Order of Book Series
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Warren Murphy Books in Order

155 books are credited to Warren Murphy, published between 1971 and 2021; 6 of them appeared after Warren Murphy's death in 2015. The first book is Created The Destroyer (1971) and the newest is Trial By Fire (2021). Publication order is the reading order below. 104 of the 155 books listed here are in the Destroyer series, which has its own page: Destroyer books in order.

Books
155
Published
1971–2021
Pages on record
19,889 in 97 of 155 books
Reading time
331–497 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 19,889 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 97 of 155 titles with a page count on record.

See all 155 books in order Printable Warren Murphy checklist

Warren Burton Murphy was an American author, born September 13, 1933, who died on September 4, 2015. Murphy co-created The Destroyer series, which became the basis for the film Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins. The catalogue opens with Created The Destroyer (1971), followed in 1972 by Chinese Puzzle, Death Check and Mafia Fix, and counts 155 books in total. Remo and Chiun are listed as fictitious characters, and subjects include men's adventure, action and adventure, pulp and crime. Other series are Trace, Razoni & Jackson, New Destroyer, Forever King and Grandmaster.

How many Warren Murphy books are there?

Warren Murphy has 155 books, released between 1971 and 2021. 6 of them were published after Warren Murphy's death in 2015. They include 7 series and 17 titles listed outside any series.

Warren Murphy Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 155 Warren Murphy 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 Created The Destroyer by Warren Murphy, book 1 of the Destroyer series (1971)
  2. Cover of Mafia Fix by Warren Murphy, book 4 of the Destroyer series (1972)
  3. Cover of Death Therapy by Warren Murphy, book 6 of the Destroyer series (1972)
  4. Cover of Slave Safari by Warren Murphy, book 12 of the Destroyer series (1973)
  5. Cover of Acid Rock by Warren Murphy, book 13 of the Destroyer series (1973)
  6. Cover of Judgment Day by Warren Murphy, book 14 of the Destroyer series (1974)
  7. Cover of Oil Slick by Warren Murphy, book 16 of the Destroyer series (1974)
  8. Cover of Assassin's Play Off by Warren Murphy, book 20 of the Destroyer series (1975)
  9. Cover of The Last Temple by Warren Murphy, book 27 of the Destroyer series (1977)
  10. Cover of The Head Men by Warren Murphy, book 31 of the Destroyer series (1977)
  11. Cover of Killer Chromosomes by Warren Murphy, book 32 of the Destroyer series (1978)
  12. Cover of Voodoo Die by Warren Murphy, book 33 of the Destroyer series (1978)
  13. Cover of Chained Reaction by Warren Murphy, book 34 of the Destroyer series (1978)
  14. Cover of Last Call by Warren Murphy, book 35 of the Destroyer series (1978)
  15. Cover of Atlantic City by Warren Murphy (1979)
  16. Cover of Bottom Line by Warren Murphy, book 37 of the Destroyer series (1979)
  17. Cover of Balance of Power by Warren Murphy, book 44 of the Destroyer series (1981)
  18. Cover of Next of Kin by Warren Murphy, book 46 of the Destroyer series (1981)
  19. Cover of The Red Moon by Warren Murphy (1982)
  20. Cover of Profit Motive, book 47 of the Destroyer series (1982)
  21. Cover of Skin Deep by Warren Murphy, book 48 of the Destroyer series (1982)
  22. Cover of Killing Time by Warren Murphy, book 49 of the Destroyer series (1982)
  23. Cover of Dying Space by Warren Murphy, book 50 of the Destroyer series (1982)
  24. Cover of Trace by Warren Murphy, book 1 of the Trace series (1983)
  1. 1
    Created The DestroyerDestroyer #11971 · 188 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1971188
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Death CheckDestroyer #21972 · 172 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1972172
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Chinese PuzzleDestroyer #31972 · confirmed 2/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Mafia FixDestroyer #41972 · confirmed 2/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Dr. QuakeDestroyer #51972 · confirmed 2/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Death TherapyDestroyer #61972 · 182 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1972182
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Union BustDestroyer #71972 · confirmed 2/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    City in HeatRazoni & Jackson #11973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Dead End StreetRazoni & Jackson #21973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    One Night StandRazoni & Jackson #31973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Summit ChaseDestroyer #81973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Murder's ShieldDestroyer #91973 · 150 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1973150
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Terror SquadDestroyer #101973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Kill or CureDestroyer #111973 · confirmed 2/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Slave SafariDestroyer #121973 · 156 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1973156
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Acid RockDestroyer #131973 · 152 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1973152
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Down and DirtyRazoni & Jackson #41974 · confirmed 2/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Lynch TownRazoni & Jackson #51974 · confirmed 2/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Judgment DayDestroyer #141974 · 162 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1974162
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Murder WardDestroyer #151974 · 156 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1974156
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Oil SlickDestroyer #161974 · 166 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1974166
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    Last War DanceDestroyer #171974 · 146 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1974146
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    Funny MoneyDestroyer #181975 · confirmed 2/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Holy TerrorDestroyer #191975 · confirmed 2/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    Assassin's Play OffDestroyer #201975 · confirmed 2/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    Deadly SeedsDestroyer #211975 · confirmed 2/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    Brain DrainDestroyer #221976 · confirmed 2/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    Child's PlayDestroyer #231976 · confirmed 2/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    King's CurseDestroyer #241976 · confirmed 2/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    Sweet DreamsDestroyer #251976 · confirmed 2/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Warren Murphy series in order

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

Warren Murphy 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.

Trace in order

7 books
  1. 1. Trace
  2. 2. And 47 Miles of Rope
  3. 3. When Elephants Forget
  4. 4. Pigs Get Fat
  5. 5. Once a Mutt
  6. 6. Too Old a Cat
  7. 7. Getting Up with Fleas

Legacy in order

7 books
  1. 1. Forgotten Son
  2. 2. The Killing Fields
  3. 3. Overload
  4. 4. Trial and Terror
  5. 5. Mother Mine
  6. 6. Laughing Matter
  7. 7. 100 Proof

Razoni & Jackson in order

5 books
  1. 1. City in Heat
  2. 2. Dead End Street
  3. 3. One Night Stand
  4. 4. Down and Dirty
  5. 5. Lynch Town

Digger in order

4 books
  1. 1. Smoked Out
  2. 2. Fool's Flight
  3. 3. Dead Letter
  4. 4. Lucifer's Weekend

New Destroyer in order

4 books
  1. 1. Choke Hold
  2. 2. Guardian Angel
  3. 3. Dead Reckoning
  4. 4. Killer Ratings

Destroyer Short Stories/Novellas

3 books

3 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.

Grandmaster in order

2 books
  1. 1. Grandmaster
  2. 2. High Priest

Forever King in order

2 books
  1. 1. The Forever King
  2. 2. The Broken Sword

Standalone books

17 books

17 Warren Murphy titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Warren Murphy books in order?

You only need to read Warren Murphy books in order within each series: the books listed here span 7 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with Warren Murphy

Start with Created The Destroyer (1971), the first Destroyer book. It is also the earliest catalogued title.

What is the newest Warren Murphy book?

Trial By Fire (2021) is the newest Warren Murphy book released so far.

Is there a new Warren Murphy book coming?

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

Awards Warren Murphy has won

Wikidata records 1 award for Warren Murphy. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • Edgar Awards1984Won

Warren Murphy at a glance

Died
Warren Murphy died in 2015, according to Wikidata.
After death
Books credited to Warren Murphy are still being published after Warren Murphy's death in 2015; the newest appeared in 2021.
Release pace
Warren Murphy books have appeared more than one a year on average.
Length
19,889 pages across the 97 of 155 books with a recorded length, a median of 222 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Warren Murphy books, 61 of 155, were published in the 1980s.

What the Warren Murphy books are about

105 of the 155 Warren Murphy books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: chiun (fictitious character) is tagged on 76 of 105. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.