🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Nancy Pickard
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.
All Book Series by Nancy Pickard
The Scent of Rain and Lightning
Latest in the series · book 2 of 2 · published 2010
Seven Steps on the Writer's Path
Series opener · book 1 of 2 · published 2003 Co-authored · Lynn Lott
The Cooking School Murders
Series opener · book 1 of 6 · published 1982 Anthology · Virginia Rich
The Baked Bean Supper Murders
Book 2 of 6 · published 1983 Anthology · Virginia Rich
The Nantucket Diet Murders
Book 3 of 6 · published 1985 Anthology · Virginia Rich
The Secret Ingredient Murders
Latest in the series · book 6 of 6 · published 2001
Catnap / Cat in an Alphabet Soup
Series opener · book 1 of 31 · published 1992 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Pussyfoot / Cat in an Aqua Storm
Book 2 of 31 · published 1993 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat On A Blue Monday
Book 3 of 31 · published 1994 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Crimson Haze
Book 4 of 31 · published 1995 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Diamond Dazzle
Book 5 of 31 · published 1996 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat with an Emerald Eye
Book 6 of 31 · published 1997 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Flamingo Fedora
Book 7 of 31 · published 1997 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Golden Garland
Book 8 of 31 · published 1997 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat on a Hyacinth Hunt
Book 9 of 31 · published 1998 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Midnight Louie's Pet Detectives
Book 10 of 31 · published 1998 Co-authored · J.A. Jance,Carole Nelson Douglas,Toni L.P. Kelner,Lilian Jackson Braun,Walter J. Stutzman
Cat in an Indigo Mood
Book 11 of 31 · published 1999 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Jeweled Jumpsuit
Book 12 of 31 · published 1999 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Kiwi Con
Book 13 of 31 · published 2000 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Leopard Spot
Book 14 of 31 · published 2001 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Midnight Choir
Book 15 of 31 · published 2002 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Neon Nightmare
Book 16 of 31 · published 2003 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Midnight Louie In Something Fishy
Book 17 of 31 · published 2003 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in an Orange Twist
Book 18 of 31 · published 2004 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Hot Pink Pursuit
Book 19 of 31 · published 2005 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Quicksilver Caper
Book 20 of 31 · published 2006 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Red Hot Rage
Book 21 of 31 · published 2007 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Sapphire Slipper
Book 22 of 31 · published 2008 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Topaz Tango
Book 23 of 31 · published 2009 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in an Ultramarine Scheme
Book 24 of 31 · published 2010 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Vegas Gold Vendetta
Book 25 of 31 · published 2011 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Fruit of the Tomb
Book 26 of 31 · published 2012 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a White Tie and Tails
Book 27 of 31 · published 2012 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in an Alien X-Ray
Book 28 of 31 · published 2013 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Yellow Spotlight
Book 29 of 31 · published 2014 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in a Zebra Zoot Suit
Book 30 of 31 · published 2015 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Cat in an Alphabet Endgame
Latest in the series · book 31 of 31 · published 2016 Anthology · Carole Nelson Douglas
Tales of Obsession: Mystery Stories of Fatal Attractions and Deadly Desires
Book 5 of 31 · published 1994
By Hook or By Crook and 27 More of the Best Crime and Mystery Stories of the Year
Book 24 of 31 · published 2010
Mysterious Writers: The Many Facets of Mystery Writing
Book 25 of 31 · published 2010
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Nancy Pickard?
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.
Which Nancy Pickard series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Eugenia Potter series, the earliest of Nancy Pickard's multi-book series: it opens with The Cooking School Murders (1982) and runs to 6 books across 1982–2001, ending with The Secret Ingredient Murders (2001). Nancy Pickard's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Nancy Pickard written?
Nancy Pickard has 213 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1982 and 2025. 171 of them belong to 5 named series — the largest being the Midnight Louie series with 31 books — and 42 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Nancy Pickard's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Nancy Pickard's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Eugenia Potter (1982–2001, 6 books), Jenny Cain (1984–1996, 10 books) and Midnight Louie (1992–2016, 31 books), plus 1 more.
How are Nancy Pickard's books organised into series?
This guide splits Nancy Pickard's 213 books into 5 named series and 42 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Midnight Louie (31 books, 1992–2016); Jenny Cain (10 books, 1984–1996); Eugenia Potter (6 books, 1982–2001); Marie Lightfoot (3 books, 2000–2002); Akashic Noir (121 books, 2002–2025).