Authors Like Jayne Ann Krentz (74 Book Recommendations)

Jayne Ann Krantz is an American author of romance novels.

She has penned multiple New York Times best-selling books under an impressive seven different pseudonyms. In recent years, Krentz has limited her use of pseudonyms to only three.

Authors Like Jayne Ann Krentz (74 Book Recommendations)

Using her married name (Krentz), she writes contemporary romantic-suspense novels.

Using her maiden name (Castle), she writes futuristic/paranormal romantic-suspense novels. Under the name Amanda Quick, she writes historical romantic-suspense novels.  

Krentz has published an incredible 35 million copies of her books. One of her most prominent books is Sweet Starfire.

Sweet Starfire (Lost Colony Book 1)

With this book, Krentz pioneered the subgenre of futuristic romance.  

Krentz further expanded this new subgenre with her book Amaryllis in 1996.

Krentz is very passionate about the romance genre in literature and has received the Susan Koppelman Award for Feminist Studies as the editor and contributor to Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women: Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance, published in 1992. 

If you loved any of the romance and romance subgenre novels produced by Jayne Ann Krentz under any of her pseudonyms and are looking for something new to read, you will love the works of Ann Maxwell, and Jude Deveraux.

Check out this list of authors like Jayne Ann Krentz for more genre-busting romance novels. 

Books By Jayne Ann Krentz

Gentle Pirate

Krentz has written romance with a twist for her entire career. She began writing romance with paranormal twists when she was working in a Library at Duke University.

The novels that she wrote in the early days of her career were met with rejection letters from publishers. 

Her first published novel was Gentle Pirate, published under her maiden name Castle.

This first novel and the ones that followed after were published as part of various category romance lines. This was the only option for publishing contemporary romance at the time.  

Under the name Jayne Castle, Krentz published a total of 15 novels including Vintage of Surrender, Queen of Hearts, Bargain with the Devil, Right of Possession, A Negotiated Surrender, and A Conflict of Interest.  She also published the Guinevere Jones collection of 4 novels under her maiden name (books 1,2,3, & 4).

Vintage of Surrender

Krentz allowed one of her publishers to own the name, Jayne Castle. Once Krentz parted ways with the publisher, they retained rights to the name.  

Krentz has also published 46 stand-alone novels under the name Jayne Ann Krentz.

Some of these novels include Uneasy Alliance, Between the Lines, The Family Way, Midnight Jewels, Deep Waters, Falling Awake, and Secret Sisters. 

Krentz has also published 10 book series under her full name including the Fogg Lake series, the Arcane Society series, and the Sons of Anson Salinas series. 

Under the pseudonym Amanda Quick, Krentz has published 19 stand-alone novels including Seduction, Scandal, Mistress, Desire, Reckless, Deception, The River Knows, Otherwise Engaged, and ‘Til Death Do Us Part.  

There have also been 5 book series published under the pseudonym Amanda Quick.  Vanza, Lake & March, Arcane Society, Ladies of Lantern Street, and Burning Cove, California

Themes Present In Jayne Ann Krentz’s Books

Arcane Society

Many different themes can be identified throughout Jayne Ann Krentz’s many books. Below are some of the themes that are prevalent in Krentz’s work no matter which pseudonym she is writing under. 

Psychic Themes

One of the most common themes in Krentz’s work is psychic abilities or other psychic appearances. It is this theme that has set Krentz out from other authors in the romance genre. 

The use of psychic ability and other clairvoyance in her stories helped her pioneer the futuristic and paranormal romance subgenres for which she is best known.

This theme is particularly apparent in the Arcane Society series. 

Burning Cove

Romance

All of Krentz’s books, written under any pseudonym or in any of her subgenres, contain themes of romance.

The romance in Krentz’s stories often involved heterosexual couples.

One of the things that makes Krentz’s writing so interesting to romance novel audiences is that the romance can take place in a historical setting (Second Sight), a contemporary setting (White Lies), or a futuristic setting (Fired Up).

With each of these settings, Krentz manages to write convincing romances taking place within a wider story. 

Authors Like Jayne Ann Krentz

There are many authors who produce novels similar to those of Jayne Ann Krentz. Below are some authors that you should check out if you enjoy Krantz’s work. 

Ann Maxwell

Beautiful Sacrifice

Ann Maxwell is an author who writes romantic suspense novels, contemporary romance novels, and historical romance novels under the pseudonym Elizabeth Lowell.

Maxwell has had an interesting and varied writing career so far. She has written over 50 novels under various pseudonyms and has even written collaboratively with her husband.

Although her career began by writing science fiction stories, she soon turned to writing romance novels.  

Under the pseudonym Elizabeth Lowell, Maxwell has published 18 romantic suspense novels.

These titles include Beautiful Sacrifice, The Color of Death, Innocent as Sin, Running Scared, Moving Target, The Secret Sister, and Tell Me No Lies. 

Maxwell also published contemporary romance novels such as This Time Love, To the Ends of The Earth, Forget Me Not, and the Lover in the Rough.

Finally, under the same pseudonym, Maxwell published a series of historical romance novels including Winter Fire, Only Love, Untamed, and Reckless Love.

Reckless Love (MacKenzie-Blackthorn Book 1)

Pros

  • Writes in multiple subgenres of romance novels
  • Themes of genuine connections and gentle romance
  • Gripping plots and unusual settings

Cons

  • Uses common romance tropes 

Themes: romance, historical context, relationships, connections, love, conflict.

Jude Deveraux

A Knight in Shining Armor (The Montgomery/Taggert Family Book 15)

Jude Deveraux is an established American author who writes historical romance novels (see also “Authors Like Courtney Milan“).

She has written over 40 novels during her career so far, many of which have made it onto the New York Times best-seller list.  

Two of her most notable titles are A Knight in Shining Armor and Remembrance. Deveraux’s books have sold more than 50 million copies worldwide.

Jude Deveraux’s works span many different historical periods and she has even written some time-travel novels.

Her more recent works include contemporary settings. Deveraux focuses on writing strong and capable heroines in her novels. 

Deveraux wrote a series of books called The Montgomery/Taggert Family which began at the start of her career and has continued to grow throughout. The series currently contains 27 novels.  

She also wrote two trilogies that relate to this series, the Forever Trilogy and the Nantucket Brides Trilogy.

Deveraux has also written the James River series, the Peregrine Family series made up of The Taming and The Conquest, the Summerhouse series, and the 9 novel Edilean series.  

Jude Deveraux has also written 12 standalone novels including The Enchanted Land, An Angel for Emily, Temptation, Wild Orchids, Meant to Be, Secrets, and one of her most notable books, Remembrance.  

Montgomery/Taggert

Pros

  • A wide array of settings in her novels
  • Creates strong and capable heroines in her stories
  • Plenty of detail in the historical settings with beautiful imagery

Cons

  • More recent works are becoming more contemporary, more like standard romance books

Themes: historical, romance, strong female characters, capable heroines, relationships, conflict.

Final Thoughts

There are many romance authors out there who write contemporary romance novels. However, Jayne Ann Krentz isn’t just any romance author.

She pioneered two subgenres of romance novels, and thankfully, others have followed her lead.  

If you enjoy Jayne Ann Krentz’s books and are looking for similar styles and themes to read, Ann Maxwell and Jude Deveraux are great choices.

Both of these authors write primarily in the subgenres of romance such as historical romance and romantic suspense novels (If you like this types of stories, check out the works of Authors Like Sandra Brown).  

Frequently Asked Questions

What Genre Are Jayne Ann Krentz’s Books?

Jayne Ann Krentz’s books span three distinct genres and subgenres.

Under her full name, Jayne Ann Krentz, she publishes contemporary romantic-suspense novels, under her maiden name she publishes futuristic/paranormal romance, and under the pseudonym Amanda Quick, she publishes historical romance-suspense novels. 

What Awards Has Jayne Ann Krentz Won?

Krentz’s books have won many awards over the years and she has been nominated for Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Awards 22 times, winning it in 1995 and 2004.

Krentz has also been awarded the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award.

What Authors Are Similar To Jayne Ann Krentz?

There are a few authors who produce similar work to Jayne Ann Krentz.

Two of the most notable authors are Ann Maxwell who writes romantic suspense, contemporary romance, and historical romance, and Jude Deveraux who writes historical romance novels. 

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Noah Burton