Order of Book Series
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Mrs. Murphy Books in Order

Mrs. Murphy by Rita Mae Brown contains 34 books, published between 1990 and 2026. The first book is Wish You Were Here (1990) and the newest is Clawed and Dangerous (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
34
Published
1990–2026
Confirmed
34 of 34 titles
Pages on record
8,163 in 27 of 34 books
Reading time
136–204 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 8,163 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 27 of 34 titles with a page count on record.

See all 34 books in order Printable Mrs. Murphy checklist

Mrs. Murphy is a cat, and the cozy mystery series named for her follows Harry Haristeen, a postal service employee who investigates murders. Rita Mae Brown started the run with Wish You Were Here in 1990 and reached Clawed and Dangerous in 2026, 34 books in all. Cat puns supply most of the titles, from Murder, She Meowed (1996) to Claws and Effect (2001). The series stays in progress.

How many Mrs. Murphy books are there?

Mrs. Murphy has 34 books, released between 1990 and 2026.

Mrs. Murphy Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 34 Mrs. 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 Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown, book 1 of the Mrs. Murphy series (1990)
  2. Cover of Rest in Pieces by Rita Mae Brown, book 2 of the Mrs. Murphy series (1992)
  3. Cover of Pay Dirt by Rita Mae Brown, book 4 of the Mrs. Murphy series (1995)
  4. Cover of Murder, She Meowed by Rita Mae Brown, book 5 of the Mrs. Murphy series (1996)
  5. Cover of Cat on the Scent by Rita Mae Brown, book 7 of the Mrs. Murphy series (1999)
  6. Cover of Pawing Through the Past by Rita Mae Brown, book 8 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2000)
  7. Cover of Claws and Effect by Rita Mae Brown, book 9 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2001)
  8. Cover of Catch as Cat Can by Rita Mae Brown, book 10 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2002)
  9. Cover of The Tail of the Tip-Off by Rita Mae Brown, book 11 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2003)
  10. Cover of Whisker of Evil by Rita Mae Brown, book 12 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2004)
  11. Cover of Cat's Eyewitness by Rita Mae Brown, book 13 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2005)
  12. Cover of Sour Puss by Rita Mae Brown, book 14 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2006)
  13. Cover of Puss 'n Cahoots by Rita Mae Brown, book 15 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2007)
  14. Cover of The Purrfect Murder by Rita Mae Brown, book 16 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2008)
  15. Cover of Cat of the Century by Rita Mae Brown, book 18 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2010)
  16. Cover of Hiss of Death by Rita Mae Brown, book 19 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2011)
  17. Cover of The Big Cat Nap by Rita Mae Brown, book 20 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2012)
  18. Cover of Sneaky Pie for President by Rita Mae Brown, book 21 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2012)
  19. Cover of The Litter of the Law by Rita Mae Brown, book 22 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2013)
  20. Cover of Nine Lives to Die by Rita Mae Brown, book 23 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2014)
  21. Cover of Tail Gait by Rita Mae Brown, book 24 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2015)
  22. Cover of A Hiss Before Dying by Rita Mae Brown, book 26 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2018)
  23. Cover of Probable Claws by Rita Mae Brown, book 27 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2018)
  24. Cover of Furmidable Foes by Rita Mae Brown, book 29 of the Mrs. Murphy series (2020)
  1. 1
    Wish You Were Here1990 · 284 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1990284
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Rest in Pieces1992 · 347 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1992347
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Murder at Monticello1994 · 284 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1994284
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Pay Dirt1995 · 249 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1995249
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Murder, She Meowed1996 · 300 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1996300
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Murder on the Prowl1998 · 377 pages · confirmed 3/4
    1998377
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Cat on the Scent1999 · confirmed 3/4
    1999–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Pawing Through the Past2000 · 333 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2000333
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Claws and Effect2001 · 302 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2001302
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Catch as Cat Can2002 · 332 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2002332
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    The Tail of the Tip-Off2003 · 367 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2003367
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Whisker of Evil2004 · 297 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2004297
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Cat's Eyewitness2005 · 315 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2005315
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Sour Puss2006 · 320 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2006320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Puss 'n Cahoots2007 · 352 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2007352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    The Purrfect Murder2008 · 247 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2008247
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Santa Clawed2008 · confirmed 3/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Cat of the Century2010 · confirmed 3/4
    2010–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Hiss of Death2011 · 217 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2011217
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    The Big Cat Nap2012 · 224 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2012224
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Sneaky Pie for President2012 · 239 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2012239
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    The Litter of the Law2013 · 231 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2013231
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    Nine Lives to Die2014 · 253 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2014253
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    Tail Gait2015 · 307 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2015307
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    Tall Tail2016 · 320 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2016320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    A Hiss Before Dying2018 · 419 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2018419
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    Probable Claws2018 · 319 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2018319
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    Whiskers in the Dark2019 · confirmed 3/4
    2019–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    Furmidable Foes2020 · 304 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2020304
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    Claws for Alarm2021 · 288 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2021288
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  31. 31
    Hiss & Tell2023 · 336 pages · confirmed 3/4
    2023336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  32. 32
    Feline Fatale2024 · confirmed 3/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  33. 33
    Sealed with a Hiss2025 · confirmed 3/4
    2025–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  34. 34
    Clawed and Dangerous2026 · confirmed 3/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Is there a chronological order for Mrs. Murphy?

No separate chronological order is on record for Mrs. Murphy, 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 Mrs. Murphy books in order?

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

Where to start with Mrs. Murphy

Start with Wish You Were Here (1990), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Mrs. Murphy book?

Clawed and Dangerous (2026) is the newest Mrs. Murphy book released so far.

Is there a new Mrs. Murphy book coming?

No next Mrs. 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.

Mrs. Murphy at a glance

Still running
Mrs. Murphy is still running, with a title published as recently as 2026.
Release pace
Mrs. Murphy books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
8,163 pages across the 27 of 34 books with a recorded length, a median of 304 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Mrs. Murphy books, 11 of 34, were published in the 2010s.

What the Mrs. Murphy books are about

28 of the 34 Mrs. Murphy books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: harry haristeen (fictitious character) is tagged on 25 of 28. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

  • Harry Haristeen (Fictitious character) 25 of 28 books
  • Women cat owners 23 of 28 books
  • Cats 20 of 28 books
  • Mystery & detective, women sleuths 17 of 28 books
  • Mystery & detective 10 of 28 books
  • Women postal service employees 10 of 28 books
  • Cats in fiction 3 of 28 books
  • Humor 3 of 28 books
  • Women cat owners in fiction 3 of 28 books

More books by Rita Mae Brown

The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.

Other series by Rita Mae Brown

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