🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Richard Herman
Richard Herman, or Dick as he prefers to be called, used to be an officer in the Air Force who was a weapons systems officer on F-4s and navigated on C-130s. Herman retired, in the year 1983, with the rank of major after twenty-one years of service. He did two tours on active duty in Southeast Asia and did a total of 240 combat missions during his time in the Air Force. He also taught a course at the Air Force Academy and was an operations plans officer. Since retiring from his post, he writes about all of the fabulous aircraft that he used to fly around in and has written over a dozen novels. He uses all of his experiences to tell interesting stories about what someone who flies planes for the military can get into and what it is like to pilot one of them.
All Book Series by Richard Herman
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Richard Herman?
Richard Herman, or Dick as he prefers to be called, used to be an officer in the Air Force who was a weapons systems officer on F-4s and navigated on C-130s. Herman retired, in the year 1983, with the rank of major after twenty-one years of service. He did two tours on active duty in Southeast Asia and did a total of 240 combat missions during his time in the Air Force.
Which Richard Herman series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Matt Pontowski series, the earliest of Richard Herman's multi-book series: it opens with Firebreak (1991) and runs to 5 books across 1991–2002, ending with The Last Phoenix (2002). Richard Herman's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Richard Herman written?
Richard Herman has 18 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1989 and 2025. 10 of them belong to 3 named series — the largest being the Matt Pontowski series with 5 books — and 8 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Richard Herman's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Richard Herman's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Jack Locke (1989–1990, 2 books), Matt Pontowski (1991–2002, 5 books) and Madeline Turner (1997–2002, 3 books).
How are Richard Herman's books organised into series?
This guide splits Richard Herman's 18 books into 3 named series and 8 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Matt Pontowski (5 books, 1991–2002); Madeline Turner (3 books, 1997–2002); Jack Locke (2 books, 1989–1990).