Reading order · 4 books · 1987 to 1992 · Set in Los Angeles
L.A. Quartet in Order
The L.A. Quartet is a dark, obsessive portrait of Los Angeles and its police in the late 1940s and 1950s, full of corruption, violence and murder. The Black Dahlia and L.A. Confidential are its most famous books.
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Series facts
- Books
- 4
- Published
- 1987 to 1992
- First book
- The Black Dahlia
- Latest
- White Jazz (1992)
- Setting
- Set in Los Angeles
The reading order
Every L.A. Quartet book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
4 books · Set in Los Angeles
- 1The Black Dahlia1987With Bucky BleichertIn January 1947 the body of a young woman, Elizabeth Short, is found cut in half in a vacant lot in Los Angeles.Buy on Amazon
- 2The Big Nowhere1988With Danny UpshawLos Angeles, 1950.Buy on Amazon
- 3L.A. Confidential1990With Ed Exley and Bud WhiteIn 1953, a massacre at the Nite Owl coffee shop in Los Angeles sets three very different police officers on a path that leads to corruption at the heart of the city and the LAPD.Buy on Amazon
- 4White Jazz1992With Dave KleinIn 1958, Dave Klein, a corrupt LAPD lieutenant, is ordered to investigate a burglary and finds himself in the middle of a power struggle that could destroy him.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential and White Jazz in order. Characters and crimes carry over.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Ed Exley | Bucky Bleichert | Danny Upshaw | Bud White | Jack Vincennes | Dave Klein | Dudley Smith |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 The Black Dahlia | LLead | ||||||
| 2 The Big Nowhere | LLead | MMajor | |||||
| 3 L.A. Confidential | LLead | LLead | LLead | MMajor | |||
| 4 White Jazz | MMajor | LLead | MMajor |
Characters in the L.A. Quartet books
10 characters from James Ellroy’s chart, with the number of L.A. Quartet books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Ed ExleyAmbitious, rule-bound detective | 2 | L.A. Confidential 1990 |
| Bucky BleichertFormer boxer turned detective | 1 | The Black Dahlia 1987 |
| Danny UpshawYoung sheriff's deputy | 1 | The Big Nowhere 1988 |
| Bud WhiteViolent detective with a code | 1 | L.A. Confidential 1990 |
| Jack VincennesCelebrity narcotics cop | 1 | L.A. Confidential 1990 |
| Dave KleinCorrupt lieutenant | 1 | White Jazz 1992 |
| Dudley SmithCharming, ruthless Irish detective | 3 | The Big Nowhere 1988 |
| Lee BlanchardBucky's partner | 1 | The Black Dahlia 1987 |
| Kay LakeLee's girlfriend | 1 | The Black Dahlia 1987 |
| Buzz MeeksBagman and fixer | 1 | The Big Nowhere 1988 |