At Books Point Bookstore, we have the complete collection of Sidney Sheldon Books for sale in Kenya. If you’ve ever run your finger along a shelf of Sidney Sheldon books — at Books Point or anywhere else — and wondered where to start, you’re not alone. The covers all promise the same things: glamour, betrayal, revenge, a twist you won’t see coming. The titles blur together after a while. Rage of Angels. Windmills of the Gods. The Stars Shine Down. Which one do you actually pick up first?
This guide is here to fix that.
Whether you’re a first-time reader who’s heard Sheldon’s name your whole life and finally wants to know what the fuss was about, or a longtime fan trying to figure out where the newer, posthumous novels fit in, this is your complete, organized reference. We’ve listed every Sidney Sheldon novel — the eighteen he wrote himself, plus the continuations published under his name since his death — in the order that makes the most sense for reading, along with what each book is actually about.
Let’s start at the beginning.
A Little Background: Who Was Sidney Sheldon?
Sidney Sheldon was born Sidney Schechtel in Chicago in 1917, into a family hit hard by the Great Depression. He worked odd jobs as a teenager — a drugstore delivery boy, a cloakroom attendant — while nursing a talent for writing that would eventually take him out of Chicago entirely.
He got there in stages. First Broadway, where he wrote hit musicals in his twenties. Then Hollywood, where he wrote screenplays for over twenty films, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947). Then television where he created and produced three long-running series: The Patty Duke Show, I Dream of Jeannie, and Hart to Hart.
He didn’t publish his first novel until he was in his fifties. The Naked Face came out in 1970 and was nominated for the Edgar Award for Best First Novel. His second book, The Other Side of Midnight, hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list — and from there, Sheldon became one of the most commercially successful novelists of the 20th century. He wrote eighteen novels in total, sold more than 300 million copies worldwide, and remains the only writer in history to win an Oscar, a Tony, and an Edgar Award. The Guinness Book of World Records lists him as the most translated author in the world.
His formula was distinctive and consistent: strong, resourceful women at the center of the story; fast pacing built from short, cliffhanger-driven chapters (a habit carried over from his screenwriting years); glamorous international settings; and a twist ending nearly every time. Sheldon passed away in January 2007 at the age of 89. His publisher and estate have since continued the brand through a series of “Sidney Sheldon’s…” novels written by British author Tilly Bagshawe.
A Note on Sidney Sheldon Books Reading Order
Here’s some good news if you’re new to Sheldon: unlike sprawling franchise authors, almost every one of his eighteen novels is a complete standalone. You can pick up Master of the Game without having read anything else, and the same goes for nearly the entire list.
There are three exceptions worth knowing about:
- The Midnight books: The Other Side of Midnight (1973) is directly followed by Memories of Midnight (1990), which picks up the surviving characters years later.
- The Blackwell Family saga: Master of the Game (1982) got a continuation, Sidney Sheldon’s Mistress of the Game (2009), written by Tilly Bagshawe after Sheldon’s death.
- The Tracy Whitney trilogy: If Tomorrow Comes (1985) was continued by two more Bagshawe novels, Chasing Tomorrow (2014) and Reckless (2015).
There’s also a loose, minor connection between The Best Laid Plans (1997) and The Sky Is Falling (2000) — journalist Dana Evans appears as a side character in the first and becomes the lead of the second.
Outside of those, read in whatever order appeals to you. This guide follows publication order, which is also the order most longtime fans recommend.
Section 1: The 18 Original Sidney Sheldon Books
These are the books Sheldon wrote himself, in the order they were published.
1. The Naked Face (1970) Dr. Judd Stevens is a respected Chicago psychoanalyst who becomes the prime suspect when a patient and his own secretary are murdered in quick succession. With the police convinced of his guilt and the real killer still out there, Judd has to work through his own client list to find the truth before he becomes the next victim. Sheldon’s debut, and it announced his talent for tight, twisty plotting immediately — it earned an Edgar Award nomination for Best First Novel. It was adapted into a 1984 film starring Roger Moore in a rare serious dramatic role, alongside Rod Steiger and Elliott Gould; critical reception was mixed, but Moore’s performance was widely praised.
2. The Other Side of Midnight (1973) A sweeping, generation-spanning story of Noelle Page, a French actress whose thirst for revenge takes her from the streets of Paris to the bed of a powerful Greek shipping tycoon, and Catherine Douglas, an American pilot’s wife whose fate becomes entangled with Noelle’s in ways neither woman expects. This is the book that turned Sheldon into a true publishing phenomenon, hitting #1 on the New York Times list. It was adapted into a 1977 feature film, and Noelle Page is often cited as one of Sheldon’s classic scheming “chessmaster” characters — the type he’d return to again and again.
3. A Stranger in the Mirror (1976) Toby Temple is a beloved comedy superstar, adored by audiences but cruel and paranoid in private, isolated from any real human connection. Jill Castle is the ambitious young actress who marries him, only to discover what’s underneath the fame. A dark, cynical look at Hollywood itself — marketed at the time as “a sensuous Hollywood tale of a lonely superstar and a starlet with a dark, mysterious past.”
4. Bloodline (1977) Elizabeth Roffe inherits control of Roffe and Sons, a vast international pharmaceutical empire, after her father’s sudden death — only to realize that someone inside her own family is trying to kill her to seize the company for themselves. A tense corporate thriller wrapped around a family mystery. Adapted into a 1979 feature film starring Audrey Hepburn and Ben Gazzara.
5. Rage of Angels (1980) Jennifer Parker is a brilliant, idealistic young Manhattan attorney whose career is nearly destroyed when she’s tricked into a mafia-linked scandal early on. She rebuilds herself into one of the city’s most formidable defense lawyers, all while torn between two very different men: an honorable politician and a dangerous mob boss. Widely regarded as one of Sheldon’s best legal thrillers. It was adapted into a hit 1983 NBC miniseries starring Jaclyn Smith — popular enough to spawn its own sequel miniseries, Rage of Angels: The Story Continues (1986).
6. Master of the Game (1982) Sheldon’s most celebrated novel. Kate Blackwell presides over an international diamond-mining empire built from nothing by her father, Jamie McGregor, and the story spans four generations of ambition, jealousy, and betrayal within the family. It spent four weeks at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list and was adapted into a hit 1984 CBS miniseries starring Dyan Cannon. This is the book most fans and critics point to as the quintessential Sheldon experience, and it’s usually the top recommendation for new readers.
7. If Tomorrow Comes (1985) Tracy Whitney is a woman framed for a crime she didn’t commit, who emerges from prison determined never to be powerless again — and reinvents herself as one of the most brilliant con artists and jewel thieves in the world. Her fierce professional rivalry with fellow thief Jeff Stevens slowly turns into something else entirely. Adapted into a 1986 CBS miniseries starring Madolyn Smith and Tom Berenger. Tracy became Sheldon’s most enduring heroine — the only character popular enough to get her own continuation series decades later.
8. Windmills of the Gods (1987) Mary Ashley, an ordinary American college professor and single mother, is stunned to be appointed U.S. ambassador to a politically unstable Eastern Bloc country — and finds herself the target of a assassination plot she barely understands. Adapted into a 1988 two-part CBS miniseries starring Jaclyn Smith, Robert Wagner, and Ian McKellen — the fifth miniseries made from a Sheldon novel, and Smith’s third.
9. The Sands of Time (1988) Four nuns fleeing a Spanish convent find themselves entangled with a Basque terrorist on the run from the authorities, in a story that blends political thriller elements with questions of faith, loyalty, and survival. One of Sheldon’s more unusual plots, less centered on romance than most of his other work.
10. Memories of Midnight (1990) The direct sequel to The Other Side of Midnight. Catherine, long presumed dead, resurfaces in Greece years later, shadowed by tragedy and burdened by amnesia — and the surviving characters from the first book gather for one final reckoning. Adapted into a 1991 television miniseries.
11. The Doomsday Conspiracy (1991) NSA agent Robert Bellamy is handpicked to track down and identify ten witnesses to a mysterious weather balloon crash in the Swiss Alps. His search takes him from Rome to Budapest to Texas, and what he uncovers is a conspiracy that stretches far beyond anything he expected — reaching into space itself. One of Sheldon’s more overtly espionage- and sci-fi-tinged books.
12. The Stars Shine Down (1992) Lara Cameron claws her way out of a poverty-stricken, loveless childhood in Nova Scotia to become one of the most powerful real-estate developers in America — a classic Sheldon rags-to-riches arc. Publishers Weekly gave it a harshly critical review at the time, calling it “a barely tepid potboiler,” though it remained a strong commercial seller regardless.
13. Nothing Lasts Forever (1994) A medical thriller following three female doctors trying to establish themselves in a hospital hierarchy dominated by men. Their intertwined stories spiral into chaos — one dies, one faces having the hospital shut down around her, and one is charged with murder. Adapted into a 1995 television movie.
14. Morning, Noon and Night (1995) When billionaire patriarch Harry Stanford drowns mysteriously off the coast of Corsica, his estranged family gathers in Boston for the funeral — and a strikingly beautiful young woman appears, claiming to be his daughter and demanding her share of the inheritance. The story sweeps from the Italian Riviera to Parisian fashion houses to Boston’s old-money elite.
15. The Best Laid Plans (1997) Leslie Stewart is jilted by an ambitious governor who chooses political power over her — and sets out on a long, calculated campaign of revenge as he climbs toward the presidency. Midway through, the story shifts focus to introduce journalist Dana Evans, uncovering a related cover-up — setting her up as the lead of Sheldon’s next book.
16. Tell Me Your Dreams (1998) A psychological thriller centered on Ashley Patterson, an introverted workaholic who develops dissociative identity disorder as a coping response to childhood abuse — manifesting as two other personalities, Toni and Alette. When a murder occurs that Ashley has no memory of committing, she becomes the prime suspect in her own mind as much as in the eyes of the law. Notable for tackling DID head-on, which was unusual for the genre at the time.
17. The Sky Is Falling (2000) A direct follow-up centered on Dana Evans, the journalist introduced in The Best Laid Plans, now investigating a string of mysterious deaths connected to a wealthy family — and quickly becoming a target herself.
18. Are You Afraid of the Dark? (2004) Sheldon’s final solo novel. Four employees of a powerful, secretive global think tank die in separate “accidents” in four different cities around the world. Their widows, Diane Stevens and Kelly Harris, cross paths in New York and team up to uncover what really connects the deaths — a conspiracy that feels chillingly modern even now.
Section 2: The Tilly Bagshawe Continuations
After Sheldon’s death in 2007, his estate authorized British novelist Tilly Bagshawe to continue writing under the “Sidney Sheldon’s…” brand. It’s worth being upfront about what this means: these are not books Sheldon wrote, or even outlined. They’re new stories by a different author, written in a style meant to evoke his — some continuing his characters, most standalone. Reception among longtime fans is genuinely mixed; some reviewers feel Bagshawe “nailed it,” while others feel the magic doesn’t fully translate. Publishers Weekly gave a starred review to Mistress of the Game, praising how she “expertly channels Sheldon’s lurid, feverish prose.”
| # | Title | Year | Connection |
| 1 | Sidney Sheldon’s Mistress of the Game | 2009 | Sequel to Master of the Game |
| 2 | Sidney Sheldon’s After the Darkness | 2010 | Standalone (echoes the Bernie Madoff scandal) |
| 3 | Sidney Sheldon’s Angel of the Dark | 2012 | Standalone |
| 4 | Sidney Sheldon’s The Tides of Memory | 2013 | Standalone |
| 5 | Sidney Sheldon’s Chasing Tomorrow | 2014 | Tracy Whitney #2, sequel to If Tomorrow Comes |
| 6 | Sidney Sheldon’s Reckless | 2015 | Tracy Whitney #3 |
| 7 | Sidney Sheldon’s The Silent Widow | 2018 | Standalone |
| 8 | The Phoenix | 2019 | Standalone |
Beyond the Novels
A few lesser-known corners of Sheldon’s bibliography, worth a mention for the completists:
- The Other Side of Me (2005) — Sheldon’s own memoir, covering his childhood poverty in Chicago, a suicide attempt at seventeen, and his long climb through Broadway, Hollywood, and television before he ever wrote a novel. A genuinely candid read from a man not known for candor in his fiction.
- Two early stage plays — Roman Candle (1960) and The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1961, the stage version of his Oscar-winning screenplay).
- The Adventures of Drippy (1996) — yes, Sheldon wrote a children’s picture book. A fun surprise for anyone who thinks they know his catalog completely.
Where Should You Start? Recommendations by Reader Type
You’re a complete newcomer → Start with Master of the Game. It’s the book most identified with Sheldon at his best, and it needs no prior knowledge of anything.
You want a legal drama → Rage of Angels is one of his tightest, most acclaimed courtroom-adjacent thrillers.
You want heists and con artists over courtroom drama → If Tomorrow Comes gives you Sheldon’s most beloved heroine and a genuinely fun cat-and-mouse romance.
You’re drawn to psychological thrillers → Tell Me Your Dreams is Sheldon at his darkest and most unusual.
You love multi-generational family sagas → Master of the Game, Bloodline, and Morning, Noon and Night all deliver the sweeping, family-empire-in-crisis storytelling that Sheldon did better than almost anyone.
You want the shortest, punchiest entry point → The Naked Face is under 250 pages and moves fast.
You’re curious about the man behind the books → The Other Side of Me is worth reading before or after the novels — it recontextualizes a lot of what he wrote.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books did Sidney Sheldon write? Sheldon wrote 18 novels himself, published between 1970 and 2004, plus a memoir (The Other Side of Me), two early stage plays, and a children’s picture book. Since his death in 2007, eight additional “Sidney Sheldon’s…” novels have been published, written by Tilly Bagshawe.
What was Sidney Sheldon’s first novel? The Naked Face, published in 1970, when Sheldon was 53 years old. It was nominated for the Edgar Award for Best First Novel.
What is Sidney Sheldon’s most popular book? Master of the Game (1982) is generally considered his most iconic and best-loved novel, followed closely by The Other Side of Midnight and If Tomorrow Comes.
What order should I read Sidney Sheldon’s books in? Almost all of his novels are standalone, so you can start anywhere. The main exceptions are The Other Side of Midnight (read before Memories of Midnight), Master of the Game (before Mistress of the Game), and If Tomorrow Comes (before Chasing Tomorrow and Reckless).
Are the newer Sidney Sheldon books actually written by him? No. Every “Sidney Sheldon’s…” novel published since his 2007 death was written by British author Tilly Bagshawe, authorized by his estate. His own 18 novels were published between 1970 and 2004.
Were Sidney Sheldon’s books made into movies? Yes — several of his novels were adapted into feature films (The Naked Face, The Other Side of Midnight, Bloodline) and television miniseries (Rage of Angels, Master of the Game, If Tomorrow Comes, Windmills of the Gods, Memories of Midnight, Nothing Lasts Forever), several starring Jaclyn Smith.
Is Sidney Sheldon worth reading today? His novels remain popular in the secondhand market precisely because they’re fast, plot-driven, and easy to fall into — the kind of book you finish in a weekend. If you enjoy generational sagas, strong female leads, and twist endings, his catalog holds up well.
Find Sidney Sheldon Books at Books Point
Sidney Sheldon remains one of the most consistently requested authors in the secondhand market — his books circulate widely because so many readers grew up on them, and they’re the kind of paperback that gets passed from hand to hand for decades. At Books Point, we regularly stock his titles, from the harder-to-find early novels like A Stranger in the Mirror to perennial favorites like Master of the Game and If Tomorrow Comes. Visit us in Ruaka or check our used fiction shelf to see what’s currently in stock. Additionally, you can send us a WhatsApp message.
