Annie Ward Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Annie Ward is a renowned American writer famous for writing suspense, thriller, adult fiction, contemporary, psychological thriller, and mystery novels. Her writing career is comprised of just 2 books and both of them are widely successful. Ward started her career in 2002 with the novel called The Making of June. This novel received critical acclaim and Ward went on to make a name for herself in the world of novel writing. However, she did not write any other novel for the next 17 years. It was in 2019 that Ward came up with her second book and a first psychological thriller called Beautiful Bad. Author Ward hails from, Kansas City, Missouri. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature. Later, she joined UCLA for a course in Creative Writing and then earned her MFA degree from the American Film Institute. During her time at the AFI, Ward successfully sold a short screenplay to BFCS/MTV Productions. This screenplay, Strange Habit, featured Adam Scott in the lead role and was the winner of the Grand Jury Award at a film festival in Aspen. It was also an Official Selection at the Sundance Festival.

Following her graduation from film school, Ward started working for Fodor Travel Guides and relocated to Eastern Europe. Her work required her to cover the regions of Bulgaria and Spain. Ward lived in Bulgaria for a period of 5 years. During her stay, she witnessed a civil rebellion and overthrowing of the Bulgarian government. Taking inspiration from the Balkan rising and the Bulgarian revolution, Ward penned her first book. She used these events as the backdrop of her book and sold it to Penguin Putnam. She was overjoyed to know that her book became a critical success. Also during her time in the Balkans, author Ward obtained a Fullbright Scholarship.

Ward spent some time teaching at the Sofia University. She even edited a few screenplays for an Israeli/American filmmaking company called Nu-Image. This company is credited to have produced many projects in the Bulgarian region under the banner of the SyFy Channel, of which Ward was also an inherent part. Later, Ward received the artist residency, known as Escape to Create. As of today, Ward resides in Kansas City along with her family. She is currently busy writing the next novel of her career and is expected to release it in the next year. Ward says that the works of authors like Patricia Highsmith, AJ Finn, Donna Tartt, Daphne du Maurier, Gillian Flynn, etc., have always influenced her. It is only because of such authors that she decided to become an author and tell her unique stories to the world.

The debut book written by author Annie Ward is entitled ‘The Making of June’. It was released by Putnam Adult in 2002. This book is set in Bulgaria and revolves around the life of a Californian girl named June. The book opens by mentioning that June appears to be a typical girl hailing from California. She has blue eyes and blond hair. June works in a film company on the post of a production assistant. She is married to a handsome man, who is about to get honored with a doctorate in Bulgaria. Everything seems to be going fine in June’s life. But, she suddenly decides to leave her job and abandon her home to be with her husband in Bulgaria. In just one month after her arrival in Bulgaria, June’s husband leaves her due to his love affair with a young local lady.

Even though it seems quite difficult for June to live without the support of her husband in a completely unknown country that is about to engage in a civil war, June doesn’t return home. She decides to stay back and face the challenge of making it on her own without having any friends and acquaintances in the foreign land. However, June is not able to take the betrayal of her husband and starts drinking too much. She falls in the hands of a crime lord and experiences a great downfall in her life. June gets a taste of the world outside the comfort of her American hometown and understands what it feels to live in a country engulfed in a revolution. She survives her downfall in time and realizes that she can use her loss as an opportunity. Her loneliness gives her time to change the course of her life and work towards having a better life independently. This novel describes a compelling story and offers a believable portrait of the political landscape in Eastern Europe. Because of the fact that this novel came from an author who has actually witnessed the political landscape in Bulgaria personally, it received a warm welcome from readers in all corners of the world.

The second novel of Ward’s writing career is entitled ‘Beautiful Bad’. It was published by the Park Row publication in 2019. This twisted and explosive psychological thriller revolves around a marriage that turns ugly. Ward has mentioned the main characters in this book in the form of Ian, Charlie, Maddie, Jo, and a few others. This novel’s setting takes place in Middle America. The book opens by showing that Ian and Maddie are a married couple. Their romance began by chance when they came across each other at an overseas party. Ian was employed in the British army, while Maddie had gone there as a travel writer. She was accompanied at the party by her best friend named Jo. Two decades pass after their marriage and live with a beautiful son named Charlie.

Maddie & Ian seem to be living the perfect life with their son in suburban Middle America. Later, Maddie gets badly injured in a camping accident, after which she started attending therapies for writing. During the therapy sessions, she reveals her biggest fear about the PTSD condition of Ian. Maddie becomes concerned about the safety of their son as well as their tumultuous and tangled past with her friend Jo. The story of this novel takes the readers from Iraq to Manhattan, Balkans to England, and finally to a small family home in Kansas. It spans nearly a decade and describes the feelings of love, adventure, suspicion, and fear experienced by the lead characters of this book.