Order of Book Series
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Butcher Books in Order

Butcher by Michael Avallone contains 28 books, published between 1971 and 1982. The first book is Kill Quick or Die (1971) and the newest is Gotham Gore (1982). Publication order is the reading order below.

Also searched as The Butcher.

Books
28
Published
1971–1982
Pages on record
758 in 4 of 28 books
See all 28 books in order Printable Butcher checklist
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The Butcher is an action series by Michael Avallone, running to 28 books between 1971 and 1982. The Mafia is the standing enemy, and the plots take in aircraft hijacking and shipwrecks. Kill Quick or Die opened the run in 1971, followed by Come Watch Him Die, Blood Debt, Keepers of Death, Fire Bomb and Deadly Deal, and Gotham Gore closed it in 1982. The books are short at around 190 pages.

Source: composed

How many Butcher books are there?

Butcher has 28 books, released between 1971 and 1982.

Butcher Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 28 Butcher 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 November 2026.

  1. Cover of Kill Quick or Die by Michael Avallone, book 1 of the Butcher series (1971)
  2. Cover of Deadly Deal by Michael Avallone, book 6 of the Butcher series (1973)
  3. Cover of Blood Vengeance by Michael Avallone, book 9 of the Butcher series (1975)
  4. Cover of Suicide in San Juan by Michael Avallone, book 11 of the Butcher series (1975)
  5. Cover of The Cubano Caper by Michael Avallone, book 12 of the Butcher series (1976)
  6. Cover of Mayday Over Manhattan by Michael Avallone, book 14 of the Butcher series (1976)
  7. Cover of Instant Dead by Michael Avallone, book 16 of the Butcher series (1976)
  8. Cover of Venetian Vendetta by Michael Avallone, book 18 of the Butcher series (1977)
  9. Cover of September Slaughter by Michael Avallone, book 22 of the Butcher series (1980)
  10. Cover of Kill Them Silently by Michael Avallone, book 23 of the Butcher series (1980)
  11. Cover of The Man from White Hat by Michael Avallone, book 27 of the Butcher series (1982)
  1. 1
    Kill Quick or Die1971 · confirmed 1/4
    1971–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Come Watch Him Die1971 · confirmed 1/4
    1971–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Blood Debt1972 · confirmed 1/4
    1972–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Keepers of Death1973 · 188 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1973188
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Fire Bomb1973 · confirmed 1/4
    1973–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Deadly Deal1973 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1973192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Valley of Death1974 · confirmed 1/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Deadly Doctor1974 · confirmed 1/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Blood Vengeance1975 · confirmed 1/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    African Contract1975 · confirmed 1/4
    1975–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Suicide in San Juan1975 · 186 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1975186
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    The Cubano Caper1976 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1976192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    The U.N. Affair1976 · confirmed 1/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Mayday Over Manhattan1976 · confirmed 1/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Hollywood Assassin1976 · confirmed 1/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Instant Dead1976 · confirmed 1/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Grecian Bloodbath1976 · confirmed 1/4
    1976–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Venetian Vendetta1977 · confirmed 1/4
    1977–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    The Corporate Caper1977 · confirmed 1/4
    1977–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    The Terror Truckers1977 · confirmed 1/4
    1977–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    The Judas Judge1979 · confirmed 1/4
    1979–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    September Slaughter1980 · confirmed 1/4
    1980–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    Kill Them Silently1980 · confirmed 1/4
    1980–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Coffin Corner, U.S.A.1981 · confirmed 1/4
    1981–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    The Hoodoo Horror1981 · confirmed 1/4
    1981–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    Go Die in Afghanistan1981 · confirmed 1/4
    1981–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    The Man from White Hat1982 · confirmed 1/4
    1982–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    Gotham Gore1982 · confirmed 1/4
    1982–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Is there a chronological order for Butcher?

No separate chronological order is on record for Butcher, because none of the book listings this catalogue draws on publishes one; the publication order above is the only order given.

Do you have to read Butcher books in order?

You should read the Butcher books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Butcher book also stands alone.

Where to start with Butcher

Start with Kill Quick or Die (1971), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Butcher book?

Gotham Gore (1982) is the newest Butcher book released so far.

Is there a new Butcher book coming?

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

Butcher at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Butcher title on record dates from 1982, 44 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Butcher books have appeared more than one a year on average.
Length
758 pages across the 4 of 28 books with a recorded length, a median of 190 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Butcher books, 21 of 28, were published in the 1970s.

When Butcher books were published

Publication distribution by decade, showing when Butcher titles appeared. 1970s was the most productive decade with 21 titles.

1970s
21
1980s
7

28 books total across 2 decades. Decade reflects the year each title was first catalogued.

What the Butcher books are about

8 of the 28 Butcher books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: mafia is tagged on 3 of 8. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

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