Claire Cross
Claire Cross has published 6 books across 2 series. The recommended reading order starts with Double Trouble (2001).
Claire Cross is a pseudonym for author Deborah Cooke, who writes contemporary romances and medieval romances.
Cross debuted in 1998 with the standalone title Once Upon a Kiss. She wrote the Coxwells series as Claire Cross, a collection of romantic comedies featuring the stories of four siblings: Third Time Lucky, Double Trouble, One More Time, and All or Nothing. The series also includes the novella Christmas with the Coxwells. She stopped using the Claire Cross pseudonym after All or Nothing in 2007.
Cooke, writing as Cross, also published the Flatiron Five Fitness series, a collection of contemporary romances about five friends who own a fitness club in Manhattan. This series includes Just One Fake Date, Just One More Time, Just One Night Together, Just One Hometown Hero, Two Weddings & a Baby, Just One Second Chance, Just Home for the Holidays, Just One Silver Fox, Just the Wrong Twin, and When Annika Met Thom. A spin-off from this world, Flatiron Five Tattoo, features shorter stories like Just One Snowbound Night and Just One Vacation Night.
Claire Cross's work as a pseudonym for Deborah Cooke also included the medieval romance Once Upon a Kiss, and the contemporary romance series The Coxwells. Cooke continues to write extensively in various romance subgenres, including historical, paranormal, and time travel romance, under her own name.
Shelf & Shadows
Order of Short Stories/Novellas
- Tagsparanormal-romanceshort-storiesfantasyromancehorrorDescriptionThe holidays have a way of bringing people together, even when they've spent years apart. Claire Cross delivers a Christmas story that feels like coming home. This novella centers on a reunion that's been a long time coming. Old flames. Unfinished business. The kind of second chance that only happens when the universe—or maybe just a small town at Christmas—decides to intervene. Cross knows how to write romance that doesn't feel forced, and here she lets the season do some of the heavy lifting. The "berry" in the title isn't just cute wordplay. It grounds the story in something tangible, something that smells like pine and cinnamon and all those sense memories that make December feel like December. Cross writes with warmth but never veers into saccharine territory. Her characters have history. They have reasons for the distance between them. And they have to decide if nostalgia is enough or if there's something real still worth fighting for. If you're looking for a quick, heartfelt escape during the busiest time of year, this one delivers. It's cozy without being cloying. Romantic without losing its edge. Cross understands that the best Christmas stories aren't about perfection—they're about people finding their way back to what matters.Publication date2017
Order of The Coxwells Books
- Tagsromancegraphic-novelsDescriptionWhat happens when a man who's sworn off love meets a woman who challenges everything he believes about second chances? In *Double Trouble*, Claire Cross delivers a romance that crackles with wit, heat, and the kind of emotional stakes that keep you turning pages long past bedtime. Part of the beloved Order of the Coxwells series, this novel centers on a hero determined to keep his heart locked away—until fate intervenes with a vengeance. Cross crafts a story where passion collides with vulnerability, where banter masks deeper wounds, and where two people who think they know exactly what they want discover they've been wrong all along. The chemistry sizzles, yes, but it's the emotional journey that lingers. Cross writes with the confidence of an author who understands that the best romances aren't just about falling in love—they're about becoming brave enough to stay. Whether you're a series devotee or a newcomer, *Double Trouble* offers everything a romance reader craves: sharp dialogue, genuine conflict, and a payoff that feels earned. This is comfort reading with teeth.Publication date2001
- TagsromanceDescriptionWhat if you could rewrite the past, but only if you risked everything you'd built in the present? Claire Cross delivers a romance steeped in second chances and the ache of roads not taken. This is a story that shimmers with possibility—the kind that keeps you up late, turning pages in the half-light, wondering what you might do differently if given the chance. The mood here is bittersweet and hopeful, tinged with the particular longing that comes from confronting old flames and older regrets. Part of the Order of the Coxwells series, this installment follows characters bound by family loyalty and the weight of expectation. When the past collides with the present, our protagonists must navigate the tension between duty and desire, between who they were and who they've become. Cross writes with a deft hand, balancing emotional complexity with the warmth readers expect from contemporary romance. The stakes are intimate but no less urgent: Can love survive when it's asked to bloom twice? Cross doesn't offer easy answers, but she does offer something better—characters who feel real, flawed, and worth rooting for. If you're drawn to stories where the heart's terrain is as compelling as any external conflict, where atmosphere wraps around you like a familiar song, this one's for you.Publication date2006
- TagsromanceDescriptionThe stakes are absolute when a man accustomed to control meets a woman who refuses to be anything less than herself. Claire Cross delivers a romance that understands the particular tension of two people who have built their lives around independence, only to find themselves drawn into something that demands surrender. In this installment of the Order of the Coxwells series, the narrative centers on a protagonist who has learned to navigate the world on his own terms, a man whose carefully constructed boundaries are tested by an attraction he cannot dismiss or manage. The woman who disrupts his equilibrium is no convenient romantic interest—she arrives with her own convictions, her own non-negotiable truths, and a refusal to compromise what she knows to be essential. Cross writes with an awareness of what it costs to let someone in, particularly for those who have survived by keeping others at a distance. The romance here is not a gentle unfolding but a collision, one that forces both characters to reckon with what they are willing to risk and what they stand to lose if they walk away. The Coxwell family dynamic adds texture and warmth, grounding the central relationship in a world where loyalty and legacy matter. This is a story about the gamble inherent in intimacy, the way love asks us to bet everything on another person and hope the ground holds.Publication date2007
- Tagsmysteryromancegraphic-novelscrimeDescriptionThird time's the charm, or so the saying goes. Claire Cross tests that theory in this installment of the Order of The Coxwells Books, where family legacy and romantic fate collide. The Coxwells carry their own particular brand of charm and complication, and this entry delivers both in equal measure. Cross writes with the practiced hand of someone who understands that romance isn't just about the meet-cute—it's about the messy, stubborn work of two people deciding to trust again. The title promises redemption, and Cross delivers. Her protagonist has stumbled twice before, and now faces the question that haunts anyone who's been burned: whether to risk it all one more time. The Coxwell family dynamics add texture and tension, grounding the love story in something larger than just two hearts finding each other. Cross balances wit with genuine emotion, never letting the story tip into either cynicism or saccharine territory. This is romance for readers who want their happy endings earned, not handed over easily. The chemistry crackles. The stakes feel real. And by the final page, you'll believe in third chances too.Publication dateJuly 11, 2012Amazon rating4.1/5Print length397LanguageEnglishPublisherDeborah A. Cooke
- Tagsshort-storiesromancegraphic-novelsDescriptionThis is the holiday story that brings the Coxwell family together when they need it most. Claire Cross knows how to write family dynamics that feel lived-in and real, and here she wraps them in tinsel and firelight. The Coxwells aren't picture-perfect, but they're trying, and that's what makes this one stick. Christmas is supposed to be about coming home. But what happens when home is complicated, when old wounds haven't quite healed, and when everyone's carrying secrets they're not ready to share? The Coxwells gather for the holidays with all their baggage in tow. There's tension simmering beneath the surface, unspoken truths waiting to crack open, and the kind of messy love that only family can deliver. Cross doesn't shy away from the hard stuff, but she also doesn't forget the magic of the season. What makes this work is the balance. It's not saccharine, but it's not cynical either. The romance threads through the family drama with warmth and heat, and the holiday setting amplifies everything—the joy, the heartache, the possibility of second chances. If you want a Christmas read that feels like more than just a seasonal backdrop, if you want characters who earn their happy endings, this is it. The Coxwells will get under your skin.Publication date2018
Frequently Asked Questions about Claire Cross
Claire Cross writes both standalone novellas and series. The Order of Short Stories/Novellas contains one title, A Berry Merry Christmas. The Order of The Coxwells is a series of five novels. Within the Coxwells series, the books are intended to be read in the order they were published to follow the narrative.
A good starting point for Claire Cross is with the first book in The Coxwells series, Double Trouble, published in 2001. This novel introduces the characters and setting of the series. Alternatively, A Berry Merry Christmas offers a standalone novella experience.
While not strictly required for all of her books, reading The Coxwells series in publication order is recommended to best follow the storyline and character development. The individual books in this series build upon each other. Her novella, A Berry Merry Christmas, can be read independently.
Claire Cross writes both standalone novellas and series. The Order of Short Stories/Novellas features a single novella. The Order of The Coxwells is a series of novels that follow a continuous narrative.
Claire Cross has written six books. This includes one novella in the Order of Short Stories/Novellas and five novels in The Coxwells series.
The first book Claire Cross wrote was Double Trouble, published in 2001. This novel is the beginning of The Coxwells series and introduces its main characters and their relationships.
Claire Cross's most recent book is Christmas with the Coxwells, published in 2018. This novel is part of The Coxwells series.
Claire Cross writes romance novels, often with a focus on family dynamics and holiday themes, particularly within her series work. Her novella, A Berry Merry Christmas, also fits within this romantic, festive style.
Natasha Boyd
Coming soon
Skyler Mason
Coming soon
We verified the reading order for Claire Cross's books by cross-referencing official publication dates, ISBN databases, and publisher catalogs.
Last verified: July 2026
Shelf & Shadows. (…). “Claire Cross Books in Order.” Retrieved …, from https://www.shelfandshadows.com/authors/claire-cross