles series(2001 to present). The series focuses on homicide detective Jane Rizzoli, and medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles. The series pairs the two in the investigation of horrific and imaginative crimes, buoyed by Gerritsen’s vast knowledge of both the medical profession and police procedure.

Each novel is painstakingly researched and sourced, combining detailed technical knowledge and a masterful sense of timing and plot direction to create suspenseful, yet revealing and intuitive thriller fiction. The characters of Rizzoli and Isles were picked up by cable channel TNT, already known for its police procedural dramas Law and Order and NYPD Blue, and began production in 2009.

It quickly garnered vast viewership and became one of the most watched programs on the network. A side effect of the explosive popularity of the show has been a massive surge in sales for all nine Rizzoli and Isles novels, further catapulting Tess Gerritsen in the limelight as a bestselling author expected to produce engaging and suspenseful thriller novels.

Writing Style

Like any successful thriller writer, Tess Gerritsen is a master of plot and timing, incorporating beautiful timing into an involved plot to bring her vibrant and colorful characters to life. Learning to balance dangerous and fantastic situation with cold, hard facts helps to bring the page to life, while still maintaining a sense of mystery and wonder that leaves the reader wanting more.

Combining real world knowledge with fully fleshed out character and thoughtful story lines is the hallmark of a master of thrill, and Tess Gerritsen possesses all these qualities, with the momentous addition of her professional training and experience and dedication to realism and research.

Her many fans include authors Stephen King and James Patterson. Many of Tess Gerritsen’s colleagues and contemporaries have called her the best crime thriller novelist in publishing today, with horror meister Stephen King famously quoted as saying that she was “even better than Michael Crichton” and that “ Tess Gerritsen is an automatic must-read in my house; what Anne Rice is to vampires, Gerritsen is to the tale of medical suspense.”

Lauded by fellow authors and critics alike, the publishing industry and the public at large can look forward to many more years of engaging and exciting work from this creative and eclectic author.

Awards Received

Tess Gerritsen’s novel Vanish received a Nero Award for Best Mystery Novel in the year 2006, and was also nominated both for an Macavity Award as well as an Edgar Award.

7 Responses to “Tess Gerritsen”

1. Melanie Wilson: 2 months ago

   I love all Tess Gerritsen’s books.

   Reply
2. Judith Tice: 5 months ago

   As an avid reader for over 60 years, read one of Tess’s books earlier this year, now I read all the Rissoli and Ike’s and working on the rest.
   Almost thru the remainder of her books. I can’t quit reading once I start and never takes longer than two days. A real page turner, each and every one. Thanks needed a new novelist.

   Reply
3. Margaret sweetnam: 6 months ago

   I am an avid reader since I retired in 2020
   I was recently introduced to Tess Gerritsen by my husband. I have read all 13 books Rizzoli and isles
   Just finished reading The Spy Coast. The best book ever.
   I also live in Southern California
   More stories please

   Reply
4. Michelle: 2 years ago

   Read all of your Rizzoli and Isles series they were fantastic!! Was hoping there would be more coming soon.

   Reply
5. Nellie mccain: 2 years ago

   Have just read Keeper of the Bride.
   Enjoyed it very much. Have given my local library the complete list on the web site to get for me.

   Reply
6. Nellie mccain: 2 years ago

   Have just read Keeper of the Bride.
   Enjoyed it very much. Have given my local library the complete list on the web site to get for me.

   Reply
7. Joanne Paup: 3 years ago

   I just read Peggy Sue Got Murdered and it was a nail biter throughout. The culprit really caught me by surprise. It also showed me just how used we are now to cell phones, none of which were in the book.

   Reply