Reading Order List โ€” Book Series Reading Order Guide
Walter Mosley

Walter Mosley Reading Order

15 series ยท 212 books ยท Born 1952

Walter Mosley is a renowned American author celebrated for his contributions to the mystery and crime fiction genres. Over his prolific career, which spans from 1990 to 2025, he has penned 212 books across 15 series, including the acclaimed Easy Rawlins and Leonid McGill series. His notable works, such as "Crosstown to Oblivion" and "Fearless Jones," showcase his distinctive storytelling style and profound insight into the human experience.

Akashic Noir Series

Ongoing

121 books (2002โ€“2025)

Start with San Francisco Noir, the first of 121 books in the Akashic Noir series.

#Title
1
San Francisco Noir
2
3
Seattle Noir
4
Brooklyn Noir
5
Cover of Hasidic Noir
Hasidic Noir
6
Cover of Brooklyn Noir 2
Brooklyn Noir 2
7
Chicago Noir
8
9
Baltimore Noir
10
11
12
Cover of Manhattan Noir
Manhattan Noir
13
14
Cover of Twin Cities Noir
Twin Cities Noir
15
Cover of Detroit Noir
Detroit Noir
16
17
Cover of Los Angeles Noir
Los Angeles Noir
18
Cover of New Orleans Noir
New Orleans Noir
19
Wall Street Noir
20
Cover of Brooklyn Noir 3: Nothing But the Truth
Brooklyn Noir 3: Nothing But the Truth
21
22
Istanbul Noir
23
Las Vegas Noir
24
Manhattan Noir 2
25
26
27
Toronto Noir
28
Trinidad Noir
29
30
31
Cover of Phoenix Noir
Phoenix Noir
32
Portland Noir
33
34
San Francisco Noir 2
35
Copenhagen Noir
36
37
Indian Country Noir
38
Cover of Lone Star Noir
Lone Star Noir
39
Los Angeles Noir 2
40
Mexico City Noir
41
42
Cover of Orange County Noir
Orange County Noir
43
Philadelphia Noir
44
Richmond Noir
45
Barcelona Noir
46
Cover of Cape Cod Noir
Cape Cod Noir
47
New Jersey Noir
48
Pittsburgh Noir
49
San Diego Noir
50
Cover of Boston Noir 2
Boston Noir 2
51
Kansas City Noir
52
Kingston Noir
53
Long Island Noir
54
55
St. Petersburg Noir
56
Cover of Staten Island Noir
Staten Island Noir
57
58
Buffalo Noir
59
60
Haiti Noir 2
61
62
63
Belfast Noir
64
Helsinki Noir
65
66
67
Singapore Noir
68
69
Tel Aviv Noir
70
71
Chicago Noir: The Classics
72
Marseille Noir
73
Memphis Noir
74
Providence Noir
75
76
Brussels Noir
77
Cover of Mississippi Noir
Mississippi Noir
78
New Orleans Noir: The Classics
79
80
San Juan Noir
81
St. Louis Noir
82
Cover of Stockholm Noir
Stockholm Noir
83
Cover of Atlanta Noir
Atlanta Noir
84
Buenos Aires Noir
85
Montana Noir
86
Montreal Noir
87
New Haven Noir
88
Oakland Noir
89
Trinidad Noir: The Classics
90
Baghdad Noir
91
92
Hong Kong Noir
93
94
Marrakech Noir
95
Santa Cruz Noir
96
97
Sรฃo Paulo Noir
98
Vancouver Noir
99
Amsterdam Noir
100
Houston Noir
101
Milwaukee Noir
102
103
Addis Ababa Noir
104
Alabama Noir
105
Belgrade Noir
106
Berkeley Noir
107
Columbus Noir
108
Miami Noir: The Classics
109
Nairobi Noir
110
Santa Fe Noir
111
Tampa Bay Noir
112
Palm Springs Noir
113
114
Paris Noir: The Suburbs
115
Cover of South Central Noir
South Central Noir
116
Cleveland Noir
117
East Jerusalem Noir
118
West Jerusalem Noir
119
Honolulu Noir
120
Cover of Hamburg Noir
Hamburg Noir
121
Sacramento Noir

Anthologies Series

Likely Complete

17 books (1993โ€“2023)

Start with The New Mystery, the first of 17 books in the Anthologies series.

#Title
1
Cover of The New Mystery
The New Mystery
2
Cover of The Plot Thickens
The Plot Thickens
3
Cover of The Best American Mystery Stories 1998
The Best American Mystery Stories 1998
4
Cover of A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora
A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora
5
Cover of Writers on Writing
Writers on Writing
6
Cover of Writing Los Angeles
Writing Los Angeles
7
The Best American Mystery Stories 2003
8
Cover of The Best American Short Stories 2003
The Best American Short Stories 2003
9
Cover of Reading the Bones
Reading the Bones
10
Cover of Dangerous Women
Dangerous Women
11
Cover of Transgressions
Transgressions
12
Cover of The Darker Mask
The Darker Mask
13
14
Cover of The Civil Rights Reader
The Civil Rights Reader
15
16
Cover of Crime Hits Home
Crime Hits Home
17

Crosstown to Oblivion Series

Complete

4 books (2012โ€“2013)

Start with Disciple, the first of 4 books in the Crosstown to Oblivion series.

#Title
1
2
3
Cover of The Gift of Fire and On the Head of a Pin
The Gift of Fire and On the Head of a Pin
4
Cover of Stepping Stone and Love Machine
Stepping Stone and Love Machine

Easy Rawlins Series

Ongoing

17 books (1990โ€“2025)

Start with Devil in a Blue Dress, the first of 17 books in the Easy Rawlins series.

#Title
1
Cover of Devil in a Blue Dress
Devil in a Blue Dress
2
3
White Butterfly
4
5
Cover of A Little Yellow Dog
A Little Yellow Dog
6
Cover of Gone Fishin'
Gone Fishin'
7
Cover of Bad Boy Brawly Brown
Bad Boy Brawly Brown
8
Cover of Six Easy Pieces
Six Easy Pieces
9
Cover of Little Scarlet
Little Scarlet
10
Cover of Cinnamon Kiss
Cinnamon Kiss
11
Cover of Blonde Faith
Blonde Faith
12
Cover of Little Green
Little Green
13
14
Cover of Charcoal Joe
Charcoal Joe
15
16
Farewell, Amethystine
17

Fearless Jones Series

Complete

3 books (2001โ€“2006)

Start with Fearless Jones and read in order.

#Title
1
Cover of Fearless Jones
Fearless Jones
2
3
Cover of Fear of the Dark
Fear of the Dark

Graphic Novels Series

Complete

1 book (2022โ€“2022)

#Title
1
The Thing: The Next Big Thing

King Oliver Series

Ongoing

3 books (2018โ€“2025)

Start with Down the River unto the Sea and read in order.

#Title
1
Cover of Down the River unto the Sea
Down the River unto the Sea
2
Cover of Every Man a King
Every Man a King
3
Been Wrong So Long It Feels Like Right

Leonid McGill Series

Complete

7 books (2009โ€“2020)

Start with The Long Fall, the first of 7 books in the Leonid McGill series.

#Title
1
Cover of The Long Fall
The Long Fall
2
3
Cover of Known to Evil
Known to Evil
4
Cover of When the Thrill Is Gone
When the Thrill Is Gone
5
Cover of All I Did Was Shoot My Man
All I Did Was Shoot My Man
6
Cover of And Sometimes I Wonder About You
And Sometimes I Wonder About You
7
Cover of Trouble Is What I Do
Trouble Is What I Do

Non-Fiction Series

Complete

7 books (2000โ€“2019)

Start with Workin' on the Chain Gang, the first of 7 books in the Non-Fiction series.

#Title
1
Cover of Workin' on the Chain Gang
Workin' on the Chain Gang
2
3
Cover of Life Out of Context
Life Out of Context
4
Cover of This Year You Write Your Novel
This Year You Write Your Novel
5
Cover of Twelve Steps Toward Political Revelation
Twelve Steps Toward Political Revelation
6
Cover of Folding the Red Into the Black
Folding the Red Into the Black
7
Cover of The Elements of Fiction Writing
The Elements of Fiction Writing

Plays Series

Complete

1 book (2011โ€“2011)

#Title
1
Cover of The Fall of Heaven
The Fall of Heaven

Short Stories/Novellas Series

Complete

5 books (1993โ€“2016)

Start with The Wattโ€™s Lion, the first of 5 books in the Short Stories/Novellas series.

#Title
1
Cover of The Wattโ€™s Lion
The Wattโ€™s Lion
2
Cover of Whispers in the Dark
Whispers in the Dark
3
Cover of Debbie Doesn't Do It Anymore
Debbie Doesn't Do It Anymore
4
5
Archibald Lawless, Anarchist at Large

Short Story Collections Series

Complete

2 books (2001โ€“2020)

Start with Futureland and read in order.

#Title
1
2
Cover of The Awkward Black Man
The Awkward Black Man

Socrates Fortlow Series

Complete

3 books (1997โ€“2008)

Start with Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned and read in order.

#Title
1
Cover of Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned
Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned
2
Cover of Walkin' the Dog
Walkin' the Dog
3
Cover of The Right Mistake
The Right Mistake

Standalone Novels Series

Likely Complete

17 books (1995โ€“2023)

Start with RL's Dream, the first of 17 books in the Standalone Novels series.

#Title
1
2
3
Cover of The Greatest
The Greatest
4
The Man in My Basement
5
6
7
8
Cover of Fortunate Son
Fortunate Son
9
Killing Johnny Fry
10
Cover of The Tempest Tales
The Tempest Tales
11
The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey
12
13
14
Cover of Inside a Silver Box
Inside a Silver Box
15
The Further Tales of Tempest Landry
16
17

Transgressions Series

Complete

4 books (2005โ€“2006)

Start with Transgressions(With: Stephen King,Lawrence Block,Anne Perry,Jeffery Deaver,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain,Donald E Westlake,Bonnie Jeanne Perry,Joyce Carol Oates,John Farris), the first of 4 books in the Transgressions series.

#Title
1
Cover of Transgressions(With: Stephen King,Lawrence Block,Anne Perry,Jeffery Deaver,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain,Donald E Westlake,Bonnie Jeanne Perry,Joyce Carol Oates,John Farris)
Transgressions(With: Stephen King,Lawrence Block,Anne Perry,Jeffery Deaver,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain,Donald E Westlake,Bonnie Jeanne Perry,Joyce Carol Oates,John Farris)
2
Cover of Transgressions, Vol. 2(By: Stephen King,Lawrence Block,Ed McBain,John Farris)
Transgressions, Vol. 2(By: Stephen King,Lawrence Block,Ed McBain,John Farris)
3
Cover of Transgressions, Vol. 3(By: Anne Perry,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain,Donald E Westlake,John Farris)
Transgressions, Vol. 3(By: Anne Perry,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain,Donald E Westlake,John Farris)
4
Cover of Transgressions, Vol. 4(By: Anne Perry,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain)
Transgressions, Vol. 4(By: Anne Perry,Sharyn McCrumb,Ed McBain)

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Walter Mosley written?
Walter Mosley has written 212 books across 15 series. Their published works span from 1990 to 2025.
What is the first book in each Walter Mosley series?
Here are the first books in Walter Mosley's series: Akashic Noir: San Francisco Noir; Anthologies: The New Mystery; Crosstown to Oblivion: Disciple; Easy Rawlins: Devil in a Blue Dress; Fearless Jones: Fearless Jones.
What order should I read Walter Mosley's books?
We recommend reading Walter Mosley's series in publication order. Each series can be read independently.
Is Walter Mosley still writing new books?
Yes, Walter Mosley has 3 ongoing series: Akashic Noir, Easy Rawlins, King Oliver.

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