Michael Kelly Books In Order

Publication Order of Michael Kelly Books

The “Michael Kelly” series by author Michael Harvey is a crime, thriller, and mystery series that stars Michael Kelly. Michael Kelly is a former cop that has become a private investigator in the city of Chicago, Illinois. He is Irish, a bit of a cynic, and he is a tough talker.

The series began with the release of “The Chicago Way”, which was released in the year 2007. This was also Michael Harvey’s debut novel.

“The Chicago Way”is the first novel in the “Michael Kelly” series and was released in the year 2007. Michael Kelly is hired by his ex-partner (who is named John Gibbons) to solve the case of a rape and battery case that happened eight years back. This was a case that John was ordered to forget long ago.

Gibbons ends up dead on Navy Pier, and Kelly puts together a group of the savviest investigators to connect the rape and battery case and this new murder. There is Diane Lindsay (a television reporter that has a not so professional relationship with Kelly), Nicole Andrews (an expert in forensic DNA), Vince Rodriguez (Nicole’s boyfriend and has special interest in cases that involve rape), and Bennett Davis (he is from the District Attorney’s office and a friend of Kelly’s from when he was with the police).

Kelly is going to have to face all kinds of obstacles in order to solve the case: the mob, double crossing friends of his, a serial killer, and the mean streets of Chicago, the city that he loves.

Fans of the novel found that this is more than just an author’s debut, but it is a pretty good read. Some found that they read the book in just a few hours, they were that hooked to the story. It has characters that keep the readers interested in what is happening in the story; especially Michael Kelly, who is a hard boiled private investigator through and through. The writing is powerful and has impeccable plotting; and the ending is something shocking and unexpected.

“The Fifth Floor” is the second novel in the “Michael Kelly” series and was released in the year 2008. An old girlfriend hires Kelly to follow her abusive husband, and Kelly expects to have trouble of a domestic nature, rather than historical. Life ain’t so simple, though. While following the husband, he is led to an ancient house on the North Side of Chicago.

He finds a body, and a clue that may prove to be the answer of who started the Great Chicago Fire and why in the world they would do it. Which happens to be one of the biggest mysteries that Chicago has. The whole case takes to him to places that he would rather not go. Like City’s Hall’s fifth floor (which is a fabled place) where the mayor is feeling quite a bit of heat in this case.

Kelly is also caught in a scam that goes from modern politics to all the way back to when Chicago was burned down. He is even framed for murder. All this before he can face the killer, who would like to rewrite history.

Fans of the novel enjoy the way this book follows the first in the series. It features great atmosphere and suspenseful moments that keep readers’ pulse pounding. Harvey has written another page turner, something he seems to be good at. The characters are tough yet lovable and the dialogue snaps. Michael Kelly is a character to root for, and follow throughout all of his mysteries.

“The Third Rail” is the third novel in the “Michael Kelly” series and was released in the year 2010. A woman is waiting for the train that will take her to work and gets shot. Just an hour later, another woman gets killed, while riding an elevated train going through the Loop. Two hours later, a church finds itself the target of a chemical weapon attack. Chicago is under siege, and Michael Kelly is on the scene when things go bad.

He is first drawn to the case by the killers, then is tasked (by Chicago’s mayor and FBI) to find them, and then kill them. Kelly has other plans, of course. He gets closer to finding out the truth about things, he is led to another ex-cop, a link to his past, and a train company that does shady things. Rachel Swenson (Kelly’s girlfriend) is involved in a much bigger game. All the while a weapon ticks away somewhere in Chicago; it is one that could kill millions of people very easily.

Fans of the novel found that Michael Harvey’s writing ability was strong to start with, and has gotten even better since then. He is able to write strong novels that make readers unable to put them down. The plot is a big intersecting web that commands full attention so that if it wavers even a little, all will be lost. Hopefully, he is not anywhere close to being done writing about this great character, say some of his fans.

“We All Fall Down” is the fourth novel in the “Michael Kelly” series and was released in the year 2011. Michael Kelly is under the gun, this time to stop a biological weapon that has been left underground. A light bulb falls in the tunnel of a subway that releases a pathogen that has the ability to kill millions of people.

The mayor begins to posture, and people start to die; especially on the West Side, a grim part of the city. Hospitals quickly become morgues. The elevated trains are now used for rolling hearses. Finally the government steps in and seals off full sections of the city, but is this to keep people inside or people out?

Kelly is on the hunt for the people who unleashed the pathogen takes him to the gangs in the West Side, the underworld. He also goes into the awful world of black biology, which is where scientists play God in the premier labs that the nation has. It is an elite discipline coming out of these labs. These scientists stop at nothing to keep their secrecy intact.