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Jake Sullivan is a former intelligence operative who walked away from the spy world to live on a boat in the Gulf Coast. He wanted a quiet life — cold drinks, warm weather, easy days on the water. Instead, he keeps getting dragged into situations that require exactly the skills he was trying to leave behind. Jake’s past in intelligence gave him contacts, combat training, and a habit of noticing when things aren’t right. His present gives him a network of colorful locals, boat captains, and fellow coastal drifters who either need his help or end up helping him. Over 25 books, he deals with drug smugglers in Cuba, corrupt officials in Mexico, organized crime across the Caribbean, and trouble that washes up right at his dock. ...

Jack Sullivan is a 13-year-old foster kid living in Wakefield when monsters, zombies, and general apocalyptic chaos descend on his town. Rather than panic, Jack sees an opportunity. He sets up a fortified tree house, builds weapons from sporting equipment and hardware store finds, and starts treating the end of civilization like the ultimate video game quest — complete with objectives, boss battles, and a running internal monologue about how cool everything is. ...

Sam Graves is a regular kid at Eerie Elementary until he gets picked as the new hall monitor. The job comes with responsibilities nobody warned him about — the school building is alive, it is hungry, and it has been terrorizing students for decades. Hallways shift, lockers swallow people, and the cafeteria can turn lethal. Sam’s job isn’t just keeping kids from running in the halls. It’s keeping them from being eaten by them. ...

The Jake Sullivan series follows a former intelligence agent living a low-key life on the Gulf Coast who keeps getting drawn into dangerous situations. Over 25 books, Jake tangles with drug runners, corrupt politicians, international criminals, and various bad actors across Florida, the Caribbean, Cuba, and beyond. His skills from his old life make him effective; his preference for a quiet boat life makes him reluctant. Every book in the series takes its title from a Jimmy Buffett song, and the Parrothead vibe runs deeper than just the names. The settings are sun-soaked, the pace is relaxed between action sequences, and there is a running appreciation for cold drinks, warm weather, and the particular lifestyle of Gulf Coast boat people. Bell has kept the series going since 2011, publishing roughly two books per year, with the 25th installment arriving in 2025. ...

Chip Bell is an American author known for the Jake Sullivan mystery series, a long-running adventure series set in and around the Gulf Coast and Caribbean. The 25-book series follows Jake Sullivan, a former intelligence operative who has traded the spy life for a quieter existence on a boat, though trouble has a way of finding him wherever he docks. The series titles are drawn from Jimmy Buffett songs — Come Monday, Havana Daydreamin’, Cheeseburger in Paradise, Margaritaville — reflecting the books’ laid-back tropical atmosphere and the Parrothead culture that runs through the stories. Bell started the series in 2011 and has published consistently, with the most recent installment, Margaritaville, arriving in 2025. The books mix mystery plots with action sequences, humor, and a deep appreciation for coastal living. ...

Robert James Waller’s non-fiction books span his career from academic essayist to reflective memoirist. One Good Road is Enough (1990) and Iowa (1991) capture his deep connection to the state where he spent most of his life. Old Songs in a New Cafe (1994) collects essays written during and after the Bridges phenomenon. His final non-fiction work, The Summer Nights Never End…Until They Do (2012), is a late-career reflection on life, aging, and memory. ...

Robert James Waller’s collections bring together his personal essays and shorter writings. Just Beyond the Firelight (1988) predates his fame and collects reflective pieces about life in Iowa, music, travel, and the passage of time. The Ballads of Madison County (1993) followed the success of Bridges, gathering more essays and musings. Both books reveal Waller’s roots as an essayist and thinker before he became known as a novelist. His non-fiction voice is contemplative and lyrical, with a deep attachment to the rural Midwest and its landscapes. ...

Robert James Waller’s novels are standalone works of literary fiction with romantic themes, set mostly in the American Midwest and exploring themes of love, longing, and the tension between freedom and responsibility. They can be read in any order, though readers of The Bridges of Madison County may want to follow it with A Thousand Country Roads. The Bridges of Madison County (1992) made Waller one of the bestselling authors of the decade. His follow-up novels — Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend, Border Music, Puerto Vallarta Squeeze — explore similar territory of unconventional love and restless characters, though none achieved the same level of success. His later novels High Plains Tango and The Long Night of Winchell Dear are quieter, more contemplative works set in small-town America. ...

Robert James Waller (1939-2017) was an American author and former economics professor at the University of Northern Iowa. He is best known for The Bridges of Madison County, a slim romance novel published in 1992 that became one of the bestselling books of the 1990s. The story of a four-day love affair between photographer Robert Kincaid and Iowa farm wife Francesca Johnson struck a nerve with millions of readers. Before writing fiction, Waller was an academic who published essays about rural life, economics, and the changing American landscape. His non-fiction collections like Just Beyond the Firelight and Old Songs in a New Cafe reflect his lyrical, reflective writing style. After the massive success of Bridges, he published several more novels, though none matched its commercial impact. He wrote A Thousand Country Roads (2002) as a sequel, returning to the Kincaid and Johnson story a decade later. ...

Lysa TerKeurst’s anthology contributions include devotional and Bible study works created in collaboration with other Christian authors. Walking with God in the Quiet (2009) is an early devotional, while Twelve Women of the Bible Study Guide (2012) is a group study resource examining the lives of biblical women. Both titles are designed for group study settings and reflect TerKeurst’s involvement in the broader Christian women’s ministry community through Proverbs 31 Ministries. ...