Ace Atkins Books In Order

Publication Order of Nick Travers Books

Publication Order of Quinn Colson Books

Publication Order of Spenser Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Anthologies

Ace Atkins is an American journalist and author born on 28th of June 1970. He is widely known for crime novels, both stand alone and series novels. He started his career in the newsroom of The Tampa Tribune as a crime reporter. He then moved to writing and published his first book in 1998 and specialized as an author at the age of 30. He has achieved great things as an author including award nominations and worldwide recognition.

Personal Life
Ace Atkins was born on 28th of June 1970 in Troy, Alabama. He went to school at Auburn High School as a young boy but he was not into reading the books he was supposed to read. However, due to constant pressure and encouragement from his teachers, he realized the joy of reading and writing. He got a football scholarship for college and became part of the Auburn football team of 1993 that never lost a game. As a result, he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated in the same year. While at college, he majored in screenplay writing and graduated from Auburn University in 1994. He is married and now resides with his family in Mississippi where he is employed at the University of Mississippi as a visiting professor in journalism. He moved to Mississippi since most of his books are set there, and also due to the fact that Mississippi is a very rich state culturally. When Ace Atkins is not teaching, he spends time in his farmhouse which is located outside Oxford with his dogs Polk Annie and Elvis as he writes.

Career and awards
Atkins began his career as a journalist and made his mark working in the newsroom of Tampa Tribune as a crime reporter. However, he turned things around and began writing crime novels. He wrote his first novel, Crossroad Blues, in 1998 and thereafter became a full time novelist in 2000. Since he started, Atkins has established himself as one of the best crime writers and has won many awards along the way. He has written many series novels as well as stand alone novels, making him very popular globally. Atkins has been nominated in many major awards starting with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and Livingston Award in 2000. He was nominated in 2004 for the Gumshoe Award and in 2007 the Barry Award.
His favorite authors are James Lee Burke, J.D. Salinger, and John Steinbeck. His inspiration comes mainly from music. Some of his books are based on true life stories such as his first book which was based on the murder of Robert Johnson in 1938. As an author, Atkins also relates with some of his characters such as Jon Burrows. His most personal book is Wicked City which he wrote in 2008. Its set in a vice-ridden Alabama town and features many historical figures.

Books
Ace Atkins has been outstanding in writing crime novels since his first book in 1998. His series novels mainly are comprised of four books. The book, Crossroad Blues was the first of his first novel series Nick Travers.This book is about a forgotten murder of the famous Robert Johnson in 1950 and set his stage as a crime novelist. Atkins uses the legendary blues guitarist’s life, music and mystery death to cast his story in the book. The cast of characters in the book includes an Elvis-worshiping hit man, Johnson’s ghost, a red-headed siren and the Mississippi Delta. It’s here that we first meet Nick Travers, an ex-New Orleans Saint turned historian at Tulane University. Traverslooks for the lost recordings of his missing colleague, 1930s blues-man Robert Johnson. However, his search is not so safe as he finds trouble everywhere when he walks into a mess of sociopaths such as Jesse Garo, a psychopathic killer. The book gives pleasure of mystery, suspense and tension.

The second novel of Nick Travers series was Leavin’ Trunk Blues (2000). In this book, Nick Travers has not yet found the recordings of his missing colleague, and its been a year since he started his search. However, another mystery arises. A blues record producer, Billy Lyon dies mysteriously and his body is found floating in Lake Michigan. The legendary guitarist had been stabbed with an ice pick. His lover, Ruby Walker, a blues singer is sentenced to life in prison for the murder. However, there are many rumors surrounding the strange death. Some rumors claimed it was a hit called by Mose Jordan, Lyon’s partner while others claimed it was a settlement for a gambling debt Lyon owed the black mafia. Walker agrees an interview with Nick Travers in exchange for him finding out the truth behind Lyon’s death. Travers soon discovers that there were people who wanted the details of the death to remain hidden. However, he decides to make it his quest to find out the truth behind Lyon’s death.

Ever since, Atkins has gone on to write many series novels and stand alone novels. Other books from the Nick Travers series are the Dark End of the Street (2002), and Dirty South (2004). His other novel series, Quinn Colson contains 5 books: The Ranger, The Lost Ones, Broken Places, The Forsaken and The Redeemers. In the Quinn Colson novels, the protagonist is a veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq who returns home to Mississippi to on a quest of fighting corruption. Robert B. Parker estate selected Ace Atkins to continue the work on the best selling adventures of Spenser, a Boston’s iconic private eye. The series Robert B. Parker’s Spenser has 4 books: Robert B. Parker’s Lullaby, Robert B. Parker’s Wonderland, Robert B. Parker’s Cheap Shot and Robert B. Parker’s Kickback.
Atkins wrote a stand alone novel White Shadow in 2006. The novel followed a story of the murder of the real-life crime boss at Tampa, Charlie Wall in 1955 that was never solved. He also published Devil’s Garden in 2009 and Infamous in 2010.

Atkins also covered Hurricane Ivan for Newsweek magazine and Hurricane Katrina for Outside magazine. His writing work is included in two anthologies namely, New Orleans Noir (2007) and They Write Among Us (2003). He has also written some articles and essays such as Shut Up About My Truck in the September 2007 issue of Outside magazine. Ace Atkins has now is with more than fifteen novels New York Times bestselling author. The novels are in preparation for a major television series.

5 Responses to “Ace Atkins”

1. John: 2 years ago

   Just finished Bye Bye Baby. Excellent continuation of the Spencer series and worthy of number 50. Just wish it were another 100 pages as I would like all Spencer novels to be. Please keep up the great work.

   Reply
   • Andrew: 1 year ago

     Absolutely. Many of Ace’s Spenser books are within the best in the entire series. That is an amazing feat considering how good the series had been. I’m very grateful to get a new, great Spenser novel every year. My brother is as well. We met Atkins at two book signings. Very gracious to fans.

     Reply
2. Rebecca McKenzie: 2 years ago

   Met you several years ago at conference about time first Quinn book came out.
   Started reading all of them.
   Was also fan of Robert B Parker and collected all his books. Spencer was my favorite
   So excited to have you continue his series. None of the authors writing his other characters continued with the dialog and feel you have been able to capture. They are different from your Quin novels. Not better or worse. just true to the series.
   Thank you for many enjoyable reads. Could you autograph last Spencer at one of booksellers in Birmingham. Must have copy of #50
   Looking forward to reading more Ace Atkins

   Reply
3. Lou: 2 years ago

   Picked up a Robert Parker book one snowy day while passing time due to the Covid pandemic and have since read every book even the ones you have written. One of the best books I read in a long time was a Parker book ” All Our Yesterdays”. It would be good if you could write a follow-up on the book’s character. Enjoy your writing as much as Parker’s.

   Reply
4. Sonya Lewis: 3 years ago

   I have all your Quinn Colson books and have enjoyed everyone of them. Anxious to read the next one whenever it comes out. I also have Lullaby , Cheap Shot and Wonderland. I bought these first and enjoyed your writing style so much I started on the Quinn Colson series. I live in NM and sadly books with southern settings are not all that easy to find. I’m a native east Texan and I love the southern expressions. Keep the Colson series going hope Quinn and Lillie get together. Love Lillie and Boom and I don’t know a woman who doesn’t have fantasies of having a Quinn Colson in their lives.

   Reply