Stephen Coonts

Stephen Coonts (born July 19, 1946) is an American spy thriller and suspense novelist.

Stephen Coonts grew up in Buckhannon, West Virginia, a small coal mining town. Following high school graduation, he earned a B.A. degree in political science at West Virginia University in 1968.^[1] After joining the Navy upon graduation and then going to officer candidate school, Coonts went to flight school at Naval Air Station Pensacola and earned his wings as a naval aviator in 1969.

Coonts was later assigned to Naval Air Station Whidbey Island and VA-128 to train in the A-6 Intruder, a medium attack, all-weather, carrier-based jet. After training, he was attached to and deployed with VA-196 to Vietnam. With 196, he served aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) on two cruises and accumulated 1600 flying hours in the A-6. Coonts was awarded several commendations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross.

After Vietnam, Coonts served as an A-6 flight instructor for two years, then was assigned as an assistant catapult and arresting gear officer aboard USS Nimitz (CVN-68). He separated from the active duty Navy as a lieutenant in 1977 but remained as reserve officer, retiring as a commander with a total of 21 years of service.

After leaving active duty, Coonts pursued a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at the University of Colorado, graduating in 1979. He then worked as a lawyer for several oil and gas companies, pursuing his writing interests in his free time.

Coonts began writing Flight of the Intruder in 1984; it was published by the US Naval Institute Press in 1986. The novel, based in part on his experiences as an A-6 pilot during the Vietnam War, remained for 28 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and in 1991 was made into a movie. This launched his career as a novelist, and he continued writing adventure-thrillers, most of them based on the main character from his first book, Jake Grafton. Coonts has also written several other series and stand-alone novels, but is best known for the Grafton books.

In 1992, he was inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Alumni at his alma mater, West Virginia University.^[2][3] In 2014, West Virginia University awarded him an honorary Doctor of Letters degree.

As of 2013, Coonts continues to write, having had 16 New York Times bestsellers (out of 36 books). He lives in Colorado.^[4] He was married to romantic mystery novelist Deborah Coonts, his third wife, from September 2011 until her death on February 1, 2025.^[5]

Note: The list below represents Stephen Coonts' suggested reading order.^[6]

Note: The list below represents Stephen Coonts' suggested reading order.^[7]

• Fortunes of War (1998), ISBN 0-312-18583-9, ISBN 0-312-96941-4
• The Garden of Eden (2006) (writing as Eve Adams)
• The Sea Witch (May 2012), ISBN 0-7653-3231-0, ISBN 978-0-7653-3231-8

• The 17th Day (1999)
• Combat (2001) ISBN 0-312-87190-2
• Victory (2003) ISBN 0-312-87462-6 OCLC 51322993

• The Cannibal Queen: A Flight into the Heart of America (1992), ISBN 0-671-74884-X
• War In The Air: True Accounts (1996), ISBN 0-671-88190-6
• On Glorious Wings: The Best Flying Stories (2003), ISBN 0-312-87724-2
• Victory (2003), ISBN 0-312-87462-6

• Official site
• Coonts' journal
• West Virginia & Regional History Center at West Virginia University, Stephen Coonts, Author, Papers
• Stephen Coonts audio interview with National Review Online
• Stephen Coonts at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Author interview at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library on February 13, 2008
• Modern Signed Books BlogTalkRadio Interview with Rodger Nichols about The Art of War March 2016
• Appearances on C-SPAN