Frank Burly Books in Order
Frank Burly by John Swartzwelder contains 14 books, published between 2004 and 2023. The first book is The Time Machine Did It (2004) and the newest is Dead Detective Mountain (2023). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 14
- Published
- 2004–2023
- Pages on record
- 144 in 1 of 14 books
Frank Burly is John Swartzwelder's humorous mystery series, with subject headings for private investigators and time travel. The Time Machine Did It (2004) is the first of 14 books. How I Conquered Your Planet (2006), The Exploding Detective (2007) and Dead Men Scare Me Stupid (2008) follow. Later titles include The Fifty Foot Detective (2011) and The Million Dollar Policeman (2012). Dead Detective Mountain (2023) is the newest, and the series is dormant.
How many Frank Burly books are there?
Frank Burly has 14 books, released between 2004 and 2023.
Frank Burly Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 14 Frank Burly 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.
- 1The Time Machine Did It2004 · 144 pages · confirmed 1/420041441/4
- 2How I Conquered Your Planet2006 · confirmed 1/42006–1/4
- 3The Exploding Detective2007 · confirmed 1/42007–1/4
- 4Dead Men Scare Me Stupid2008 · confirmed 1/42008–1/4
- 5Earth Vs. Everybody2009 · confirmed 1/42009–1/4
- 6The Last Detective Alive2010 · confirmed 1/42010–1/4
- 7The Fifty Foot Detective2011 · confirmed 1/42011–1/4
- 8The Million Dollar Policeman2012 · confirmed 1/42012–1/4
- 9Detective Made Easy2013 · confirmed 1/42013–1/4
- 10The Monster That Wouldn't Sink2015 · confirmed 1/42015–1/4
- 11Earth's Biggest Fan2015 · confirmed 1/42015–1/4
- 12Burly Go Home2017 · confirmed 1/42017–1/4
- 13The Spy With No Pants2021 · confirmed 1/42021–1/4
- 14Dead Detective Mountain2023 · confirmed 1/42023–1/4
Is there a chronological order for Frank Burly?
No separate chronological order is on record for Frank Burly, 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 Frank Burly books in order?
You should read the Frank Burly books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Frank Burly book also stands alone.
Where to start with Frank Burly
Start with The Time Machine Did It (2004), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Frank Burly book?
Dead Detective Mountain (2023) is the newest Frank Burly book released so far.
Is there a new Frank Burly book coming?
No next Frank Burly book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Frank Burly at a glance
- Paused
- No new Frank Burly title has appeared for 3 years. The last was published in 2023.
- Release pace
- Frank Burly books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 144 pages across the 1 of 14 books with a recorded length, a median of 144 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Frank Burly books, 7 of 14, were published in the 2010s.
What the Frank Burly books are about
1 of the 14 Frank Burly books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. No subject is tagged on more than one of them, so each one below describes a single book. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Détectives 1 of 1 books
- Humor 1 of 1 books
- Mystery & detective 1 of 1 books
- Private investigators 1 of 1 books
- Time travel 1 of 1 books
More books by John Swartzwelder
The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.
- John Swartzwelder books in order 17 books