The invention provides a highly efficient, rapid, and cost effective method of linking nucleic acid components in a predetermined order to produce a nucleic acid multicomponent construct. The invention further provides nucleic acid components, each nucleic acid component comprising a double stranded nucleic acid molecule having at least one single stranded 5' or 3' terminal sequence, the terminal sequence having sufficient complementarity to either a terminal sequence in a separate nucleic acid component or to a sequence in a linking nucleic acid molecule so as to allow for specific annealing of complementary sequences and linkage of the components in a predetermined order. Kits containing reagents required to practice the method of the invention are also provided.