Stanley Bentworth Books In Order

Publication Order of Stanley Bentworth Books

Stanley Bentworth by Al Stevens
Author Al Stevens writes the “Stanley Bentworth” series of mystery and suspense novels. The series began publication when “On the Street Where You Die” was released in the year 2011.

Stanley Bentworth is a former cop, and runs a private investigation business, finding those that do no wish to be found. It is from his private investigation business that all of these mysteries spring from. He has been married twice, having been divorced once.

“On the Street Where You Die” is the first novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2011. Stanley Bentworth is not very tough. He runs a one-man private investigation business by himself. A wealthy financier wants him to find an anonymous blackmailer found in a situation of life and death, so Stanley seizes the opportunity to earn himself a fee.

Should he fail, the blackmailer is going to out his client to the mob, giving his client a free trip to the dump. It is a ride where Stanley would be an unwilling passenger. Stanley knows he is unable to fail, which is not a small feat, since Stanley is not very tough.

Stanley is a refreshing character, as he is just your average guy, with a self-effacing sense of humor and apathetic about most things. He is not like most who is super smart, gets with the ladies, and is totally macho. This book is well written, and the pace moves quickly and is all around enjoyable to read.

“A Dead Ringer” is the second novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2012. Someone has tried to kill Stanley Bentworth, and this solf-boiled detective is unaware who wants to kill him or why. A stranger that looks like Stanley is killed in the daytime, and Stanley wonders just who the intended victim was supposed to be.

His investigation moves through odd places: a legendary cat burglar, online pornography, some buried treasure, and a legacy that he never realized was supposed to be his.

Al Stevens does a great job with a flair for making his mysteries entertaining and interesting. Some readers find themselves enthralled in the book and you end up wanting more from this series.

“Clueless: The Pantyhose Slasher” is the third novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2012. Some dead women are beginning to pile up in a tiny suburban city, their bodies violated, their throats slit. Stanley Bentworth, along with his rookie staff have gotten caught up in a huge investigation.

The Slasher steps his schedule up, and the bosses start pressuring the team to catch the killer and be able to rescue the next victim. Should they fail, the formerly peaceful town’s newly panicked citizens are going to lock themselves in during the night and just wait for the next senseless kill. They won’t know who will be next, or where, and when.

“The Rat Squad” is the fourth novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2014. Homicide detective Stanley Bentworth fires his gun for the first time in the line of duty and kills a youth from the projects. This one tragic event pulls on his conscience, and he deals with the “rat squad” (Internal Affairs), outraged citizens, and a city psychiatrist.

Working administrative duty, pending the results of the investigation, he infiltrates the Narcotics department to try and find corrupt cops. While in Narcotics, the lieutenant makes him go undercover on the street to draw out some enigmatic gangbanger kingpin.

Stanley and Jane (his old homicide partner) fight with dirty cops, outraged citizens, the rat squad, and some gangbangers.

He buries himself under all of his work, and finds that his issues with alcohol have begun to majorly impede both his professional and personal lives. Stanley must make a choice or lose it all.

“White Collar Murders” is the fifth novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2014. Stanley is given a month off by his Captain to work on his drinking problems, and he bails out on an invitation from an old buddy to consult as the head of security for a high-tech startup.

With the break from the pressures that come with small-town homicide investigations, Stanley jumps into the mundane administration of a security system and supervising a staff of some inexperienced rent-a-cops.

A company executive is found with a bullet in his brain, and Stanley is drawn right into a murder case. It is filled with overtones of domestic terrorism and corporate espionage, all while he butts heads with counterparts in the local police. Instead of getting his much-needed rest, he finds he is up to his eyes in heartless, cold, and even sinister world of corporate finance. It gives new meaning to hostile takeover for Stanley.

This is a unique character, in Stanley, and some of the characters he meets are entirely interesting. This one is just as good as the other books in the series.

“Fugitive Warrant” is the sixth novel in the “Stanley Bentworth” series, which was released in the year 2014. The Captain once more gives Stanley the boot, and he winds up back in his private investigation office, trying to find new clients and new cases to work on. The first case he gets sends him and Sanford (Stanley’s associate) as bounty hunters going after a bail-jumper, which winds up being a misadventure. It ends with a hospital stay for Stanley and there is a warrant out for his arrest on federal charges of kidnapping.

He is living on the lam, under an assumed name, and is working as a bagman for what ends up being a terrorist support organization. It is an unlikely association that gets him locked up in a remote safe house, which he refers to as “Gitmo North”. He fights Homeland Security, his ex-wife’s jealous husband, some corrupt narcotics detectives, and an assassin for the mob. All are out to get lethal payback for the questionable things he did in his checkered past.

So many foes to confront and a ton of hurdles to clear, and Stanley fights to keep it all in balance. All while he juggles some disabling migraines and disruptive romance with a gorgeous attorney and his former wife.