FictionDB

Women's Murder Club — Multiple Authors

Women's Murder Club Series in Order: 29 books

  • 1st to Die

    James Patterson
    Book - 1

    You're about to begin James Patterson's most exciting thriller yet. In San Francisco newlyweds are being stalked--and slaughtered. Enter four unforgettable women, all friends...Lindsay, a homicide inspector in the city's police department...Claire, a...

  • 2nd Chance

    James Patterson; Andrew Gross
    Book - 2

    The Women's Murder Club is back! A brilliantly diabolical killer is murdering people from every walk of life. The deaths seem unrelated but police homicide inspector Lindsay Boxer senses a connection and, together with medical examiner Claire, assist...

  • 3rd Degree

    James Patterson; Andrew Gross
    Book - 3

    Someone in the Women's Murder Club is about to die... The Women's Murder Club returns in a shockingly suspenseful thriller. Plunging into a burning townhouse, Detective Lindsay Boxer discovers three dead bodies...and a mysterious message at the sc...

  • 4th of July

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 4

    The Bestselling New Detective Series of the Decade Just Got Hotter, Deadlier, and More Suspenseful. In a deadly late-night showdown, San Francisco police lieutenant Lindsay Boxer fires her weapon...and sets off a dramatic chain of events that leaves ...

  • The 5th Horseman

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 5

    A young mother is recuperating in a San Francisco hospital when she is suddenly gasping for breath. The call button fails to bring help in time. The hospital's doctors, some of the best in the nation, are completely mystified by her death. How did th...

  • The 6th Target

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 6

    The Women's Murder Club faces its most terrifying -- and personal -- case ever. A burst of gunfire leaves sever people dead -- and a member of the Women's Murde Club fighting for her life. Detective Lindsay Boxer pursue_ one lead after another to ca...

  • 7th Heaven

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 7

    A VERY PUBLIC DISAPPEARANCE Michael Campion, the teenage son of California's ex-governor, has mysteriously vanished. Known as the "Boy with a Broken Heart" because of his incurable heart defect, Michael grew up in the eye of an adoring public. The p...

  • The 8th Confession

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 8

    Someone is killing the richest people in the city -- and the Women's Murder Club will pay a high price for hunting him. At the party of the year, San Francisco's most glamorous couple is targeted by a killer -- and it's the perfect murder. While ...

  • The 9th Judgment

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 9

    The most personal A young mother and her infant child are ruthlessly gunned down while returning to their car in the garage of a shopping mall. There are no witnesses, and Detective Lindsay Boxer is left with only one shred of evidence: a cryptic ...



  • 10th Anniversary

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 10

    Detective Lindsay Boxer finally gets married -- but two violent crimes may forever break up the Women's Murder Club. Lindsay's wedding celebration crashes to an end when she is called to investigate a vicious attack on a teenage girl and the abductio...

  • 11th Hour

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 11

    Your best friend Lindsay Boxer is pregnant at last! But her work doesn't slow for a second. When millionaire Chaz Smith is mercilessly gunned down, she discovers that the murder weapon is linked to the deaths of four of San Francisco's most untouc...

  • 12th of Never

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 12

    It's finally time! Detective Lindsay Boxer is in labor--while two killers are on the loose. Lindsay Boxer's beautiful baby is born! But after only a week at home with her new daughter, Lindsay is forced to return to work to face two of the biggest...

  • Unlucky 13

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 13

    The Women's Murder Club is stalked by a killer with nothing to lose. San Francisco Detective Lindsay Boxer is loving her life as a new mother. With an attentive husband, a job she loves, plus best friends who can talk about anything from sex to mu...

  • 14th Deadly Sin

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 14

    With San Francisco under siege and everyone a suspect, the Women's Murder Club must risk their lives to save the city-and each other. With a beautiful baby daughter and a devoted husband, Detective Lindsay Boxer can safely say that her life has n...

  • 15th Affair

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 15

    Detective Lindsay Boxer chases an elusive, possibly very dangerous suspect...her husband, Joe. Lindsay Boxer has a beautiful baby daughter and a husband she loves unconditionally. She'd always been too focused on her career as a San Francisco poli...

  • The Trial

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 15.5

    "I'm not on trial. San Francisco is." An accused murderer called Kingfisher is about to go on trial for his life. Or is he? By unleashing unexpected violence on the lawyers, jurors, and police involved in the case, he has paralyzed the city. Detec...

  • 16th Seduction

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 16

    Detective Lindsay Boxer investigates the most explosive case of her career. Lindsay Boxer is learning to love again. After the picture-perfect world she shared with her husband, Joe, and their beautiful young daughter shattered under the weight of...

  • The Medical Examiner

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 16.5

    Two bodies arrived at the morgue--one was still breathing. A woman checks into a hotel room and entertains a man who is not her husband. A shooter blows away the lover and wounds the millionairess, leaving her for dead. Is it the perfect case for...

  • The 17th Suspect

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 17

    A series of shootings exposes San Francisco to a methodical yet unpredictable killer, and a reluctant woman decides to put her trust in Sergeant Lindsay Boxer. The confidential informant's tip leads Lindsay to disturbing conclusions, including that s...



  • The 18th Abduction

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 18

    Detective Lindsay Boxer's investigation into the disappearance of three women teachers quickly escalates from missing persons to murder in the newest Women's Murder Club thriller. For a trio of colleagues, an innocent night out after class...

  • The 19th Christmas

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 19

    If the Women's Murder Club can't be together this Christmas, a killer is to blame. As the holidays approach, Detective Lindsay Boxer and her friends in the Women's Murder Club have much to celebrate. Crime is down. The medical examiner...

  • The 20th Victim

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 20

    Sergeant Lindsay Boxer tackles an ambitious case that spans San Francisco, L.A., and Chicago in this pulse-pounding thriller. Three victims, three bullets, three cities. The shooters' aim is as fearsomely precise as their target selection. Whe...

  • 21st Birthday

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 21

    Detective Lindsay Boxer vows to protect a young woman from a serial killer long enough to see her twenty-first birthday. When young wife and mother Tara Burke goes missing with her baby girl, all eyes are on her husband, Lucas. He paints her not a...

  • 22 Seconds

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 22

    22 seconds... until Lindsay Boxer loses her badge -- or her life. SFPD Sergeant Lindsay Boxer has guns on her mind. There's buzz of a last-ditch shipment of drugs and weapons crossing the Mexican border ahead of new restrictive gun laws. Befor...

  • The 23rd Midnight

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 23

    From the world's #1 bestselling author, an attention-seeking copycat from the Women's Murder Club's past is recreating murders by a famous killer -- with devastating new twists. Detective Lindsay Boxer put serial killer Evan Burke in jail.  ...

  • 23 1/2 Lies

    James Patterson
    Book - 23.5

    Enjoy three heart-racing thrillers from the New York Times bestselling master of suspense.23 1/2 LIES: Lindsay Boxer's estranged father is gunned down execution-style, and her investigation uncovers life-altering truths. (with Maxine Paetro)FALL...

  • The 24th Hour

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 24

    As enemies lurk in the shadows, "Tough-but-tender cop Lindsay Boxer" (People) leads the Women's Murder Club in the high-profile murder investigation of a billionaire San Francisco couple -- will Cindy, Claire, Yuki, and Lindsay still be standing when...

  • 25 Alive

    James Patterson; Maxine Paetro
    Book - 25

    "Those who haven't read any of the novels in the Women's Murder Club series are cheating themselves" (BookReporter). Sergeant Lindsay Boxer, medical examiner Claire Washburn, Assistant District Attorney Yuki Castellano, and crime reporter Cindy Thoma...

  • 26 Beauties

    James Patterson
    Book - 26

    Beautiful young women are disappearing by the dozens. Have they run away? Have they been kidnapped? Or worst of all -- murdered? San Franscico detective inspector Lindsay Boxer throws a party when her best friend, Claire Washburn, is named medical ex...



Series Premise

The Women's Murder Club series follows four friends who form an unofficial crime-solving group. Each book features a new high-stakes murder investigation, with the four women contributing their specialized skills to track down killers while dealing with personal challenges and the demands of their professions.

Women's Murder Club Series Reading Order

🔄 Best Read in Order · Start with Book 1: 1st to Die

Standalone stories, but characters and relationships develop across the series.

Publication order gives the best experience for the Women's Murder Club series. Each book has a complete central mystery with its own resolution, while character relationships and ongoing personal developments carry across the volumes. Readers who jump ahead miss the evolution of the four friends’ bond, key life events, and references to prior cases that add emotional depth to later stories.

Explanation of reading order types



Women's Murder Club Series Characters

The core group consists of Lindsay Boxer (homicide inspector), Claire Washburn (chief medical examiner), Yuki Castellano (assistant district attorney), and Cindy Thomas (crime reporter). The series focuses on their friendship and professional collaboration as they tackle complex crimes.

Setting of the Women's Murder Club Series

The stories are primarily set in San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area. Investigations often involve the city’s police department, medical examiner’s office, courts, and newsrooms, with occasional scenes in nearby locations.

Tone & Themes of the Women's Murder Club Series

The tone is fast-paced and suspenseful with strong female friendships. Core themes include teamwork across professions, justice, the challenges faced by women in high-pressure careers, and balancing personal life with dangerous work.

Is the Women's Murder Club Series Worth Reading?

This series appeals to readers who enjoy character-driven crime thrillers with strong female protagonists, procedural detail, and a focus on friendship and teamwork in law enforcement.

Content Warnings and Heat Level

This is a crime thriller series with moderate to high violence, descriptions of murder scenes, and occasional strong language. Sexual content is generally mild.

The Women's Murder Club series follows four San Francisco women who unite to solve murders. With its blend of self-contained investigations and continuing personal arcs, it rewards readers who follow the books in sequence. The multi-author format brings varied perspectives while maintaining the core group’s dynamic.



Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

There are 29 books in the Women's Murder Club series. The series includes 26 novels and 3 short stories/novellas.

The Women's Murder Club series does not have a new book coming out soon. The latest book, 26 Beauties (Book 26), was published in April 2026.

The first book in the Women's Murder Club series, 1st to Die, was published in March 2001.

The Women's Murder Club series primarily falls into the Law Enforcement genre.