Order of Book Series
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Michael Zinn Lewin Books in Order

Michael Zinn Lewin has written 29 books, published between 1950 and 2018. The first book is Night Cover (1950) and the newest is Alien Quartet (2018). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
29
Published
1950–2018
Pages on record
3,925 in 15 of 29 books
Reading time
65–98 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,925 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 15 of 29 titles with a page count on record.

See all 29 books in order Printable Michael Zinn Lewin checklist

Albert Samson, a low-key private detective working Indianapolis, is Michael Zinn Lewin's best-known creation, and his first case, Ask the Right Question, appears in the catalogue at 1972. Lewin, born 1942 in Springfield, Massachusetts, grew up in Indianapolis, graduated from Harvard and moved to England in 1971. Two more series follow Samson: the Lunghi Family and Lt. Leroy Powder. Twenty-nine titles reach Alien Quartet in 2018, at a median 248 pages per book.

How many Michael Zinn Lewin books are there?

Michael Zinn Lewin has 29 books, released between 1950 and 2018. They include 3 series and 14 titles listed outside any series.

Michael Zinn Lewin Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 29 Michael Zinn Lewin 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.

  1. Cover of The Next Man by Michael Zinn Lewin (1976)
  2. Cover of The Silent Salesman by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 4 of the Albert Samson series (1978)
  3. Cover of Outside in by Michael Zinn Lewin (1980)
  4. Cover of Late Payments by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 3 of the Lt. Leroy Powder series (1986)
  5. Cover of And Baby Will Fall / Child Proof by Michael Zinn Lewin (1988)
  6. Cover of Called By a Panther by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 7 of the Albert Samson series (1991)
  7. Cover of Underdog by Michael Zinn Lewin (1993)
  8. Cover of Family Business by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 1 of the Lunghi Family series (1995)
  9. Cover of Rover's Tales by Michael Zinn Lewin (1998)
  10. Cover of Family Planning by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 2 of the Lunghi Family series (1999)
  11. Cover of Cutting Loose by Michael Zinn Lewin (1999)
  12. Cover of The Reluctant Detective and Other Stories by Michael Zinn Lewin (2001)
  13. Cover of Eye Opener by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 8 of the Albert Samson series (2004)
  14. Cover of Oh Joe by Michael Zinn Lewin (2008)
  15. Cover of Family Way by Michael Zinn Lewin, book 4 of the Lunghi Family series (2011)
  1. 1
    Night CoverLt. Leroy Powder #11950 · confirmed 1/4
    1950–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Ask the Right QuestionAlbert Samson #11972 · confirmed 1/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    The Way We Die NowAlbert Samson #21973 · confirmed 1/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    The Enemies WithinAlbert Samson #31974 · 248 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1974248
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Next Man1976 · 221 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1976221
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    The Silent SalesmanAlbert Samson #41978 · confirmed 1/4
    1978–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Outside in1980 · 215 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1980215
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Missing WomanAlbert Samson #51981 · 213 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1981213
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Hard LineLt. Leroy Powder #21982 · 252 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1982252
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Out of Season / Out Of TimeAlbert Samson #61984 · confirmed 1/4
    1984–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Late PaymentsLt. Leroy Powder #31986 · 216 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1986216
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    And Baby Will Fall / Child Proof1988 · 261 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1988261
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Called By a PantherAlbert Samson #71991 · 258 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1991258
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Underdog1993 · 260 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1993260
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Telling Tails1994 · confirmed 1/4
    1994–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Family BusinessLunghi Family #11995 · 175 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1995175
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Rover's Tales1998 · 229 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1998229
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Family PlanningLunghi Family #21999 · 264 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999264
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Cutting Loose1999 · 528 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999528
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 21
    Eye OpenerAlbert Samson #82004 · 339 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2004339
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 22
    Oh Joe2008 · confirmed 1/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 23
    Anything to Win2011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 24
    Who I Am2011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 25
    Family TrioLunghi Family #32011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 26
    Family WayLunghi Family #42011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 27
    Confessions of a Discontented Deity2012 · confirmed 1/4
    2012–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 28
    Extra Fries2014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 29
    Alien Quartet2018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Michael Zinn Lewin series in order

The series linked below has its own reading-order page.

Michael Zinn Lewin 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.

Lunghi Family in order

4 books
  1. 1. Family Business
  2. 2. Family Planning
  3. 3. Family Trio
  4. 4. Family Way

Lt. Leroy Powder in order

3 books
  1. 1. Night Cover
  2. 2. Hard Line
  3. 3. Late Payments

Standalone books

14 books

14 Michael Zinn Lewin titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Michael Zinn Lewin books in order?

You only need to read Michael Zinn Lewin 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 Michael Zinn Lewin

Start with Ask the Right Question (1972), the first Albert Samson book. The earliest catalogued title overall is Night Cover (1950).

What is the newest Michael Zinn Lewin book?

Alien Quartet (2018) is the newest Michael Zinn Lewin book released so far.

Is there a new Michael Zinn Lewin book coming?

No next Michael Zinn Lewin book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Michael Zinn Lewin at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Michael Zinn Lewin title on record dates from 2018, 8 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Michael Zinn Lewin books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
Length
3,925 pages across the 15 of 29 books with a recorded length, a median of 248 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Michael Zinn Lewin books, 7 of 29, were published in the 2010s.

What the Michael Zinn Lewin books are about

20 of the 29 Michael Zinn Lewin 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 12 of 20. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.