How to read David Baldacci books in order

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With such a wide-ranging back catalogue, it can be hard to know where to begin. Do you start with fan favourites like The Camel Club or Memory Man, or pick up one of his compelling standalone thrillers?

We’re here to break down the reading order of all David Baldacci’s series and standalone books.

How to read the Aloysius Archer series in order

After serving a prison sentence for a crime he didn’t commit, Aloysius Archer wants to start a new, peaceful life. But when the WWII veteran takes a job as a debt collector for a local business tycoon, he quickly realises he’s in for more than he bargained for.

Don’t worry, we haven’t seen the last of this quick-tongued private investigator. A fourth Aloysius Archer novel is planned for release in 2027, promising another trip back to the late 1950s.

Here’s a list of the Aloysius Archer books in order:

How to read the Amos Decker series in order

A devastating sporting accident left Amos Decker with some unusual abilities, including synaesthesia and a photographic memory.

In Memory Man, it has been eighteen months since the former detective came home to find his wife and only daughter murdered. His overwhelming grief cost him his job, his home and his sense of self.

But when his former police partner, Mary Lancaster, reveals that someone has confessed to the crime, Decker is drawn back into the case. Meanwhile, tragedy strikes again when thirteen teenagers are gunned down at a local school. The two events appear to be linked, and Decker has no choice but to get involved.

Throughout the series, Decker relies on his unique skillset to solve cases that have left even the FBI baffled. There’s no confirmation of an eighth book to come, but also nothing to suggest this is the last we’ve seen of Amos Decker.

Here’s a list of the Amos Decker books in order:

How to read the Atlee Pine series in order

Don’t worry, David Baldacci has proven he can write complex female lead characters as well. In the Atlee Pine series, we follow an FBI agent with special skills and a dark past, assigned to the remote wilds of the United States.

Throughout the books, Atlee is determined to uncover what happened to her twin sister when she disappeared as a child.

In Long Road to Mercy, she’s called to investigate a case in the Grand Canyon. Atlee knows killers – and perhaps understands them better than any FBI profiler – but it soon becomes clear that this case will push her skills to their limits.

The series is complete, so you’ll discover the truth about Mercy’s disappearance by the final book. However, some readers speculate that El, a character introduced in Mercy, could be the focus of a future series, though this hasn’t been confirmed.

Here’s a list of the Atlee Pine books in order:

Long Road to Mercy (2018)
A Minute to Midnight (2019)
Daylight (2020, John Puller crossover)
Mercy (2021)

How to read the Camel Club series in order

Meet the Camel Club, four unlikely partners on a mission to uncover the truth behind a crime in their hometown of Washington DC. Unearthing corruption often means relying on friends and confronting the demons of their past. These conspiracy theorist misfits frequently find themselves facing far more than they expected.

In The Camel Club, the group accidentally witnesses the murder of an intelligence analyst. The authorities call it a suicide, but the Camel Club soon uncovers a conspiracy that reaches deep into Washington’s most secretive corridors of power. They team up with Secret Service Agent Alex Ford, who realises his worst nightmare is about to come true.

Here’s a list of the Camel Club books in order:

How to read the Travis Devine series in order

Baldacci’s newest series follows Travis Devine, an ex-army man now navigating the cut-throat world of high finance. He’s traded the battlefield for boardrooms filled with greed, jealousy and ambition… or so he thinks.

During his daily 6:20am commute, he passes a house that triggers alarm bells. When a close friend and colleague turns up dead, Devine is pulled into a web of secrets, and as the bodies begin to pile up, he’s forced to question who he can trust and who he may have to fight.

There are currently three books in the Travis Devine series, and publishers have hinted that a fourth is on the way for this compelling antihero.

Here’s a list of the Travis Devine books in order:

How to read the John Puller series in order

When impossible crimes threaten the nation, the US calls on John Puller, a combat veteran and special agent. Often working alongside intelligence operative Veronica Knox, Puller is tasked with deadly investigations that tend to hit a little too close to home.

In Zero Day, Puller is sent to a remote area in West Virginia to investigate the brutal murders of a family. He teams up with local homicide detective Samantha Cole, and together they quickly realise these deaths are just the tip of the iceberg, uncovering a complex web of deceit and danger.

The series is complete with four books, but John Puller returns once more in Daylight to assist his old friend Atlee Pine.

Here’s a list of the John Puller books in order:

Zero Day (2011)
The Forgotten (2012)
The Escape (2014)
No Man's Land (2016)
Daylight (2020, Atlee Pine crossover)

How to read the Sean King & Michelle Maxwell series in order

It’s time for Baldacci’s dynamic duo: Sean King and Michelle Maxwell. These two former Secret Service agents join forces as private investigators. Together, they face national threats, dark secrets and dangerous killers, saving the world, and each other, in this completed six-book series.

It all begins in Split Second, when Maxwell’s promising career is cut short after presidential candidate John Bruno is abducted from a funeral home while under her protection.

The situation feels strangely familiar, as eight years earlier, Secret Agent Sean King was distracted for a split second, and it cost presidential candidate Clyde Ritter his life. Maxwell decides to reopen the case and teams up with the attractive ex-agent King.

Here’s a list of the Sean King & Michelle Maxwell books in order:

How to read the A Shaw Books series in order

Also known as the Shaw and Katie James series, this two-book series follows a secret government-endorsed band of highly trained and highly motivated agents who must hunt down some of the world’s most notorious criminals.

In The Whole Truth, we first meet intelligence agent Shaw, academic Anna Fischer and ambitious journalist Katie James when they must stop Nicolas Creel, a super-rich arms dealer, from starting a new cold war.

Here’s a list of the A. Shaw books in order:

The Whole Truth (2008)
Deliver Us From Evil (2010)

How to read the Will Robie series in order

Meet Will Robie, the US government’s most professional, lethal and disciplined assassin. Charged with protecting national security from global threats, it’s up to him to infiltrate some of the world’s most hostile countries.

But in The Innocent, this expert assassin finds himself on the run after an assignment to eliminate a government employee goes wrong. Now a wanted man, he’s on the run with a young teenager whose parents were mysteriously murdered at home. Will the killer find her? Will Robie uncover why that employee was a threat to the US? And can the two survive by helping each other?

The five books in the series cover everything we’ll get from Will Robie, the stone-cold hitman who never fails to get the job done.

Here’s a list of the Will Robie books in order:

How to read David Baldacci's standalone books in order

There’s no set order for David Baldacci’s standalone books, so we recommend reading them in order of publication. With plenty to choose from, they’re a great way to stay entertained while waiting for the next instalment of your favourite Baldacci series.

For all the latest RT Book Club news, interviews, Q&As with the authors, reviews of previous books and more, visit The Radio Times Book Club sponsored by Dr. Oetker Ristorante.

Fleurine Tideman