Order of Book Series
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Charlie Chan Books in Order

Charlie Chan contains 11 books, published between 1925 and 1985. The first book is The House Without a Key (1925) and the newest is Celebrated Cases of Charlie Chan (1985). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
11
Published
1925–1985
Pages on record
1,693 in 3 of 11 books
See all 11 books in order Printable Charlie Chan checklist

Charlie Chan is a police detective in Earl Derr Biggers's mystery novels, with subjects including Honolulu, Hawaii and California. The House Without a Key (1925) comes first, followed by The Chinese Parrot (1926), Behind That Curtain (1928), The Black Camel (1929), Charlie Chan Carries On (1930) and Keeper of the Keys (1932). Biggers is credited on 8 of the 11 books. The other 3, dated 1974 to 1981, are credited to Bill Pronzini, Dennis Lynds and Michael Avallone. Subjects include traditional and police procedural mystery.

How many Charlie Chan books are there?

Charlie Chan has 11 books, released between 1925 and 1985.

Charlie Chan Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 11 Charlie Chan 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 House Without a Key by Earl Derr Biggers, book 1 of the Charlie Chan series (1925)
  2. Cover of Charlie Chan in The Pawns of Death by Bill Pronzini, book 1 of the Charlie Chan series (1974)
  3. Cover of Celebrated Cases of Charlie Chan by Earl Derr Biggers, book 1 of the Charlie Chan series (1985)
  4. Cover of Charlie Chan in the Temple of the Golden Horde by Earl Derr Biggers, book 7 of the Charlie Chan series (1974)
  1. 1
    The House Without a Key1925 · confirmed 2/4
    1925–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 1
    Charlie Chan1974 · confirmed 2/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 1
    Charlie Chan in The Pawns of Death1974 · 108 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1974108
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 1
    Charlie Chan And The Curse Of The Dragon Queen1981 · confirmed 1/4
    1981–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 1
    Celebrated Cases of Charlie Chan1985 · 1348 pages · confirmed 2/4
    19851348
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 2
    The Chinese Parrot1926 · confirmed 2/4
    1926–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 3
    Behind That Curtain1928 · 237 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1928237
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 4
    The Black Camel1929 · confirmed 2/4
    1929–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 5
    Charlie Chan Carries On1930 · confirmed 2/4
    1930–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 6
    Keeper of the Keys1932 · confirmed 2/4
    1932–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 7
    Charlie Chan in the Temple of the Golden Horde1974 · confirmed 2/4
    1974–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Do you have to read Charlie Chan books in order?

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

Where to start with Charlie Chan

Start with The House Without a Key (1925), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Charlie Chan book?

Celebrated Cases of Charlie Chan (1985) is the newest Charlie Chan book released so far.

Is there a new Charlie Chan book coming?

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

Charlie Chan at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Charlie Chan title on record dates from 1985, 41 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Charlie Chan books have appeared about one every 6 years on average.
Length
1,693 pages across the 3 of 11 books with a recorded length, a median of 237 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Charlie Chan books, 4 of 11, were published in the 1920s.
Attribution
Of the 11 titles, 8 are credited to Earl Derr Biggers, 1 to Bill Pronzini, 1 to Dennis Lynds and 1 to Michael Avallone.

What the Charlie Chan books are about

8 of the 11 Charlie Chan 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 6 of 8. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.