The Recurring Cast
Character guide · 36 books · 1993 to 2026 · Set in Washington, D.C.

James Patterson

Crime and mysteryPolice procedural

Alex Cross is a Washington detective and forensic psychologist whose family life with Nana Mama and his children runs through every case. This guide covers the main Alex Cross novels, Patterson’s longest-running series.

Best estimate, compiled from series guides, publisher descriptions and reviews where available, and from memory otherwise. Book level only, not chapter level. Minor includes cameos and brief references. Each book carries a confidence rating in its tooltip. Patterson’s other series and standalones are left out. Several later books are written with a co-author, as named on their covers.

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Who appears in which book

Click a name to follow that character from book to book, or a book title to see its cast.

LLeadMMajor·MinorHas a note
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James Patterson books in order

Each series in publication order, with its lead characters. Where the story runs in a different order, switch to Story order. Crossover books are marked and listed under their main series. Use My books to track what you have read.

Alex Cross

36 books · Set in Washington, D.C.Police procedural
  1. 1Along Came a Spider1993With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  2. 2Kiss the Girls1995With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  3. 3Jack & Jill1996With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  4. 4Cat & Mouse1997With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  5. 5Pop Goes the Weasel1999With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  6. 6Roses Are Red2000With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  7. 7Violets Are Blue2001With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  8. 8Four Blind Mice2002With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  9. 9The Big Bad Wolf2003With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  10. 10London Bridges2004With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  11. 11Mary, Mary2005With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  12. 12Cross2006With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  13. 13Double Cross2007With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  14. 14Cross Country2008With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  15. 15Alex Cross’s Trial2009Buy on Amazon
  16. 16I, Alex Cross2009With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  17. 17Cross Fire2010With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  18. 18Kill Alex Cross2011With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  19. 19Merry Christmas, Alex Cross2012With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  20. 20Alex Cross, Run2013With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  21. 21Cross My Heart2013With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  22. 22Hope to Die2014With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  23. 23Cross Justice2015With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  24. 24Cross the Line2016With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  25. 25The People vs. Alex Cross2017With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  26. 26Target: Alex Cross2018With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  27. 27Criss Cross2019With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  28. 28Deadly Cross2020With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  29. 29Fear No Evil2021With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  30. 30Triple Cross2022With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  31. 31Cross Down2023With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  32. 32Alex Cross Must Die2023With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  33. 33The House of Cross2024With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  34. 34Return of the Spider2025With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon
  35. 35Cross and Sampson2026With Alex Cross and John SampsonBuy on Amazon
  36. 36The Family Cross2026With Alex CrossBuy on Amazon

Characters

15 recurring and key characters, with the book each one first appears in.

The Cross family and friends

Adversaries