Cotton Malone Books In Order

Publication Order of Cotton Malone Books

Publication Order of Cassiopeia Vitt Adventure Books

Cotton Malone is a detective mystery series written by author Steve Berry. The series tells the adventures of Cotton Malone, a retired US Justice Department operative, who has traded the dangerous life of special ops for a quiet life as a rare books dealer. Unfortunately for him, remnants of his old life keeps pulling him back into the world of adventure and mystery. He is sometimes joined by Cassiopia Vitt, a savvy and resourceful woman of many talents. The series spans nine novels, the last of which was published in May of 2014. The tenth instalment of the series is due for release in March of 2015. The first seven books can be purchased as a special edition bundle.

Author Steve Berry has also published four short stories in the Cotton Malone universe, featuring side characters from the novels. These stories act as prequels to several of the books, but are not necessary to understanding the world.

Throughout his adventures, Cotton Malone travels across the world on exotic and dangerous quests and goes up against dangerous assassins, zealous terrorists, and cunning con artists. He solves the world’s oldest and most coveted mysteries, some are huge enough to shake the foundations of the world’s beliefs to their core.

Unlike many ancient mystery stories, the Cotton Malone series weaves a very believable story where the answers aren’t always easily available. The one person who holds the key to the great mystery may have passed away years ago, or an ancient clue that will point Malone in the right direction may have been destroyed. The Cotton Malone series isn’t simply an overblown scavenger hunt; Malone and his companions must have the knowledge and creativity to work around the incomplete clues and uncover the secrets of ancient civilizations.

The Templar Legacy is the first novel in the series. The recently-retired Cotton Malone is beginning to settle down into a comfortable routine as a rare books dealer in Copenhagen. One day, while visiting with Stephanie Nelle, his former supervisor, someone who appears to be a petty thief snatches Nelle’s purse and dashes off. The pair catch up to the thief and corner him, when he unexpectedly commits suicide. They eventually discover that the thief was after a notebook belonging to Nelle’s estranged late husband, a writer of speculative works regarding real-life mysteries in Europe during the 14th century.

The two are then launched into a centuries-old race to find a coveted treasure trove that was once thought lost to the ages. They are not alone, however, because competing with Malone and Nelle for the treasure is Raymond de Roquefort, a mysterious figure with seemingly unlimited resources and an army of assassins at his disposal. As Malone and Nelle get closer to solving the mystery and finding the treasure, the list of people they can trust becomes shorter and shorter until the story culminates in a conclusion that shatters the world’s belief system.

The second book in the Cotton Malone series is The Alexandria Link. After the events of the first book, Malone has once again settled into the life of antiquated book dealing, when one day he receives a mysterious e-mail threatening Malone’s son and giving him 72 hours to find what the sender wants. Malone confirms with his ex-wife that the danger is real – their teenage son has been kidnapped. Soon after, Malone’s prized Copenhagen book store is set fire to and burned to the ground.

Soon after, Malone discovers that those behind the fire and the kidnapping are none other than a cartel of wealthy – and famous – international business barons. Malone knows they will stop at nothing until he gives them what they are after: the Library of Alexandria. The Library was thought to be lost to the world fifteen hundred years ago, and its secrets with it. Ever since, the Library has been searched for by scholars, treasure hunters, and adventurers who believe that it held the key to unending power. Malone traverses the world from England to Portugual to Egypt in search of the Library, but once again he is not alone. Pursued by a deadly mercenary, Malone must find the Library before the merc finds him – and before time runs out for his son.

In the third book, The Venetian Betrayal, Malone quests discovers the final resting place of Alexander the Great. After he survives a harrowing fire that burned a Danish museum to the ground, Malone first meets adventurer and repeat companion, Cassiopeia Vitt, who warns him that the fire was not an accident. Malone and Vitt work together to outwit a would-be conqueror who’s ambitions formed on the dying ideals of the U.S.S.R. and find a mystifying healing serum linked to Alexander the Great.

The remaining books in the series take Cotton Malone everywhere across the globe. His travels take him to Vietnam, France, Denmark, China, and even Antarctica to uncover the secrets of history’s greatest leaders. It seems that Napoleon, Charlemagne, and Emperor Zheng all hid mysteries that were not discovered before their deaths.

Steve Berry is an American author who lives in St. Augustine, Florida. He held a career as a trial lawyer for 30 years, 14 of which he held elective office. He began writing during this career, and credits the nuns from his Catholic school for instilling the discipline and determination to continue writing and submitting his novels for publication, even through several dozen rejection letters. He was first published in 2003, thirteen years after he began writing in 1990.

He has since been featured on Publishers Weekly, and BookSense, The New York Times, and USA Today best seller lists. His novels have been printed in over 18 million copies in 40 different languages and 51 different countries.

His novels are inspired by his love of history, and many facts included in his novels are true events from world history. Along with his wife, Elizabeth, they have created the History Matters Foundation in 2009, which works to raise money via lectures, galas, and writers’ workshops to help preserve historic relics and treasures.

2 Responses to “Cotton Malone”

1. David Gentille: 3 years ago

   It looks like Steve Berry created another series with Cassiopeia Vitt as the lead. This series did not come up on your site. Appears to be at least four books with her as the lead.

   Reply
   • Graeme: 3 years ago

     Hi Dave – we have that listed on the Steve Berry page. https://www.bookseriesinorder.com/steve-berry/

     However I will list it on here as well.

     Reply