Chicago (Ill.) book series in reading order

by Max Allan Collins

by Chloe Neill

by P.N. Elrod

by Barbara D’Amato

by Jack Fredrickson

by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

by David H. Fears

by Andrew Vachss

Sara Paretsky

34 books• 6 series

Sara Paretsky is an American author of detective fiction, born June 8, 1947, and most noted for the novels built around the protagonist V. I. Warshawski. The catalogue holds 34 Paretsky books, from Indemnity Only (1982) to Bad Company (2026), including Deadlock (1984), Killing Orders (1985), Bitter Medicine (1987) and Burn Marks (1990). Subjects on the books include women private investigators, women detectives and Chicago, and the list also carries short story collections and standalone novels.

Jim Butcher

48 books• 7 series

Jim Butcher, born October 26, 1971, is an American author of the contemporary fantasy series The Dresden Files, as well as Codex Alera and Cinder Spires. Storm Front (2000) opens the catalogue, which includes Fool Moon (2001), Grave Peril (2001), Summer Knight (2002) and Furies of Calderon (2004), and runs to Out Law: A Dresden Files Novella (2026). Harry Dresden, wizards, private investigators and Chicago appear among the subjects. Butcher is still publishing.

Andrew M. Greeley's catalogue spans fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and runs to 82 books published between 1967 and 2010. Subjects settle on the Catholic Church, its clergy, Irish Americans and Chicago. Blackie Ryan and Nuala Anne McGrail are the recurring detectives; other groupings include the O'Malley's family saga, Time Between The Stars, Passover and the World Of Maggie Ward. The listing opens with Letters to Nancy (1967) and ends with Chicago Catholics and the Struggles Within Their Church (2010).

Jill Churchill was the pen name of Janice Young Brooks (1943-2023), an American author whose first Jane Jeffry novel took both the Agatha and the Macavity Award. The Jane Jeffry mysteries place a single mother as the detective in Chicago, and the Grace & Favor series runs alongside them. Churchill also wrote historical romance and nonfiction, beginning with Kings and Queens: The Plantagenets of England in 1975. Thirty-eight catalogued books close with The Accidental Florist (2007).

Urban fantasy and paranormal romance are Chloe Neill's genres. Neill, born May 17, 1975, is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Chicagoland Vampires and Devil's Isle series. The catalogue lists 34 books from Some Girls Bite (2009) to Ember Eternal (2025), also covering Heirs of Chicagoland, Captain Kit Brightling and Souls Burn Brightest. Vampires, magic, good and evil, and the city of Chicago recur among the recorded subjects.

Barbara D'Amato, born Barbara Steketee on April 10, 1938, is an American mystery author who has won both the Agatha and Anthony awards. The Cat Marsala Mystery series features a woman journalist in Chicago, and the catalogue includes Hardball (1989), Hard Tack (1991) and Hard Christmas (1995). D'Amato also writes the Figueroa and Bennis police procedurals featuring Suze Figueroa, and the Gerritt De Graaf books. The catalogue holds 23 books to The Hands of Healing Murder (2016). D'Amato appears in Great Women Mystery Writers (2007).

David J. Walker writes hard-boiled mystery fiction, with Chicago, Illinois and private investigators among the recorded subjects. Walker's series are Wild Onion Ltd. and Mal Foley, and the characters Malachy Foley, Kirsten and Dugan appear in the subjects. The 12 catalogued books run from Fixed in His Folly (1995) to Company Orders (2012), including Half the Truth (1996), A Beer at a Bawdy House (2000) and All the Dead Fathers (2005).

Max Allan Collins

199 books• 34 series

Max Allan Collins, born March 3, 1948, is an American mystery writer who also works in comics, graphic novels and screenplays. Collins created the Ms. Tree and Road to Perdition comics, the second of which became a film, and the series characters Quarry, a hitman, Nolan, a thief, and private investigator Nate Heller. Collins wrote the Dick Tracy newspaper strip for years, and the Mystery Writers of America named Collins a Grand Master in 2017. Catalogue entries run from Bait Money (1973) to Quarry's Reunion (2026), with Eliot Ness, Mallory and Disaster among the other series.

J.A. Konrath writes crime thrillers, and the subject tags point to Chicago, policewomen and women sleuths, along with horror and women spies. Whiskey Sour (2004) is the first catalogued title, followed by Bloody Mary (2005), Rusty Nail (2006) and Dirty Martini (2007). Dark and Stormy (2026) is the most recent title. Jacqueline Daniels, known as Jack, is the character named in the subject tags. Series on the author page include Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels, Codename: Chandler, Timecaster, Phineas Troutt Mysteries, Harry McGlade Mystery and the Konrath/Kilborn Collective.

Stuart M. Kaminsky (29 September 1934 to 9 October 2009) was an American mystery novelist who also taught film. Four mystery series carry the name: Toby Peters, a private eye in 1940s Hollywood; Porfiry Petrovich Rostnikov, a Moscow police inspector; Abe Lieberman, a Chicago police officer; and Lew Fonesca, a process server in Sarasota, Florida. A Cold Red Sunrise, a Rostnikov novel, won the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 1989. The catalogue holds 85 books from 1974 to 2011, and its earliest entries are American Film Genres (1974) and Don Siegel: Director (1974).

Libby Fischer Hellmann is an American crime fiction writer based in Chicago, Illinois, where most of the novels and stories take place. The Chicago Sun-Times notes that Hellmann grew up in Washington, D.C., before adopting Chicago as home. The catalogue lists 43 books, starting with The Day Miriam Hirsch Disappeared (1999) and reaching Max's War (2024). Series include Ellie Foreman, Georgia Davis and Revolution Sagas, with An Eye for Murder (2002) and A Picture of Guilt (2003) among the titles. Subjects include women sleuths, independent filmmakers, murder trials and the Manhattan Project.

Urban fantasy is the main field of P.N. Elrod, the name used by Patricia Nead Elrod, an American novelist born in 1954. Her Vampire Files series draws on vampires, private investigators, Chicago and the character Jack Fleming; Bloodlist, Lifeblood and Bloodcircle all came out in 1990. Elrod also wrote the Jonathan Barrett, Gentleman Vampire and Lord Richard, Vampire books and has edited anthologies. RT Book Reviews gave Elrod its Pioneer Achievement Award in Vampire Fiction in 2011.

Chicago private investigators and cold cases figure in the subjects of Jack Fredrickson's mysteries. Fredrickson writes the Dek Elstrom and Milo Rigg Mystery series, with 11 books catalogued between 2006 and 2022. A Safe Place for Dying (2006) comes first, followed by Honestly Dearest, You're Dead (2008) and Hunting Sweetie Rose (2012). Kill Her Twice (2022) is the newest title.

James Patterson

510 books• 73 series

James Patterson, born on March 22, 1947, is an American writer whose catalogue here holds 514 books published from 1976 to 2027. The run opens with The Thomas Berryman Number (1976), and Along Came a Spider (1992) and Kiss the Girls (1995) follow later. Alex Cross, Michael Bennett, Maximum Ride, Daniel X, Witch & Wizard, NYPD Red, Private, Middle School and the Women's Murder Club are among the Patterson series, alongside standalone thrillers, non-fiction and romance. Marshall Karp shares the credit on 5 of the books. Patterson's sales exceed 425 million copies, and Patterson was the first person to sell one million e-books. Forbes ranked Patterson the highest-paid author in 2016, for a third year running, and the National Book Foundation gave Patterson the Literarian Award in November 2015. 27 Stars is scheduled for 2027.

Neta Jackson has 101 books in the catalogue, published between 1974 and 2021. Living Together in a World Falling Apart (1974) is the earliest, and Hero Tales, Vol. IV (2021) is the newest. The Yada Yada Prayer Group is among the character entries, and series include Yada Yada House of Hope, Trailblazer, Hero Tales, SouledOut Sisters, Windy City Neighbors, Pet Parables and Secret Adventures. Subjects include Christian life, Christian women, missionaries, prayer groups, female friendship, orphans, biography and children's fiction.

Kate Meader writes contemporary romance, and catalogue subjects put the books among firefighters, cooks, restaurants and weddings, with Chicago as a recorded setting. The listing holds 43 books published between 2013 and 2026, from Feel the Heat (2013) to Secret Husband (2026), and Fan Friction is scheduled for 2027. Series include Hot in Chicago, Chicago Rebels, Rookie Rebels, Chicago Players, Hot in the Kitchen and Tall, Dark, and Texan.

Blue Balliett

10 books• 1 series

Art theft and the children who solve it made Blue Balliett's name. Chasing Vermeer (2004), illustrated by Brett Helquist, turns on the stolen painting of a 17th-century Dutch artist, won the 2005 Edgar Award for best juvenile mystery and a 2004 Agatha Award, and led to The Wright 3 (2006) and The Calder Game (2008). Balliett's 10 catalogued books span 1990 to 2018, opening with Nantucket ghost stories and closing with Out of the Wild Night (2018). Chicago, its Robie House and mobile sculpture anchor the mysteries, at a median of 282 pages.

Michael Harvey writes crime fiction set in Chicago, built around the private investigator Michael Kelly. The 8 catalogued books open with The Chicago Way (2007) and continue through The Fifth Floor (2008), The Third Rail (2010) and We All Fall Down (2011) to The Innocence Game (2013), The Governor's Wife (2015), Brighton (2016) and Pulse (2018). Police, murder investigation and city politics recur. Nothing has followed 2018.

William Diehl (1924-2006) was an American novelist and photojournalist who wrote thrillers about murder, espionage, assassins and criminal investigation. Martin Vail is his recurring character, running through Primal Fear (1992), Show of Evil (1995) and Reign in Hell (1997). Sharky's Machine (1974) opens the catalogue and Seven Ways to Die (2012) closes it, 10 books in all, at a median of 467 pages. Chicago and Georgia figure among the settings, and the 1990s were Diehl's heaviest decade.

Contemporary romance is what the catalogue records for Myrna Mackenzie, with subjects covering marriage, married people, man-woman relationships, Chicago, Illinois, ranchers, schoolteachers, businessmen and auctions. Forty-three books run from The Daddy List (1995) to Blind-Date Bride (2021), and the 2000s are the heaviest decade. Wedding Auction and Brides of Red Rose are the two series credited to Mackenzie. At the Billionaire's Bidding, Contractually His and Simon Says ... Marry Me! all date from 2000. No new title has been listed since 2021.

Sam Reaves writes crime and suspense set largely in Chicago. The catalogue lists 14 books from A Long Cold Fall (1991) to Blackchain (2021), and Reaves's series are Cooper MacLeish, Pascual Rose and Pascual. Cooper MacLeish is tagged as a fictitious character, and subjects include organized crime, political corruption, ex-police officers, taxicab drivers and veterans of the Iraq War. Other titles are Fear Will Do It and The Republic of Night.

Karen Rose writes romantic suspense and has won a RITA Award. Born Karen Rose Hafer in Baltimore and raised in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C., Rose took a chemical engineering degree at the University of Maryland and worked as a chemical engineer with two patents before writing fiction. The catalogue holds 37 books from Don't Tell (2003) to Family Lies (2026), organised into city-named sequences: Chicago, Cincinnati, Philadelphia/Atlanta, Sacramento, Minneapolis, St. Petersburg and San Diego Case Files. Subjects include murder, serial murders, arson investigation and police procedure.

Dee Henderson is an American writer of Christian fiction in the inspirational romantic suspense genre, with writing awards and New York Times Best Seller placings. The catalogue lists 29 books between 1997 and 2019, starting with The Marriage Wish (1997). Henderson's series are O'Malley, Uncommon Heroes, Sins of the Past and Evie Blackwell Cold Case. Titles include Danger in the Shadows (1999), The Negotiator (1999) and True Devotion (2000). Betrayed (2019) is the newest, and the catalogue is listed as likely complete.

Amish romance and Christian fiction fill the catalogue of Shelley Shepard Gray, which holds 101 books. Hidden (2008) is the earliest, followed by Forgiven and Wanted, and the series include Sisters of the Heart, Seasons of Sugarcreek, Families of Honor, the Amish of Hart County, Walnut Creek, Days of Redemption and the Amish ABCs. The Persistent Caller is scheduled for 2027.