Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Door of Death | 1928 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 2 | The Chevalier Bayard | 1928 | Samuel Shellabarger | N/A |
| 3 | The Black Gale | 1929 | Samuel Shellabarger | N/A |
| 4 | Voodoo | 1930 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 5 | By Night at Dinsmore | 1935 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 6 | Lord Chesterfield and His World | 1935 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 7 | While Murder Waits | 1937 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 8 | Graveyard Watch | 1938 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 9 | Blind Man’s Night | 1938 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 10 | Grief Before Night | 1938 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 11 | Assurance Double Sure | 1939 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 12 | Miss Rolling Stone | 1939 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 13 | Captain From Castile | 1945 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 14 | Prince of Foxes | 1947 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 15 | The King’s Cavalier | 1950 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 16 | Blaise of France | 1950 | Samuel Shellabarger | N/A |
| 17 | Lord Vanity | 1953 | Samuel Shellabarger | Buy |
| 18 | Tolbecken | 1956 | Samuel Shellabarger | N/A |
Samuel Shellabarger’s standalone novels cover nearly three decades of writing, from The Door of Death in 1928 to Tolbecken in 1956. His early books were mysteries and thrillers, often published under pen names like John Dodd or Peter Doolittle. Titles like Voodoo, Graveyard Watch, and While Murder Waits reflect the pulp sensibilities of the 1930s.
His career shifted dramatically in 1945 with Captain From Castile, a historical epic set during the Spanish conquest of Mexico. The book was a massive bestseller and was adapted into a 1947 film starring Tyrone Power. Prince of Foxes (1947) and The King’s Cavalier (1950) followed in the same mold, telling grand stories set in Renaissance Italy and France. These later novels are the ones that cemented Shellabarger’s reputation.