Nancy Pickard Books In Order
Book links take you to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn money from qualifying purchases.Publication Order of Jenny Cain Books
Generous Death | (1984) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Say No to Murder | (1985) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
No Body | (1986) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Marriage Is Murder | (1987) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Dead Crazy | (1988) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Bum Steer | (1990) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
I.O.U. | (1992) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
But I Wouldn't Want to Die There | (1993) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Confession | (1994) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Twilight | (1996) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Marie Lightfoot Books
The Whole Truth | (2000) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Ring of Truth | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Truth Hurts | (2002) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
The Virgin of Small Plains | (2006) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Scent of Rain and Lightning | (2010) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas
Afraid All the Time | (1989) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Dust Devil | (1991) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Out of Africa | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
There is No Crime on Easter Island | (2005) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
A Nice Old Guy | (2008) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Short Story Collections
Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books
Seven Steps on the Writer's Path | (2003) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Bigger Better Braver | (2020) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Eugenia Potter Books
The Cooking School Murders | (1982) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Baked Bean Supper Murders | (1983) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Nantucket Diet Murders | (1985) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The 27-Ingredient Chili Con Carne Murders | (1992) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Blue Corn Murders | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Secret Ingredient Murders | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Caroline Canfield Mysteries Books
Tiger's Palette | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Unholy Orders | (2000) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Sketches with Wolves | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Publication Order of Midnight Louie Books
Catnap / Cat in an Alphabet Soup | (1992) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Pussyfoot / Cat in an Aqua Storm | (1993) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat On A Blue Monday | (1994) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Crimson Haze | (1995) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Diamond Dazzle | (1996) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat with an Emerald Eye | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Flamingo Fedora | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Golden Garland | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat on a Hyacinth Hunt | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Midnight Louie's Pet Detectives | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in an Indigo Mood | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Jeweled Jumpsuit | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Kiwi Con | (2000) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Leopard Spot | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Midnight Choir | (2002) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Neon Nightmare | (2003) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Midnight Louie In Something Fishy | (2003) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in an Orange Twist | (2004) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Hot Pink Pursuit | (2005) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Quicksilver Caper | (2006) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Red Hot Rage | (2007) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Sapphire Slipper | (2008) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Topaz Tango | (2009) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in an Ultramarine Scheme | (2010) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Vegas Gold Vendetta | (2011) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Fruit of the Tomb | (2012) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a White Tie and Tails | (2012) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in an Alien X-Ray | (2013) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Yellow Spotlight | (2014) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in a Zebra Zoot Suit | (2015) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Cat in an Alphabet Endgame | (2016) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
If you are reading the Midnight Louie series in chronological order, you will want to read the Cat and a Playing Card series prior to the Midnight Louie series. However, this is not required. |
Publication Order of Deadly Allies Books
Publication Order of Anthologies
Sisters in Crime 2 | (1990) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Deadly Allies | (1992) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Great Mystery Series: Top Female Sleuths | (1993) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Dark Crimes 2 | (1993) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Tales of Obsession | (1994) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Malice Domestic 3 | (1994) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Murder, They Wrote | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Vengeance is Hers | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Plot Thickens | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Funny Bones: 15 New Tales of Murder and Mayhem | (1997) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Night Awakens | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Eleventh Annual Collection | (1998) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Mom, Apple Pie and Murder | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Death Cruise: Crime Stories on the Open Seas | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The First Lady Murders | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Diagnosis Dead | (1999) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Unholy Orders | (2000) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories 2 | (2000) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Malice Domestic 10 | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Naked Came the Phoenix | (2001) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories 3 | (2002) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Thou Shalt Not Kill | (2005) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
By Hook or By Crook and 30 More of the Best Crime and Mystery Stories of the Year | (2010) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Mysterious Writers: The Many Facets of Mystery Writing | (2010) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Manhattan Mayhem | (2015) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Silent Night, Deadly Night | (2016) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Malice Domestic 13 | (2018) | Hardcover Paperback Kindle |
Nancy Pickard was born in 1945. The established US crime novelist hails from Missouri. She was a late bloomer, beginning her writing career at the age of 35. Her versatile opus includes crime novels and short stories, which brought her various awards throughout her career. She started by writing short stories and continued in 1984 with her first novel Generous Death, which was the first in the Jenny Cain series of crime novels. This is her magnum opus, containing ten books, which got the attention of the readers she deserved. The second installment in the mentioned series got Nancy an Anthony Award, which foreshadowed the success of the series.
She got her degree in journalism from the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. After starting with short stories in the 80s, she experienced a loss of sorts. Another author, Virginia Rich, whose works Nancy loved, passed away in the mid-eighties. Rich’s husband wanted his late wife’s work to continue, so he gathered up all of the material that was left on the adventures of Mrs. Potter, the main character of the series. Eventually, Nancy Pickard was chosen to continue writing the series she used to only read not long ago. In the beginning of new millennium, she released another series, called Marie Light foot series. Nothing topped the success of the Jenny Cain series, in which five of the ten novels got her an award. She was also the first person to win in four different categories in the world of writing: she has won five Macavity Awards, four Agatha Awards, an Anthony Award, and a Shamus Award.
Characters by Nancy Pickard
Nancy’s best known character is definitely Jenny Cain, the main protagonist in the Jenny Cain series. This character holds much power, since she is a director of a large Foundation. She is quite intelligent, attentive and she has a sense of humor around her. Although she is in a position, where she could extort and harass people under her, she has high morals, which makes her a very peculiar director with unusual traits. Most of these novels focus on relations between characters and it is obvious that Jenny knows how to talk to people and maintain relationships.
And then there’s Marie Light foot, another crime fighter. This series is beloved by readers and it adds a new spin to the crime novels. Marie is a crime novelist, which makes her a perfect character for a crime novel. She is passionate about her work and unfortunately fearless. There many opportunities to showcase the elements of crime writing and a way for Ms. Pickard to project her life into fiction so far.
Books by Nancy Pickard
Generous Death
The first novel in the series (1984) introduces us to Jenny Cain, a strong female character, who finds herself in the midst of a series of murders. Jenny runs a Foundation in Port Frederick, which often receives godly amounts of donations. This represents a motive in this book and Jenny could just as well be the next victim. Each time a murder occurs, there is a note left, containing a rhyme. Setting changes a few times throughout the book, reaching climax in the burning museum, which is definitely a high point of the book. There are marks of Agatha Christie, which you can sense, but it stands on its own as a unique work, never looking for influence too much. GeofBushfield is another character in the novel, who builds a romantic relationship with Jenny. He’s her coworker and we here we see the beginning of their relationship, which goes to another level in the sequel.
Marriage is Murder
This is her fourth novel in the Jenny Cain series, focusing on domestic violence as a cruel way of killing in the novel. It was published in 1987. Jenny seems to be at an ideal point of her life, having GeofBushfield as her partner, everything’s perfect. They start planning for the wedding and then, of course, a series of murders begins, with an interesting MO. The victim type in this one is a husband in a family with more children, history of drug abuse and domestic violence. Murder weapons are hard to come by and none of the wives- being the main suspect- are saying anything. Jenny suspects one of them or someone from behind, who has a different motive. The author never reveals too much- the suspense is building from start to finish.
The Virgin of Small Plains
This novel was released in 2007, diving once again in the world of crime. Rex Shellenberger is a teenager, who stumbles upon a naked, dead body one day while looking for calves. It’s a body of a girl, which makes him sad, because she looks beautiful. At this point, we can already connect this first case with the title of the book. The book spans through two decades, focusing on the local reaction to this incident. There are miracles in this book, which start to occur after the incident. The grave of the victim is regularly visited due to the sad events and there is a rumor going on, that you can benefit from visiting the grave. Another person goes missing right after the revelation of the first death and he returns twenty years later, bringing back ghosts of the past. There are three main suspects in this novel: Dr. Quentin Reynolds, former sheriff Nathan Shellenberger, and Judge, Tom New quist. All of these characters are powerful, in high positions to meddle with the locals. The story follows three families, all of which are connected to each other so far.
Nancy Pickard also served on the board of directors of the Mystery Writers of America. She is frequently a panelist at the Great Manhattan Mystery Conclave, a convention for mystery writers and fans in Manhattan, Kansas. She is one of the most influential writers in the crime story world, having won over 20 awards throughout her career. Readers fall for her characters, the intriguing plot, the building tension and smart writing, always one step ahead of the reader.
Book Series In Order » Authors »