Douglas Kennedy Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Douglas Kennedy is a bestselling American writer of literature & fiction, romance, historical fiction, contemporary, thriller, and suspense novels. He has written around 12 novels in his career, which includes the international bestselling books Leaving the WOrld, The Big Picture, The Moment, and Pursuit of Happiness. The latest novel penned by Kennedy, The Heat of Betrayal, was published in the UK and France in 2015 and in the US in 2016. In addition to literary novels, Kennedy is the author of 3 very popular travel books. Author Kennedy’s books have sold over 14 million printed copies all over the world. Most of his books have been translated into more than 22 languages and published in various countries. Very often, Kennedy writes his novels with European landscapes. His books are particularly loved and acclaimed in France. Many of his books have been bestsellers in France. In 2007, Kennedy was awarded the French decoration called Chevalier de Ordre des Lettres.

In 2009, the popular newspaper Le Figaro awarded him, Grand Prix du Figaro. In 2017, Kennedy published his newest book in France as part of a trilogy series and is expected to release the other two books in the upcoming years. Author Kennedy was born in 1955 in New York City, New York, US. His father a production assistant and a commodities broker at NBC. He received his early education from The Collegiate School followed by a bachelor’s magna cum laude degree in 1976 from Bowdoin College. Kennedy was also enrolled in Dublin’s Trinity College for one year to study history major. He is of the opinion that a novelist can get better training from history major than any other course. Subsequently, much of the work of Kennedy in his fiction stories is observational. He says that the study of human history provides a good knowledge of the human folly repeating itself endlessly.

In 1977, Kennedy moved back to Dublin and founded a co-operative theater company in collaboration with a close friend. Later, he was made in charge of running The Peacock, the second house of Abbey Theatre. When he was 28 years old, Kennedy retired from theater to focus on his writing career on a full-time basis. After writing a few radio plays and a stage play for the BBC, he decided to work on his debut book. He wrote it in the form of a narrative description of his visit to Egypt and named it Beyond the Pyramids. The book was published in 1988. Later that year, Kennedy returned to London along with his wife at that time and got indulged in journalistic work. He expanded the work and went on to write for The Listener, Esquire, GQ, The Sunday Times, New Statesman, The Sunday Telegraph, etc.

Kennedy’s book, The Dead Heart, was adapted into a movie called Woop Woop in 1997. His second book, The Big Picture, was also adapted into a French movie in 2010 that featured Catherine Deneuve and Romain Duris in the main roles. Another novel, The Woman in the Fifth, was used as the basis of a 2011 film starring Kristin Scott Thomas and Ethan Hawke. It revolves around a professor and a strange lady, who fall in love with each other, but it turns out that the woman is not what she appears to be. As of today, author Kennedy resides in London along with his wife and 2 children named Amelia and Max. He is an atheist and spends time at his homes in Berlin, London, New York, Montreal, and Paris.

A popular novel written by author Douglas Kennedy is entitled ‘The job’. It was released in 2005 by the Abacus Software, after its initial release in 1998. This book consists of a thrilling plot involving blackmail, downsizing, and murder in Manhattan’s business world. The essential characters mentioned in the book include Ned Allen and Lizzie. The story begins by describing Ned Allen as a smart and young man working as a salesman for a famous computer magazine in Manhattan. After spending several years in the job, he leaves behind the small-town roots and begins to feel that he is meant to thrive in the sophisticated world of Manhattan forever. Ned’s wife, Lizzie, works at a PR firm. She too is getting recognized for her work and hopes for great success in the near future. Later, it appears that Ned is forced to work against his ethics and make tough calls. He begins to lie to Lizzie thinking that it will end soon and he would not have to lie to her anymore. But, the situation keeps getting tougher and a time comes when he finds himself on the edge of losing everything he holds dear. This novel depicts the fragile modern life in the form of a cautionary and compelling tale. It also shows the depths to which a man is ready to go in order to preserve the things close to his heart.

Another mind-blowing book written by Kennedy is known as ‘The Moment’. It was published by the Atria Books in 2011. This book describes a great love story filled with a lot of emotional power. The central characters mentioned by Kennedy include Thomas Nesbitt and Petra Dussman. The setting of the story takes place in Berlin and Maine. Thoma Nesbitt is introduced as a middle-aged divorced writer. He lives in Maine and keeps himself pretty much indulged in his private life. He tries to overcome the loss of his long marriage’s end and is in touch with only his daughter. Thomas Nesbitt’s solitude gets disrupted one morning when he receives a box that is sent to him from Berlin. As soon as he reads the name of the sender on the box, Dussman, he becomes unsettled.

The box belonged to Petra Dussman, a woman from Berlin with whom he had a passionate love affair around 26 years ago. The city was facing a hard time at that time due to the effects of the Cold War, and political and personal allegiances were being haunted everywhere. At first, Thomas seems reluctant to open the box and wonders what he might come across. But then, he makes up his mind to come to terms with the past that he never shared with anyone in his family. By doing so, he looks forward to reliving the time in Berlin when he found true love in his life for the first and last time. On the other hand, Petra Dussman was living the life of a refugee and there was sorrow in her heart that she never got rid of.