Faye Kellerman Books in Order: Decker & Lazarus, Standalones & More

Faye Kellerman books in order are fairly simple once you separate the Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus mysteries from her standalones, coauthored books, and short fiction. Most readers are here for Decker and Lazarus, but Kellerman’s bibliography has a few extra pieces worth sorting out too.

The Decker/Lazarus books work best in publication order. The cases usually stand on their own, but Peter and Rina’s relationship, family life, and personal history build across the series.

Jump to:

Decker and Lazarus Series
Faye Kellerman Standalone Books
Faye Kellerman Coauthored Books
Faye Kellerman Short Stories and Collections
Who Is Faye Kellerman?

Decker and Lazarus Series

The Decker and Lazarus series follows LAPD detective Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus through murder investigations, faith, marriage, family, and long-running personal changes. The cases usually wrap up within each book, but the relationship grows from the beginning, so publication order is the best choice.

The Ritual Bath (1986)
Sacred and Profane (1987)
Milk and Honey (1990)
Day of Atonement (1991)
False Prophet (1992)
Grievous Sin (1993)
Sanctuary (1994)
Justice (1995)
Prayers for the Dead (1996)
Serpent’s Tooth (1997)
Jupiter’s Bones (1999)
Stalker (2000)
The Forgotten (2001)
Stone Kiss (2002)
Street Dreams (2003)
The Burnt House (2007)
The Mercedes Coffin (2008) (also published as Cold Case)
Blindman’s Bluff (2009)
Hangman (2010)
Gun Games (2012) (also published as Blood Games)
The Beast (2013) (also published as Predator)
Murder 101 (2014)
The Theory of Death (2015)
Bone Box (2017)
Walking Shadows (2018)
The Lost Boys (2021)
The Hunt (2022)

Faye Kellerman Standalone Books

Faye Kellerman has also written several standalone novels. These are separate from the Decker/Lazarus series, so you can read them whenever you want.

Killing Season was also released in serialized parts before the full novel edition. For most readers, the full novel is the version to use.

Faye Kellerman Coauthored Books

Kellerman has coauthored a few books with members of her family. These don’t belong in the main Decker/Lazarus order, but they’re useful to include if you want her full bibliography.

Double Homicide (2004) (with Jonathan Kellerman)
Capital Crimes (2006) (with Jonathan Kellerman)
Prism (2009) (with Aliza Kellerman)

Faye Kellerman Short Stories and Collections

These are the shorter works and collections I’d keep separate from the novels. The Garden of Eden and Other Criminal Delights is a story collection, while The Voiceless and Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus: A Mysterious Profile are optional short works.

The Garden of Eden and Other Criminal Delights (2006) (short-story collection)
The Voiceless (2016) (short story)
Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus: A Mysterious Profile (2022) (optional profile/short work)

Who Is Faye Kellerman?

Faye Kellerman is a mystery and crime author best known for the Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus series. Her debut novel, The Ritual Bath, introduced the pair and established the mix of murder investigation, Jewish faith, family life, and character-driven mystery that runs through the series.

Kellerman was born in St. Louis and grew up in Southern California. Before publishing fiction, she earned a doctorate in dentistry, though she did not practice as a dentist.

She has also written with her husband, Jonathan Kellerman, and with her daughter Aliza Kellerman. If you’ve read Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware books, the coauthored titles are a natural place to look after the Decker/Lazarus series.

Kellerman’s mysteries often stand out because of the way they blend crime, family, and Jewish life. That gives the Decker/Lazarus books a different feel from many long-running police series.

Looking for similar books in order?

If you want more mystery authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Mystery Books in Order index.