Reading order · 12 books · 1977 to 2022 · Set in New York
Bernie Rhodenbarr Books in Order
Bernie Rhodenbarr is a gentlemanly burglar who owns a second-hand bookshop in Greenwich Village. Every time he breaks into somewhere, he seems to find a body, and has to solve the murder to keep himself out of prison. Light, witty mysteries.
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Series facts
- Books
- 12
- Published
- 1977 to 2022
- First book
- Burglars Can’t Be Choosers
- Latest
- The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown (2022)
- Setting
- Set in New York
The reading order
Every Bernie Rhodenbarr book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
12 books · Set in New York
- 1Burglars Can’t Be Choosers1977With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie Rhodenbarr is hired to steal a box from an apartment, but when the police arrive, there is a body in the bedroom and Bernie is the obvious suspect.Buy on Amazon
- 2The Burglar in the Closet1978With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie Rhodenbarr agrees to steal diamonds from his dentist’s soon-to-be former wife, and is hiding in her closet when someone else commits a murder.Buy on Amazon
- 3The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling1979With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie Rhodenbarr, now running a bookshop, is hired to steal a rare Kipling book, and finds himself framed for murder again.Buy on Amazon
- 4The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza1980With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie steals a rare coin from a wealthy couple’s home, and finds himself in the middle of a murder.Buy on Amazon
- 5The Burglar Who Painted Like Mondrian1983With Bernie RhodenbarrAfter appraising a wealthy man’s library and leaving his fingerprints everywhere, Bernie becomes the prime suspect when the man is murdered.Buy on Amazon
- 6The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams1994With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie has stayed honest for a year, until his greedy landlord’s rent rise pushes him back to burglary.Buy on Amazon
- 7The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart1995With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie’s love of Humphrey Bogart films leads him into a case with a woman in distress, an international conspiracy and several bodies.Buy on Amazon
- 8The Burglar in the Library1997With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie follows his former girlfriend to her wedding at a country inn, where he hopes to steal a rare book, and then the snow falls and a body is found in the library.Buy on Amazon
- 9The Burglar in the Rye1999With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie tries to help a new friend involved with a famous reclusive writer’s letters, and ends up accused of a serious crime.Buy on Amazon
- 10The Burglar on the Prowl2004With Bernie RhodenbarrBuy on Amazon
- 11The Burglar Who Counted the Spoons2013With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie and his friend Carolyn break into homes, apartments and even a museum in pursuit of valuables, until a body turns up.Buy on Amazon
- 12The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown2022With Bernie RhodenbarrBernie finds that burglary has become much harder in a city full of surveillance cameras and pickproof locks.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
The books can be read in any order, but Bernie’s bookshop and his friendship with Carolyn begin in The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Bernie Rhodenbarr | Ray Kirschmann | Carolyn Kaiser |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Burglars Can’t Be Choosers | LLead | MMajor | |
| 2 The Burglar in the Closet | LLead | MMajor | |
| 3 The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 4 The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 5 The Burglar Who Painted Like Mondrian | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 6 The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 7 The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 8 The Burglar in the Library | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 9 The Burglar in the Rye | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 10 The Burglar on the Prowl | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 11 The Burglar Who Counted the Spoons | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
| 12 The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown | LLead | MMajor | MMajor |
Characters in the Bernie Rhodenbarr books
3 characters from Lawrence Block’s chart, with the number of Bernie Rhodenbarr books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Bernie RhodenbarrBookseller and gentleman burglar | 12 | Burglars Can’t Be Choosers 1977 |
| Ray KirschmannCorrupt NYPD detective | 12 | Burglars Can’t Be Choosers 1977 |
| Carolyn KaiserDog groomer and Bernie’s best friend | 10 | The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling 1979 |