A former advertising chief who wrote his first novel before dawn, he became one of the best-selling authors in the world by writing with a long list of co-authors, for adults and for children.
Little, Brown published The Family Cross on October 19, 2026.2 In it, Cross goes into a part of Washington where police rarely go, on a case that could break a promise he made to his grandmother, Nana Mama.2
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James Patterson was born on March 22, 1947, in Newburgh, New York.14 Biography.com reports that he was a good student who did not enjoy reading until after high school.14 When his family moved to the Boston suburbs he took a night-shift job at McLean, a psychiatric hospital, during his senior year of high school.11 He went to Manhattan College and then began graduate work in English at Vanderbilt University; Biography.com says he left after a year.1415
In 1971 Patterson took a job as a copywriter at J. Walter Thompson in New York.14 He wrote his first novel, The Thomas Berryman Number, from 5:30 to 7:30 each morning before work, by his own account at a kitchen counter on the edge of Harlem.11 Thirty-one publishers turned it down before an agent, Francis Greenberger, placed it with Little, Brown, which published it in 1976.1112 Sales were mediocre, by his account, but the book won the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award for Best First Novel in 1977.1113
He stayed in advertising for about two more decades and rose to become North American CEO of J. Walter Thompson.1411
His breakout came in 1993 with Along Came a Spider, the first novel about the Washington detective and psychologist Alex Cross; a television advertising campaign helped make it a bestseller.14 He left advertising in 1996 to write full time.14 Cross has since carried more than thirty novels, three feature films and a Prime Video series.161715
Many of Patterson’s books are written with co-authors, among them Maxine Paetro, Andrew Gross, Michael Ledwidge, Mark Sullivan, Candice Fox and J.D. Barker.1615 Patterson has said he is better at plotting than at writing sentences; a 2017 study by the researchers Simon Fuller and James O’Sullivan concluded that he does little of the actual writing in his collaborations.15 His co-authors have also included Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, Michael Crichton and Viola Davis.1
The output has been large. Wikipedia counts more than 200 novels since 1976, and Biography.com reports that Guinness World Records lists him as the author with the most New York Times bestsellers.1514 Sales figures vary by source: Biography.com reported more than 350 million books sold as of January 2016.14
In 2005 Patterson began writing for young readers with The Angel Experiment, the first Maximum Ride novel, followed by the Daniel X, Witch & Wizard and Middle School series and many more.16 Wikipedia relates that he created the reading website ReadKiddoRead after seeing his son struggle as a reluctant reader.15 In May 2015 he launched JIMMY Patterson Books, a children’s imprint at Little, Brown whose proceeds go to reading programs.1
Patterson’s website says he has donated more than a million books to students and another million to U.S. soldiers, $7.25 million to school and classroom libraries, and $2.1 million to independent bookstores and their staff.1 His family foundation has funded teacher and writer scholarships at a number of colleges.1 He received the National Book Foundation’s Literarian Award in 2015 and the National Humanities Medal in 2019.1
Patterson married in 1997, and the couple’s son was born the next year.14 In 2022 he published a memoir, James Patterson by James Patterson: The Stories of My Life.16
In order of first publication. Each series is kept together, in reading order, starting where its first book appeared. Titles, co-authors and first publication years from the Wikipedia bibliography of James Patterson (through 2025) and Fantastic Fiction (2025–2026), checked against Hachette and Penguin listings for recent books; ISBNs are from Hachette's own series pages.1617675
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Numbered as in the series lists of Wikipedia and Fantastic Fiction; Cross Down and Cross and Sampson are billed as Alex Cross and John Sampson thrillers.16179
Read in publication order; the books follow Jack Morgan's investigation agency and its offices around the world.16
Read in publication order; Wikipedia numbers only the first books, and some titles may be UK or Australian editions of others.16
Little, Brown published The Family Cross, the newest Alex Cross novel.2
Prime Video renewed Cross, its series starring Aldis Hodge as Alex Cross, for a third season, a day after the second season's finale.18
Cross and Sampson, an Alex Cross and John Sampson thriller written with Brian Sitts, was published by Little, Brown.9
A feature film directed by Gary Fleder.15 Morgan Freeman and, later, Tyler Perry have played Alex Cross on film.14
A feature film directed by Lee Tamahori.15
A feature film directed by Rob Cohen.15
A feature film directed by Jay Martin.15
A feature film directed by Steve Carr.15
A feature film directed by Danis Tanović.15
A television film.15
A television film.15
A television film.15
A television series based on the Women's Murder Club novels; Biography.com describes it as short-lived.1415
A television film.15
A television series.15
A television series; the novel Murder Games was also published under the title Instinct.1516
A documentary miniseries.15
A Prime Video series created by Ben Watkins, with Aldis Hodge as Alex Cross.1519 Its second season premiered on February 11, 2026, and Prime Video renewed it for a third in March 2026.1918
A manga adaptation of the Maximum Ride novels, with art by NaRae Lee.16
Born in Newburgh, New York.14
Takes a copywriting job at the advertising agency J. Walter Thompson.14
Little, Brown publishes his first novel, The Thomas Berryman Number, after 31 publishers had turned it down.11
Along Came a Spider introduces Alex Cross and becomes his breakout bestseller.14
Leaves advertising to write full time.14
Publishes 1st to Die, the first Women's Murder Club novel.16
Publishes The Angel Experiment, the first Maximum Ride novel for young readers.16
Launches the JIMMY Patterson children's imprint at Little, Brown.1
Publishes The President Is Missing, written with Bill Clinton.16
Receives the National Humanities Medal.1
Publishes a memoir, James Patterson by James Patterson: The Stories of My Life.16
Publishes The Family Cross.2
The Murder Trial, written with Nancy Allen, is due from Little, Brown on November 23, 2026, followed by Private Monaco on December 14, 2026.84 In 2027 his publisher lists Bulldog with Mike Lupica, Face Off with J.D. Barker and American Rage with Vicky Ward, among others.4