Jake Hines Books In Order

Publication Order of Jake Hines Books

The Jake Hines series is a series of eight crime mystery novels published between 1997 and 2010 by popular American author Elizabeth Gunn. The chief protagonist in the novels is the series title character Jake Hines, a detective in the fictionalized city of Rutherford Minnesota Police Department. Hines has a chequered history, having been a baby that was rescued from a motel dumpster in Red Wing that went on to live out his childhood in several foster homes, before becoming an accomplished police detective. A hard working police officer, Jake also works with his girlfriend, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension forensic scientist Trudy Hanson. With such a bleak start to his life, no one would have bet that he would become the smart detective that he is today. He has a persistence and meticulousness in piecing together seeming worthless clues that enables him to solve crime mysteries and stop criminals in their tracks almost every time. He credits the Minnesota welfare system for keeping him alive by providing him with food when he was living on the streets. He asserts that the teachers and caregivers in the foster homes that he lived in as a child, instilled in him the persistence and attention to detail that defines his work. Now in his late thirties, Jake Hines is a father, husband, and fast rising detective rising within the ranks of the Rutherford Police Department.

After releasing the first novel in the Jake Hines series – Triple Play, that went on to become wildly popular among crime mystery fans, Elizabeth Gunn released seven more titles with the last one published in 2010. The popularity of the novels in her native US and in Europe established Gunn as one of the finest authors of the crime mystery novels to emerge over the past two decades. The first novel in the series Triple Play was originally titled Triple Play: A Jake Hines Mystery achieved so much popularity that it was later made into kindle, nook, and paperback editions. In 2011, Gunn published a short 61-page holiday themed title in the Jake Hines series titled Too Many Santas, that was to be the last book in the series.

Jake Hines is a popular if eccentric police detective in the Rutherford Police Department. As an accomplished police detective, he quickly rises in the ranks to become Chief of Detectives in the city. While he is a father and a husband, he is involved with Trudy Hanson, who is an on and off girlfriend throughout the series. The consummate professional with an appreciation for the good old-fashioned hunch, and lucky shots, he never hesitates to consult and involve his friends, coroner Adrian Pokornoskovic and his girlfriend Trudy Hanson, of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. With his unique take on criminal happenings, he always seems to see the smallest of clues that nobody else does. His mode of operation is to find the mundane aspects of each case and try to find any deviations from the norm. Despite his colleagues adhering to classic big picture detective techniques, Hines unorthodox methods always seem to have a better success rate. His obsession with seemingly ridiculous leads and attention to detail is one of the most important traits, which make him one of the biggest assets for the Rutherford Police Department.

Triple Play

The first book in the Jake Hines series of mystery novels debuts with a murder in Rutherford Minnesota. A man has been gelded, strangled, and dressed in a pair of old cleats and softball uniform, and the body taken to Pioneer Park. The killers have taken a Polaroid photo of the scene that they have pinned on his chest showing a baseball bat on his crotch, while he sits astride the home plate. The whole crime setup is a mystery to Jake Hines given that the dead man spent several hours standing ramrod straight on his feet hours after his death. Nonetheless, the scene is so perfectly set up, that when he gets a call about a second victim in a similar crime scene at Willow Creek Park, he is not surprised. The second victim has a similar Polaroid photograph of his scene and the very same baseball uniform, though the body is mutilated differently. As they wait for the third call, which they are certain is coming, Jake Hines and his fellow detectives set out to work trying to solve the mystery. Meanwhile, they interview the families of the dead men, and follow dozens of leads that come up with nothing. Meanwhile, Hines forensic friends Jimmy Hang and Trudy Hanson do their excellent though unspectacular crime scene work watched in admiration by the lustful Jake. This is a spectacular introduction to Elizabeth Gunn’s crime mysteries. With an unassuming cast, Jake works expertly in piecing together his clues to get to the motive of the murder, which keeps the reader turning the page in anticipation.

Par Four

The second title in the Jake Hines series sees Jake earning his promotion to Chief of Detectives. When there is a break in at Rowdy’s Bar, everything looks routine though it is anything but. Two burglars that barge in while she is counting the day’s take owner babe Krueger, by surprise. It turns out that the robbery may be linked to the latest series of robberies that have been visited on the city. The plot thickens when Babe is murdered hours after Jake comes from interviewing her. The two minors that had confessed to the crime seem to have no recollection of too many important details of the crime for Jake’s liking. One of the two has links with a thug that had just kidnapped the police dispatcher’s lovable but bratty daughter, Jessica Schultz. Jake’s team believes that all of this has to do with the arrival of Eugene Soames a crack dealer. Soames has been arrested after a high-speed chase in town that culminated with him crashing into the Chief of Detectives brand new pickup. With such an unprecedented crime wave taking over the city, the news that Trudy Hanson his on and off love flame is leaving town for good does not seem to register with Jake, as he is too busy putting out new fires seemingly every day. Miraculously, Jake Hines employs his sharp mind and with the help of his friends to solve his biggest mystery yet in the Jake Hines series.