Karen Ann Hopkins Books In Order

Publication Order of Crossroads Books

Publication Order of Possum Gap Books

Publication Order of Serenity's Plain Secrets Books

Publication Order of Temptation Books

Publication Order of The Wings of War Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Karen Ann Hopkins is a mystery, young adult, and paranormal author born and raised in Rochester, New York. The Amish community she lives in inspired her to write her first novel, Temptation; the experience she gained from spending time with her neighbors helped create a story of star-crossed lovers.
Karen earned her first horse at the age of eleven; she worked as a horse instructor, and before she accepted her fate in the barn, Karen went abroad and trained tourists riding. When not offering riding lessons, homeschooling her kids, or tending to her domestic animals, Karen thinks about her next novel.

Lamb to the Slaughter

Lamb to the Slaughter is the Serenity’s Plain Secrets series. The death of an Amish girl in a cornfield appears like an accident, but Sheriff Serenity Adams suspects it’s a game being played. To solve the murder, she has to look deeply into the surrounding Amish community, assisted by a man who was ignored several years ago.

The novel is a story about the interconnecting lives of three odd people in an Indiana Amish Community and the disastrous results when a defiant teenage girl is found shot in a corn field during harvest time.

Serenity is the newly selected Young sheriff in the entire Blood Rock, and apart from getting used to her predecessor, she now has a deal with a murder of an Amish girl on her plate. At first sight, the case appears so obvious. Being a new sheriff, she tries as much as possible to prove herself and isn’t ready to stop until she uncovers the truth.

The poor girl might have accidentally shot during the hunting season. Still, after the community elders and the girl’s parents react to the low-key behavior, Serenity becomes suspicious. When she realizes the Amish community isn’t helping her in the case, she seeks help elsewhere.

As she gets more into the community filled with secrets that she was raised in, she discovers a merciless crime that took place earlier and seems to be linked to the girl’s shooting. She learns that the Amish prefer to ‘take care of their own, and Tony Manning has taken the chance of provoking her so that she will never find out how the girl got shot. Serenity seeks the help from Daniel Bachman, who left the Amish at nineteen.

Daniel agrees to help her but on one condition that they do things his way. It means they’ll have to pretend to be in love using the pretense that Daniel is considering returning to being Amish. The sheriff’s persistence gives her a stunning discovery that threatens to end the growing romance with Daniel and also threatens to end her life.

The mystery becomes more personal when Serenity discovers that someone close to the young girl was involved in her murder.

Serenity is a real definition of a badass character, and although she can be a little stubborn, she is strong and brave. The back stories are well explained, which makes the novel interesting. Hopkins weaves a tale where the sheriff is trying to navigate through two communities in the hunt for a killer.
He has dark reasons for helping the sheriff solve the murder that the family and friends ignored him by trying to cover up.

Serenity is firm when it comes to issues of solving crimes and ensuring the victim gets justice. The author did an excellent job of creating suspects, offering the reader a suspenseful mystery with twists that will make them guess. She also gives subtle clues allowing the reader to piece the crime together.
The story is told from three points of view, one for Serenity after finding out about the girl’s body. The second is Naomi’s point of view which shows what happened and led to her death. Lastly, towards the novel’s end, the story is narrated from Daniel’s point of view.

For readers who like small-town settings and are curious to know about the Amish community, Lamb to the Slaughter is the book for you. Hopkins has done a fantastic job sharing about the town politics, the Amish culture, and dealing with issues resulting from criminal activities.

The characters are strong and complex with their flaws, making them feel realistic and believable. Throughout the novel, Hopkins appears to have put a lot of thought and research into creating the worlds in the book.

Whispers from the Dead
Whispers from the Dead is the second installment in the Serenity’s Plain Secrets series. It picks up from where the Lamb to the Slaughter novel left. In the Lamb in the Slaughter, Serenity and Daniel solved a murder case in the Amish community. Now they’ve partnered again after a criminal investigation and travel to the Northern Amish area that has been accused of criminal acts for the past two decades.

Serenity has been called in to help with the investigations. It doesn’t take long before Serenity discovers that there is more going on apart from the barns being burned in the tourist community of Poplar Springs. These groups of Amish people seem to have hidden secrets that Daniel and Serenity will have to dig to uncover.

It’s up to them to find out who has been setting the fires and why. They decide to stay with a man named Rowan so that they can access the town better. Unlike the town of Blood Rock, the people in Popular Springs are kind and welcoming and look forward to getting answers too.

Serenity begins unveiling a massive criminal underworld that soon threatens to demolish anything that the ordinary people of Poplar Springs treasured. Once again, Serenity finds her life in danger. Even though she tries all she can to avoid it, things start becoming complex between her and Daniel, leaving her wondering whether she can experience true life and find happiness in her life.

Things escalated when an unknown female’s body was found burned beyond recognition, and the local Amish felt that the Springs sheriff wasn’t doing enough to solve the case. Can they find out the truth before the clock stops ticking?

Hopkins has done a tremendous job sharing insights into the close-knit communities. The characters are well developed from the start, adding more flesh to the story. The author weaved in some aspects about families and the sheriff’s resistance to make a well-detailed and suspenseful read.

Hopkins also throws in some slow-burn romance to keep the reader engaged to the last page.

2 Responses to “Karen Ann Hopkins”

1. Gloria coppedge: 6 months ago

   Are you going to add a sequel to the serenity series book 17 I’m hooked on them

   Reply
2. Sharon Black: 6 months ago

   I have read th Possum Gap series and the Dark Hollow and starting the Devils Eye. What is the next book on Sadie and her recovery from being shot in Dark Hollow. I love the mystery and great character and story line. I want to keep this series between Serenity and Sadie in order

   Reply