Lillian O’Donnell Books in Order
Lillian O’Donnell has written 33 books, published between 1963 and 1998. The first book is Death Schuss (1963) and the newest is Blue Death (1998). Publication order is the reading order below. 17 of the 33 books listed here are in the Norah Mulcahaney series, which has its own page: Norah Mulcahaney books in order.
- Books
- 33
- Published
- 1963–1998
- Pages on record
- 4,648 in 21 of 33 books
- Reading time
- 77–116 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 4,648 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 21 of 33 titles with a page count on record.
Lillian O'Donnell (1926-2005) was an American crime novelist, among the first to make a woman police officer the lead of a book series. That officer is Norah Mulcahaney, whose police procedurals are set in New York. Gwenn Ramadge and Mici Anhalt head O'Donnell's two other series, with private investigators and women sleuths among the recorded subjects. The 33 catalogued books open with Death Schuss (1963) and close with Blue Death (1998), taking in Babes in the Woods (1965), The Phone Calls (1972) and Don't Wear Your Wedding Ring (1973).
How many Lillian O’Donnell books are there?
Lillian O’Donnell has 33 books, released between 1963 and 1998. They include 3 series and 9 titles listed outside any series.
Lillian O’Donnell Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 33 Lillian O’Donnell 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.
- 1Death Schuss1963 · confirmed 1/41963–1/4
- 2Death of a Player1964 · confirmed 1/41964–1/4
- 3Murder Under the Sun1964 · confirmed 1/41964–1/4
- 4Babes in the Woods1965 · confirmed 1/41965–1/4
- 5The Face Of The Crime1968 · 223 pages · confirmed 1/419682231/4
- 6The Tachí Tree1968 · 190 pages · confirmed 1/419681901/4
- 7Dive Into Darkness1971 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/419711601/4
- 819721961/4
- 919732281/4
- 10The Sleeping Beauty Murders1973 · confirmed 1/41973–1/4
- 11Terror Under the Sun1973 · confirmed 1/41973–1/4
- 1219741821/4
- 1319751961/4
- 1419761861/4
- 1519772241/4
- 1619782551/4
- 171979–1/4
- 1819803381/4
- 1919812211/4
- 2019832331/4
- 2119842241/4
- 221985–1/4
- 231986–1/4
- 241988–1/4
- 251989–1/4
- 2619902391/4
- 2719912161/4
- 281992–1/4
- 2919932401/4
- 3019942391/4
- 3119952321/4
- 3219962111/4
- 3319982151/4
Lillian O’Donnell series in order
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Norah Mulcahaney books in order 17 books
Lillian O’Donnell 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.
Gwenn Ramadge in order
4 booksMici Anhalt in order
3 books- 1. Aftershock
- 2. Falling Star
- 3. Wicked Designs
Standalone books
9 books9 Lillian O’Donnell titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Lillian O’Donnell books in order?
You only need to read Lillian O’Donnell books in order within each series: the books listed here span 3 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Lillian O’Donnell
Start with The Phone Calls (1972), the first Norah Mulcahaney book. The earliest catalogued title overall is Death Schuss (1963).
What is the newest Lillian O’Donnell book?
Blue Death (1998) is the newest Lillian O’Donnell book released so far.
Is there a new Lillian O’Donnell book coming?
No next Lillian O’Donnell book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Lillian O’Donnell at a glance
- Died
- Lillian O’Donnell died in 2005, according to Wikidata.
- Last book
- The newest book credited to Lillian O’Donnell on record dates from 1998.
- Release pace
- Lillian O’Donnell books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 4,648 pages across the 21 of 33 books with a recorded length, a median of 223 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Lillian O’Donnell books, 11 of 33, were published in the 1970s.
What the Lillian O’Donnell books are about
22 of the 33 Lillian O’Donnell books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: mystery & detective, women sleuths is tagged on 17 of 22. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Mystery & detective, women sleuths 17 of 22 books
- Policewomen 16 of 22 books
- Norah Mulcahaney (Fictitious character) 15 of 22 books
- New York (N.Y.) 12 of 22 books
- Mulcahaney, norah (fictitious character) 10 of 22 books
- Mystery & detective, police procedural 8 of 22 books
- Fiction in English 4 of 22 books
- Private investigators 4 of 22 books
- Ramadge, gwenn (fictitious character) 4 of 22 books
- Anhalt, mici (fictitious character) 3 of 22 books
- Mici Anhalt (Fictitious character) 3 of 22 books