Chris Holm Books In Order

Publication Order of Collector Books

Publication Order of Michael Hendricks Books

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Veridical Dreams Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Chris Holm was born in Syracuse, New York to a mother from a police family and a father from a long-line of fantasy and science fiction nerds. At age six, he wrote his first story, which got him sent to the principal’s office. Holm’s work has fared better since then. His short stories have turned up in publications like Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, and The Best American Mystery Stories 2011. His books have acquired over fifty Year’s Best nods. Holm has been put on the longlist for a Stoker Award and recommended for numerous awards. In fact, the first book from his Michael Hendricks thriller series, The Killing Mind, was selected as a New York Times Editors’ Choice, a 2015 Boston Globe Best Book, and a 2015 Strand Magazine’s #1 Book. It obtained the 2016 Anthony Award for Best Novel and also recommended for a Barry, a Lefty, and a Macavity. Holm’s Collector trilogy, which includes Dead Harvest, The Wrong Goodbye, and The Big Reap, modifies the conflict between heaven and hell as outmoded crime pulp.

Books/Characters

The Collector Books

The main character, Sam Thornton, gathers the damned souls as a Collector. He is condemned to an eternity of bondage to Hell. This is due to a deal that Sam made with the devil to prevent his wife from losing her life. For Sam, this job is half penance, half punishment. Despite this, to him, the job as a whole is bad. However, working for the devil does not stop Sam from doing the right thing. Sam’s story is in the form of a trilogy.

Dead Harvest

Dead Harvest is the first book of the Collector Books trilogy. It introduces the reader to Sam, a man who gathers damned souls known as a Collector and makes sure they find their way to hell. For Sam, it is business as usual until he is sent out to seize the soul of a young woman he thinks is not guilty of the crime for which she has been condemned. This is when Sam declines to take the young woman’s soul, something no one else of his kind never done.

The Wrong Goodbye

The Wrong Goodbye is the second book in the Collector trilogy. Due to the events of the first book, Sam is now on a short leash. This means he had best follow a straight, narrow path. To Sam, this is rather simple. However, when he loses a soul that he has been assigned to collect, it disappears. That is when Sam finds himself of the path rather quick.

The Big Reap

The Big Reap is the third and final book in the Collector trilogy. Although Sam is forced to do hell’s command, his conscience has always direct him true. However, when he is ordered to dispatch the legendary Brethren—a group of ex-Collectors who have disposed of their connections to hell—Sam is compelled to question if perhaps he is getting a little too much pleasure from his work. He cannot determine whether he is still doing the honorable thing or his job was eventually successful in perverting his soul.

The Michael Hendricks Thriller Series

The Killing Mind

The Killing Mind is the first book in the Michael Hendricks thriller series. It introduces the reader to Michael Hendricks, a man who earns a living killing people. In spite of this, he is not such a bad guy. Hendricks used to be a covert operative for the U.S. military’s false-flag unit. He was believed to be dead after a mission in Afghanistan went wrong. Hendricks deserted his old life—and much-loved fiancée—and embarked on a redemptive path or maybe one of intentional self-destruction. He now makes an income as a hitman businessman. However, he only kills other hitmen. He will ensure for ten times the price on your head whoever’s coming to murder you ends up dead instead. It may not be a bad way for a man with his set of skills to earn an income—but a terrific way to cause himself to be a target.

Red Right Hand

Red Right Hand is the second book in the Michael Hendricks thriller series. A viral video of a terrorist attack in San Francisco shows that a supposedly dead Federal witness is still alive. The group he had decided to be a witness against will not stop until he is dead. FBI Special Agent Charlie Thompson is determined to keep the man save. However, she cannot do anything since the FBI’s only priority is capturing the terrorists before they attack again. Therefore, Charlie gets in contact with Michael Hendricks, the only individual on Earth who can ensure her witness’ safety. Hendricks was a covert operative for the U.S. military and is now earning an income as killing hitmen. Actually, he previously did until the same group pursuing Charlie’s witness—the Council—found out and sought out all of his loved ones. Hendricks is now determined to bring the Council down, even though that indicates walking into the center of terror plot whose culprits are not what they appear to be.

Short Fiction

Dead Letters: Stories of Murder and Mayhem

Dead Letters: Stories of Murder and Mayhem is a collection of nine stories of crime, horror, and some fantasy. In fact, one of the stories occurs at the North Pole and features an elf detective. This book includes Holm’s homage to Donald Westlake, “Action,” which initially emerged in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. His novella “The Hitter,” was chosen by Harlan Coben and Otto Penzler for The Best American Mystery Stories 2011 and also nominated for an Anthony Award. The collection includes a new unpublished horror story called “One Man’s Muse.” It also consists of “The Putdown,” “A Native Problem,” “The Man in the Alligator Shoes,” “A Night at the Royale,” “The Final Bough,” and “Green.”

Eight Pounds: Eight Tales of Crime, Horror, and Suspense

Eight Pounds: Eight Tales of Crime, Horror, and Suspense is a series of eight stories that stretched the range from small-town horror to old-school, whiskey-drinking noir, with a bit of coming-of-age adventure added for good measure. This book consists of the “Seven Days of Rain,” which won a Spinetingler Award, “The Big Score,” which was a finalist for a Derringer Award and “The World Behind”, which initially emerged in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine.