Sandra Brown

{{Short description|American author}} {{other people}} {{redirect|Laura Jordan|the actress|Laura Jordan (actress)|the former mayor of Richardon, Texas|Laura Maczka}} {{Infobox writer  | name = Sandra Lynn Cox Brown | image = Sandra Brown 2022 Texas Book Festival.jpg | image_size = 250px | caption = Brown at the 2022 Texas Book Festival | pseudonym = Rachel Ryan, Laura Jordan, Erin St. Claire | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1948|03|12}} | birth_place = Waco, Texas, U.S. | alma_mater = Texas Christian University | children = Ryan Brown, Rachel Brown | occupation = Novelist | period = 1981–present | genre = Romance, suspense, thriller | movement = | notableworks = | website = {{URL|http://www.sandrabrown.net/|http://www.SandraBrown.net/}} |imagesize = | influences = | influenced = }}

'''Sandra Lynn Brown''', née ''Cox'' (born March 12, 1948) is an American bestselling author of romantic novels and thriller suspense novels. She has also published works under the pen names '''Rachel Ryan''', '''Laura Jordan''', and '''Erin St. Claire'''.

==Early life and education== Sandra Brown was born in Waco, Texas, and raised in Fort Worth. She majored in English at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, but left college in 1968 to marry.

==Career== After her marriage, Brown worked for KLTV in Tyler as a weathercaster, then returned to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex area where she became a reporter for WFAA-TV's version of ''PM Magazine''.

Brown started her writing career in 1981 after her husband dared her to.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/09/04/DI2005090400843.html National Book Festival]</ref> Since then, she has published nearly 70 novels and had more than 50 ''New York Times'' bestsellers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/book-deals/article/45421-sandra-brown-signs-with-grand-central.html |title=Sandra Brown Signs With Grand Central |publisher=Publishers Weekly |date=December 6, 2010 |accessdate=2012-10-29}}</ref> In 2008, she was presented with an honorary doctorate of humane letters from her alma mater, TCU.

Her novel ''French Silk'' was made into a movie, released in 1994, for television. Susan Lucci, Shari Belafonte, and Lee Horsley starred.<ref>[https://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&cf=info&id=1800202577 See Yahoo movies]</ref> In 2016, her novel ''White Hot'' was turned into a Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Original movie titled ''Sandra Brown's White Hot''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hallmarkmoviesandmysteries.com/sandra-browns-white-hot|title=Sandra Brown's White Hot|website=Hallmark Movies and Mysteries|language=en|access-date=2019-11-21}}</ref>

In 2007, she contributed to Court TV's series ''Murder By The Book'', about the murder of Betty Gore in Wylie, Texas, on June 13, 1980.

On September 30, 2023, Brown announced on social media the finalizing of her divorce from her husband of fifty-five years, Michael Brown.

== Published works ==

===As Rachel Ryan===

;Originally Dell Candlelight Ecstasy romances – single novels

*1981 ''Love's Encore'' *1981 ''Love Beyond Reason'' *1982 ''Eloquent Silence'' *1982 ''A Treasure Worth Seeking'' *1983 ''Prime Time''

===As Laura Jordan===

;Single novels *1982 ''Hidden Fires'' (historical romance) *1982 ''The Silken Web''

===As Erin St. Claire===

;Originally published as Harlequin/Silhouette category romances – single novels

*1982 ''Not Even for Love'' *1983 ''Seduction by Design'' *1983 ''A Kiss Remembered'' *1983 ''A Secret Splendor'' *1984 ''Words of Silk'' *1984 ''Bittersweet Rain'' *1984 ''Tiger Prince'' *1985 ''Sweet Anger'' *1986 ''Above and Beyond'' *1986 ''Honor Bound'' *1987 ''Two Alone'' *1989 ''The Thrill of Victory''

;Astray & Devil series #1985 ''Led Astray'' #1987 ''The Devil's Own''

===As Sandra Brown===

;Bantam Doubleday Dell's Loveswept category romance books {{Div col|colwidth=50em}} *1983 ''Tomorrow's Promise'' *1983 ''Relentless Desire'' *1983 ''Heaven's Price'' *1983 ''Temptation's Kiss'' *1983 ''Tempest in Eden'' *1984 ''In a Class by Itself'' *1985 ''Thursday's Child'' *1985 ''Riley in the Morning'' *1986 ''The Rana Look'' *1986 ''22 Indigo Place'' *1987 ''Sunny Chandler's Return'' *1987 ''Demon Rumm'' *1988 ''Tidings of Great Joy'' *1988 ''Hawk O'Toole's Hostage'' *1989 ''Long Time Coming'' *1989 ''Temperatures Rising'' *1989 ''A Whole New Light'' {{Div col end}}

;Bed & Breakfast series #1983 ''Breakfast in Bed'' (originally Loveswept # 22) #1984 ''Send No Flowers'' (originally Loveswept # 51)

;Coleman Family Saga series (historical romance) #1985 ''Sunset Embrace'' #1985 ''Another Dawn''

;Mason Sisters series #1987 ''Fanta C'' (originally Loveswept # 217) #1988 ''Adam's Fall'' (originally Loveswept # 252)

;Texas! Tyler Family Saga series #1990 ''Texas! Lucky'' #1991 ''Texas! Chase'' #1991 ''Texas! Sage''

;Single title romance suspense/thrillers {{Div col|colwidth=25em}} *1988 ''Slow Heat in Heaven'' *1989 ''Best Kept Secrets'' *1990 ''Mirror Image'' *1991 ''Breath of Scandal'' *1992 ''French Silk'' *1992 ''Shadows of Yesterday'' *1993 ''Where There's Smoke'' *1994 ''Charade'' *1994 ''Love beyond reason'' *1995 ''The Witness'' *1996 ''Exclusive'' *1997 ''Fat Tuesday'' *1998 ''Unspeakable'' *1999 ''The Alibi'' *2000 ''Standoff'' *2000 ''The Switch'' *2001 ''Envy'' *2002 ''The Crush'' *2003 ''Hello, Darkness'' *2004 ''White Hot'' *2005 ''Chill Factor'' *2006 ''Ricochet'' *2007 ''Play Dirty'' *2008 ''Smoke Screen'' *2009 ''Smash Cut'' *2009 ''Rainwater'' *2010 ''Tough Customer'' *2011 ''Lethal'' *2012 ''Love Is Murder'' *2012 ''Low Pressure'' *2013 ''Deadline'' *2014 ''Mean Streak'' *2015 ''Friction'' *2016 ''Sting'' *2017 ''MatchUp'' *2017 ''Seeing Red'' *2018 ''Tailspin'' *2019 ''Outfox'' *2020 ''Thick As Thieves'' *2021 ''Blind Tiger'' *2022 ''Overkill '' *2023 ''Out of Nowhere'' *2025 ''Blood Moon'' {{Div col end}}

;Omnibus *''Three Complete Novels: Mirror Image / Best Kept Secret / Slow Heat In Heaven'' (1992) *Three Complete Novels: Texas Lucky! / Texas Chase! / Texas Sage! *''Crush / Hello Darkness'' (2006) *''Heaven's Price / Breakfast in Bed / Send No Flowers'' (2007) *''Tomorrow's Promise / Two Alone'' (2008) *''Led Astray / Devil's Own'' (2010) *''A Secret Splendor / Above and Beyond'' (2011)

====Non-fiction==== *"''The Risk of Seduction and the Seduction of Risk''" essay in ''Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women'':'' Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance'' (1992, {{ISBN|0-8122-3192-9|0-8122-1411-0}})

==Awards== {{unreferenced|date=April 2026|section}} * American Business Women's Association's Distinguished Circle of Success * A.C. Greene Award * Romance Writers of America's Lifetime Achievement Award * International Thriller Writers Award, "Thrillermaster", 2008

==Notes== {{reflist}}

===References=== *[http://www.sandrabrown.net/ Sandra Brown's official homepage] *[http://www.eharlequin.com/author.html?authorid=23 Sandra Brown at eHarlequin]

==External links== {{commons category|Sandra Brown}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070210103844/http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/s/erin-st.-claire/ Erin St. Claire] and [http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/b/sandra-brown Sandra Brown] at Fantastic Fiction *[http://www.iblist.com/author2058.htm Sandra Brown], [http://www.iblist.com/author6568.htm Rachel Ryan], [http://www.iblist.com/author6568.htm Erin St. Claire] and [http://www.iblist.com/author9917.htm Laura Jordan] at the Internet Book List * http://sandrabrown.net/books_search.php {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430194654/http://www.sandrabrown.net/books_search.php |date=2010-04-30 }} * [https://www.wattpad.com/user/sandrabrown_NYT Sandra Brown's official Wattpad profile]  {{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooks=yes|viaf=114156159}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Sandra}} Category:20th-century American novelists Category:21st-century American novelists Category:American romantic fiction writers Category:American thriller writers Category:Living people Category:Novelists from Texas Category:Texas Christian University alumni Category:Writers from Waco, Texas Category:1948 births Category:American women romantic fiction writers Category:American women mystery writers Category:American women thriller writers Category:20th-century American women novelists Category:21st-century American women novelists