Desmond Cory Books in Order
37 books are credited to Desmond Cory, published between 1951 and 2016; 2 of them appeared after Desmond Cory's death in 2001. The first book is Begin, Murderer! (1951) and the newest is The Shy Traffickers (2016). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 37
- Published
- 1951–2016
- Pages on record
- 1,466 in 7 of 37 books
Desmond Cory was the pen name of Shaun Lloyd McCarthy (1928-2001), a British mystery and thriller writer who used up to three pen names across more than forty years of work. Johnny Fedora, a British secret agent, is his best known serial character, and the catalogue's other recurring leads are Lindy Grey, John Dobie and Mr. Dee. Cory's 37 catalogued titles open with Begin, Murderer! and Secret Ministry in 1951 and reach The Shy Traffickers (2016). He also wrote screenplays from Graham Greene novels, among them England Made Me.
How many Desmond Cory books are there?
Desmond Cory has 37 books, released between 1951 and 2016. 2 of them were published after Desmond Cory's death in 2001. They include 4 series and 11 titles listed outside any series.
Desmond Cory Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 37 Desmond Cory books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 11951–1/4
- 21951–1/4
- 31952–1/4
- 41952–1/4
- 51953–1/4
- 61953–1/4
- 71954–1/4
- 81954–1/4
- 9The City of Kites1955 · confirmed 1/41955–1/4
- 101955–1/4
- 111955–1/4
- 121956–1/4
- 131957–1/4
- 14Pilgrim At the Gate1958 · confirmed 1/41958–1/4
- 151958–1/4
- 161959–1/4
- 17Jones on the Belgrade Express1960 · confirmed 1/41960–1/4
- 181960–1/4
- 191961–1/4
- 201962–1/4
- 211963–1/4
- 221964–1/4
- 23Deadfall1965 · confirmed 1/41965–1/4
- 241966–1/4
- 2519671751/4
- 26The Night Hawk1969 · 189 pages · confirmed 1/419691891/4
- 27Take My Drum to England1971 · 188 pages · confirmed 1/419711881/4
- 2819712531/4
- 29Even If You Run1972 · confirmed 1/41972–1/4
- 30A Bit of a Shunt Up the River1974 · 187 pages · confirmed 1/419741871/4
- 31The Circe Complex1975 · 288 pages · confirmed 1/419752881/4
- 32Bennett1977 · 186 pages · confirmed 1/419771861/4
- 331991–1/4
- 341992–1/4
- 351993–1/4
- 36On the Gulf2012 · confirmed 1/42012–1/4
- 372016–1/4
Desmond Cory series in order
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Johnny Fedora books in order 16 books
Desmond Cory books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Lindy Grey in order
4 booksJohn Dobie in order
4 booksMr. Dee in order
2 booksStandalone books
11 books11 Desmond Cory titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Desmond Cory books in order?
You only need to read Desmond Cory books in order within each series: the books listed here span 4 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Desmond Cory
Start with Secret Ministry (1951), the first Johnny Fedora book. The earliest catalogued title overall is Begin, Murderer! (1951).
What is the newest Desmond Cory book?
The Shy Traffickers (2016) is the newest Desmond Cory book released so far.
Is there a new Desmond Cory book coming?
No next Desmond Cory book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Desmond Cory at a glance
- Died
- Desmond Cory died in 2001, according to Wikidata.
- After death
- Books credited to Desmond Cory are still being published after Desmond Cory's death in 2001; the newest appeared in 2016.
- Release pace
- Desmond Cory books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 1,466 pages across the 7 of 37 books with a recorded length, a median of 188 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Desmond Cory books, 16 of 37, were published in the 1950s.
What the Desmond Cory books are about
5 of the 37 Desmond Cory books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: mystery & detective is tagged on 2 of 5. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Mystery & detective 2 of 5 books
- Criminals 1 of 5 books
- England 1 of 5 books
- Psychiatrists 1 of 5 books