Thieves book series in reading order

by Lawrence Block

by Timothy Hallinan

by Elizabeth E.X. Ferrars

by Donald E. Westlake

by Donald E. Westlake

by Enid Blyton

by Mary E. Pearson

by Avi

Lawrence Block

262 books• 22 series

Lawrence Block, born June 24, 1938, is an American writer of crime, mystery and suspense fiction whose career spans more than half a century. Block is best known for two long-running series set in New York: Matthew Scudder, a recovering alcoholic private investigator, and Bernie Rhodenbarr, a gentleman burglar. The Mystery Writers of America named Block a Grand Master in 1994. The catalogue begins in 1958 with Carla and A Fire At Night and reaches Writing Drunk, Writing Sober in 2025. John Keller, Evan Tanner, Kit Tolliver and Ehrengraf for the Defense are further series, and books written as Jill Emerson form another.

Elizabeth E.X. Ferrars wrote English detective fiction across seven decades. Five recurring investigators carry the series: Toby Dyke, Virginia Freer, Andrew Basnett, Superintendent Ditteridge and Police Chief Raposo. Titles favour wordplay, as in Give a Corpse a Bad Name (1940), Don't Monkey with Murder (1942), Neck in a Noose (1942) and The March Hare Murders (1949). Retired teachers, botanists, thieves and divorced women populate the subjects. The listing holds 74 books dated 1940 to 2014, at a median of 192 pages.

Timothy Hallinan

25 books• 3 series

Timothy Hallinan is an American thriller writer based in Southern California and Southeast Asia. The 1990s work centres on Simeon Grist, an erudite private eye in six Los Angeles novels that drew strong reviews and Ten Best listings without wide sales; a seventh Grist book followed in 2017. Hallinan returned to publication in 2007 with a Bangkok series, the Poke Rafferty mysteries, and later added the Junior Bender books. Thieves and private investigators sit in the subject record. Twenty-five books are catalogued, from 1985 to Rock of Ages (2022).

Enid Blyton

957 books• 42 series

Enid Blyton (11 August 1897 to 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer and one of the best-selling authors of children's literature, with more than 600 million copies sold and translations into ninety languages. Blyton wrote on education, natural history, fantasy, mystery and biblical stories. Noddy, the Famous Five, the Secret Seven, the Five Find-Outers and Malory Towers are the best-remembered Blyton books, and St Clare's, Mary Mouse and Toyland Stories are also listed. The catalogue opens with The Enid Blyton Book of Fairies (1924), and The Naughtiest Girl in the School (1930) and The Adventures of the Wishing-Chair (1937) follow. Titles dated after Blyton's death also appear, up to Stories of Wonders and Wishes (2023).

Julia Donaldson

349 books• 14 series

Dame Julia Donaldson, born Julia Catherine Shields on 16 September 1948, is a British writer and playwright who served as Children's Laureate from 2011 to 2013. Rhyming stories for children made Donaldson's name, above all those illustrated by Axel Scheffler, such as The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom, Stick Man and Superworm. Donaldson first wrote songs for children's television; the lyrics of A Squash and a Squeeze became a picture book in 1993, and books have been the focus since. The catalogue carries 349 entries, from Tim's Bad Mood and Other Stories (1970) to The Tooth Fairy and the Crocodile (2026), including Tales from Acorn Wood, Princess Mirror-Belle and Zog.

Donald E. Westlake

127 books• 11 series

Donald E. Westlake (July 12, 1933 to December 31, 2008) was an American writer credited with more than one hundred novels and non-fiction books. Crime fiction was Westlake's specialty, comic capers above all, with occasional science fiction. Westlake created two professional criminals with long-running series: the hardboiled Parker, published under the pen name Richard Stark, and John Dortmunder, the lead of a more humorous series. Westlake won the Edgar Award three times. The catalogue holds 127 Westlake books from 1959 to 2022, and other listings include Alan Grofield, Sam Holt and the Mitch Tobin books written as Tucker Coe.

Rachel Aaron, born around 1982, is an American fantasy author who writes science fiction as Rachel Bach. The Spirit Thief, The Spirit Rebellion and The Spirit Eater all appeared in 2010, and The Spirit War and Spirit's End in 2012. Fortune's Pawn (2013) carries the Rachel Bach name. Nice Dragons Finish Last (2014) and One Good Dragon Deserves Another (2015) follow, and Tear Down Heaven (2026) is the newest of 32 catalogued titles. Series include Legend of Eli Monpress, Heartstrikers, DFZ, DFZ Changeling and Mana Runners. Thieves, wizards, demonology and mercenaries appear in the subject tags.

Ron Roy, born 1940, is an American children's writer working mostly in mystery. Three series carry the name: A to Z Mysteries from 1997, Capital Mysteries from 2001 and Calendar Mysteries from 2009, with A to Z Animal Mysteries and an A to Z Super Edition line alongside. Roy taught fourth grade in Connecticut for ten years, sold a first book in 1978 and wrote full time after that. The catalogue holds 90 titles dated 1978 to 2024, short at a median 84 pages, and reaches Dolphin Detectives (2024).

R.A. Salvatore

133 books• 34 series

Robert Anthony Salvatore, published as R.A. Salvatore, is an American fantasy writer born on January 20, 1959. The Legend of Drizzt, set in the Forgotten Realms and starring Drizzt Do'Urden, is the work Salvatore is chiefly known for. Other work includes The DemonWars Saga, a high fantasy series, and Vector Prime, the first novel in Star Wars: The New Jedi Order. The catalogue counts 134 books, starting with The Crystal Shard (1988); Witch of Whispervale (2025) is the newest, and Fat Rabbit is listed for 2027. US sales exceed 15 million copies, and 22 Salvatore titles have been New York Times best-sellers.

Robert Kirkman

181 books• 31 series

Robert Kirkman, born 30 November 1978, is an American comic book writer, screenwriter and producer. Kirkman co-created The Walking Dead, Invincible, Tech Jacket, Outcast, Oblivion Song and Fire Power for Image Comics, wrote Ultimate X-Men, Irredeemable Ant-Man and Marvel Zombies for Marvel Comics, and worked with Todd McFarlane on Haunt. Kirkman is one of the five partners of Image Comics and serves as its COO. The catalogue gathers 181 volumes published between 2001 and 2026, listed as graphic novel and omnibus collections, from Battle Pope, Vol. 1: Genesis (2001) to The Emissary (2026). Charlie Adlard shares the credit on 2 volumes and Sean Phillips on 1.

Horror is David Wellington's field. The American writer, born 1971, is best known for a Zombie trilogy and also publishes science fiction under the name D. Nolan Clark. Monster Island (2004) opens the 27-book catalogue, with Monster Nation the same year and Monster Planet in 2006. Vampires, zombies, werewolves, witches, knights and thieves appear in the subject records, along with the fictitious character Laura Caxton. Laura Caxton, Jim Chapel, Ancient Blades Trilogy, Red Space and Cheyenne Clark are the series credited to Wellington, whose most recent title is Erebus-13 (2026).

Nora Roberts

279 books• 37 series

Nora Roberts, born Eleanor Marie Robertson on October 10, 1950, is an American writer of romance under that name. As J. D. Robb, Roberts writes police procedurals with science-fiction elements, and has also published as Jill March and, in the UK, as Sarah Hardesty. This listing carries 280 Roberts books, opening with Irish Thoroughbred (1981); The Missing is scheduled for 2027. Series on the page include the In Death Universe, the MacGregors, Night Tales, the Calhoun Women, the Chesapeake Bay Saga, Irish Hearts and the O'Hurleys.

Contemporary romance and romantic suspense are the two fields Canadian author Elle Kennedy works in. Born on 19 January 1982, Kennedy has won a RITA Award from the Romance Writers of America. The catalogue credits 78 books to Kennedy, starting with Bad Moon Rising (Short Story) in 2007 and reaching Bad Idea, due in 2027. Kennedy's series include Killer Instincts, Off-Campus, Briar U, Campus Diaries, Avalon Bay, Outlaws, Prep and Small Town Scandals. Subjects tagged on the books include hockey and sports romance.

Michael J. Sullivan

33 books• 8 series

Michael J. Sullivan writes epic fantasy. The Riyria Revelations open the catalogue with The Crown Conspiracy (2008), and the Riyria Chronicles, Legends of the First Empire, Rise and Fall and After the Fall follow. Thirty-three catalogued books reach Out of the Ashes (2026), at a median length of 420 pages. Thieves, assassins, gods and imaginary wars recur as subjects.

Subjects attached to Kiki Swinson's books include urban and street lit, African American women, drug dealers, criminals, revenge and suspense. The catalogue holds 59 books from Wifey (2004) to Where There's Smoke (2024), including I'm Still Wifey, The Candy Shop and A Sticky Situation. Series listed for Swinson include Wifey, Cheaper to Keep Her, Notorious / Playing Dirty, New York's Finest, Black Market and Schemes. The status is listed as ongoing.

Ralph Cotton (1945-2024) was an American writer of westerns. The debut novel, While Angels Dance: The Life and Times of Jeston Nash, appeared from St. Martin's Press in 1994, and more than 80 novels followed, three of them carrying Ralph Compton's byline after Compton died. 75 titles are catalogued here, through to Gunman's Pass (2022). Ranger Sam Burrack is the recurring lead, with the Jeston Nash, Will Summers, Sherman Dahl, Gun Culture, Long Riders and Dead Or Alive sequences alongside. Arizona Rangers, outlaws, gunfights and frontier life carry the subject tags.

David Dalglish, born April 2, 1984, is an American writer of epic fantasy fiction. Assassins, thieves, brothers, criminals and gods fill the subject list, which also names imaginary wars and battles and coming of age. Forty books stand under Dalglish in the catalogue, opening in 2010 with A Dance of Cloaks and The Weight of Blood and reaching Daughter of Destruction in 2026. Series include Half-Orcs, Shadowdance, Paladins, Breaking World, Seraphim, Vagrant Gods and Astral Kingdoms. The books run long, at a median of 431 pages.

Carolyn Keene is a Stratemeyer Syndicate pen name, the credit on the Nancy Drew mysteries. Mildred Wirt Benson, one of the writers behind the name, used it from 1929 to 1953 and contributed to 23 of the first 30 Nancy Drew books. The catalogue lists 647 Carolyn Keene books, beginning with The Secret of the Old Clock, The Hidden Staircase and The Bungalow Mystery (all 1930) and reaching Vans & Villains (2026). Series include Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, Nancy Drew Files, Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, Nancy Drew Diaries, Nancy Drew: Girl Detective and Dana Girls Mystery Stories.

Cherie Priest

37 books• 7 series

Cherie Priest, born July 30, 1975, is an American novelist and blogger based in Seattle, Washington. Four and Twenty Blackbirds (2005) is the first catalogued book, and Boneshaker (2009), Clementine (2010) and Dreadnought (2010) follow later. Clockwork Century, Eden Moore, Cheshire Red Reports, Borden Dispatches, Leda Foley / Booking Agents and Princess X are the series. Vampires, zombies, monsters, historical fantasy and horror feature in the subjects, and Talking in Circles (2026) is the newest title.

Richard Kadrey, born August 27, 1957, is an American novelist, freelance writer and photographer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The catalogue holds 37 books from Metrophage (1988) to In the Devil Wind (2026), including Kamikaze L'Amour (1995), Butcher Bird (2005), Sandman Slim (2009) and Kill the Dead (2010). The listing also includes the Covert Culture Sourcebook (1994) and From Myst to Riven (1997). Series include Sandman Slim, Another Coop Heist, Discreet Eliminators and Carrion City. Subjects include the occult and supernatural, angels, zombies, subcultures and Los Angeles.

Nisa Santiago writes urban crime fiction about women in the drug trade. Thirty catalogued books run from Cartier Cartel (2008) to Mafioso - Part 7 (2023), with the 2010s the heaviest decade. Apple & Kola: The Baddest Chick is the longest series, joined by Mafioso, Killer Dolls, House That Hustle Built, Murdergram and South Beach Cartel. Street life, female gangs, women drug dealers, sisters and thieves recur as subjects, across books of a median 254 pages. No new title has appeared since 2023.

Philip Reeve

48 books• 12 series

Philip Reeve, born on 28 February 1966, is an English author and illustrator of children's books, known above all for Mortal Engines (2001) and its sequels, the Mortal Engines Quartet published between 2001 and 2006. Here Lies Arthur (2007), Reeve's novel drawn from the Arthurian legend, won the Carnegie Medal. Forty-eight catalogued titles reach Bridge of Storms: A Mortal Engines Novel (2026), across Fever Crumb, Larklight, Railhead, Goblins, Buster Bayliss, Utterly Dark, Adventuremice and the Not-So-Impossible Tales, written largely for readers in grades 6 to 8.

Lisa Shearin writes comic fantasy with elves, goblins and thieves. Raine Benares, a seeker caught up with a cursed amulet, carries the first six books from Magic Lost, Trouble Found (2007) to All Spell Breaks Loose (2012); the SPI Files then move the magic to a modern supernatural agency, starting with The Grendel Affair (2013). Twenty books span 2007 to 2023, closing for now with The Gorgon Agenda.

Chris Ewan, also credited as C.M. Ewan, is a British crime and mystery writer. The Good Thief's Guide series follows Charlie Howard, a thief who writes crime novels of his own, through Amsterdam (2007), Paris (2008), Vegas (2010), Venice (2011) and Berlin (2012). Fifteen books are catalogued to 2025, including Safe House (2012), Dark Tides (2014) and Long Time Lost (2017), with the Isle of Man among the recorded subjects.