Peter Ash Reading Order
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| The Drifter | 2016 | Buy |
| Burning Bright | 2017 | Buy |
| Light It Up | 2018 | Buy |
| Tear It Down | 2019 | Buy |
| The Wild One | 2020 | Buy |
| The Breaker | 2021 | Buy |
| The Runaway | 2022 | Buy |
| The Price You Pay | 2024 | Buy |
| The Dark Time | 2026 | Buy |
Series: Peter Ash | Character: Peter Ash
Nick Petrie worked construction and inspected houses before writing fiction. During his years as a home inspector, he kept meeting veterans who couldn’t settle into civilian life. They’d fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and coming home was harder than anyone had warned them. Those conversations became Peter Ash.
Ash is a Marine veteran with post-traumatic claustrophobia. He can’t stay indoors without the walls closing in. He lives in his truck, works odd jobs, and tries to stay out of trouble. Trouble finds him anyway. Each book drops Ash into a situation where his combat skills become necessary, usually while he’s trying to help someone who can’t help themselves.
The Drifter launched in 2016 and was nominated for both the Edgar and the Barry Awards. Reviewers compared Ash to Jack Reacher, but the characters differ in important ways. Reacher is calm and detached; Ash is damaged and struggling. Reacher chooses his lifestyle; Ash is trapped in his.
Petrie writes with attention to place. His novels move through specific American landscapes: Memphis, Iceland, the Pacific Northwest. He researches locations carefully, understanding that setting shapes story. The environments feel real because he’s been there.
The series continues to grow. Petrie publishes a new Ash novel roughly every year, developing the character while maintaining the formula readers expect. Ash gets a little better over time. The walls don’t close in quite as fast.