Michael Bennett
Reading Order.
Start with Step on a Crack (2007).
The adventures of NYPD Detective Michael Bennett, a father of ten adopted children.
Where to start
Start with Step on a Crack (2007).
- •Each case stands alone, but Bennett's large family storyline runs through the series.
Community Consensus
"The comments do not discuss the 'Michael Bennett Series.' They heavily debate the reading order for the 'Elric of Melniboné' series (Michael Moorcock). The consensus is strongly against reading the series in strict chronological order (such as the Gollancz editions) for a first read. Instead, readers recommend sticking to the classic narrative or initial publication order for the core saga, reserving later-written prequels/inserts (like 'Fortress of the Pearl' and 'Moonbeam Roads') until after the main storyline is complete."
Start with 'Elric of Melnibone.' Follow the core narrative series progression (classic or publication order) through 'Stormbringer,' and read later-published insertions afterward.
At a Glance
- First Book:Step on a Crack
- Latest Book:Obsessed
- Timeline:2007 - 2023
Complete Series Reading Order
Publication Reading Order15 Titles
Step on a Crack
With the unexpected death of a beloved former first lady, the nation falls into mourning as the world's most powerful people gather in New York for her funeral. Then the inconceivable occurs. Billionaires, politicians, and superstars of every kind are suddenly trapped by one man's brilliant and ruthless scenario. Pulled into the fray, Detective Michael Bennett-father of ten-faces the most sinister challenge of his career: a criminal who kills without hesitation and counters everything the NYPD and FBI throw at him with impunity. As New York descends into chaos, Bennett learns that the great love of his life, his wife, is battling a terrible disease and he may have to raise their children alone. Now with the entire world watching and the tension reaching a boiling point, Bennett must quickly find a way out-or become responsible for the greatest debacle in history.
Run for Your Life
Plot details hidden until you finish "Step on a Crack".
A calculating killer who calls himself The Teacher is taking on New York City , killing the powerful and the arrogant. His message is clear: remember your manners or suffer the consequences! For some, it seems that the rich are finally getting what they deserve. For New York 's elite, it is a call to terror. Only one man can tackle such a high-profile case: Detective Mike Bennett. The pressure is enough for anyone, but Mike also has to care for his 10 children-all of whom have come down with virulent flu at once! Discovering a secret pattern in The Teacher's lessons, Detective Bennett realizes he has just hours to save New York from the greatest disaster in its history. From the #1 bestselling author comes RUN FOR YOUR LIFE, the continuation of his newest, electrifying series.
Worst Case
Plot details hidden until you finish "Run for Your Life".
NATIONAL BESTSELLERA former Green Beret’s indispensable course in preparedness, teaching the keys to building a resilient and fearless lifeMost people think that being prepared for catastrophe means stocking up on MREs and building a bunker in their backyard, but this approach leaves you vulnerable in the real world of car accidents, natural disasters, grid failures, and global pandemics. Prepared overturns today’s paranoid survival wisdom and teaches the foundational skills of preparedness that will not only help you build situational awareness and achieve greater mobility but that will also help you build resilient mental habits.After 20 years in the US Army, Special Forces, and as a government contractor for the CIA, Mike Glover has trained thousands of men, women, and families in the art and science of survival. In this book, he shows you how to: • Harness your brain chemistry to eliminate the freeze response and increase your stress tolerance during a crisis • Fortify your home by learning how to use and store essential foods, water, supplies, first aid, and ammunition in your everyday life • Equip your vehicle with sufficient first aid, so you can respond to injuries even before an ambulance arrives—dramatically increasing your chance of survival in an accidentDrawing on Glover’s most dire experiences in combat and in the real world, this book shows you how almost no disaster is more powerful than someone who is truly prepared. For Glover, surviving catastrophe is not about fearing crisis, but creating more resilient habits so that you can be ready for whatever comes your way.
Tick Tock
Plot details hidden until you finish "Worst Case".
Detective Michael Bennett joins forces with FBI Agent Emily Parker to root out a terrorist who is threatening New York City with a devastation of the greatest magnitude, and must simultaneously sort out his feelings for Emily and protect his ten adopted children.
I, Michael Bennett
Plot details hidden until you finish "Tick Tock".
Police officers shot Detective Michael Bennett arrests an infamous Mexican crime lord in a deadly chase that leaves Bennett's lifelong friend Hughie McDonough dead. From jail, the prisoner vows to rain epic violence down upon New York City-and to get revenge on Michael Bennett.Judges murderedTo escape the chaos, Bennett takes his ten kids and their beautiful nanny, Mary Catherine, on a much-needed vacation to his family's cabin near Newburgh, New York. But instead of the calm and happy town he remembers from growing up, they step into a nightmare worse than they could have ever imagined. Newburgh is an inferno of warring gangs, and there's little the police-or Bennett-can do to keep the children safe.Target: Michael BennettAs violence overwhelms the state, Bennett is torn between protecting his hometown and saving New York City. A partner in his investigations, federal prosecutor Tara McLellan, brings him new weapons for the battle-and an attraction that endangers his relationship with Mary Catherine. A no-holds-barred, pedal-to-the-floor, action-packed novel, I, Michael Bennett is James Patterson at his most personal and most thrilling best.
Gone
Plot details hidden until you finish "I, Michael Bennett".
"A crime lord has declared war on America. Only Detective Michael Bennett knows why. Manuel Perrine doesn't fear anyone or anything. A charismatic and ruthless leader, Perrine slaughters rivals as effortlessly as he wears his trademark white linen suit. Detective Michael Bennett once managed to put Perrine behind bars, the only official in the US ever to accomplish that. But now Perrine is out, and he has sworn to find and kill Bennett and everyone dear to him. Detective Bennett, along with his ten adopted children, their nanny, and his grandfather, are hidden safely on a rural California farm, with guards courtesy of the FBI's witness protection program. Perrine begins to embark on an escalating series of assassinations across the country, killings whose brazenness and audacity bring into question the possibility of safety and law in the US. The FBI has no choice but to ask Detective Bennett to risk it all in Perrine's war on America. With explosive action and fierce villainy that rivals James Bond movies at their best, GONE is the next astounding novel by James Patterson"-- "Manuel Perrine doesn't fear anyone or anything. A charismatic and ruthless leader, Perrine slaughters rivals as effortlessly as he wears his trademark white linen suit. Detective Michael Bennett once managed to put Perrine behind bars, the only official in the US ever to accomplish that. But now Perrine is out, and he has sworn to find and kill Bennett and everyone dear to him. Detective Bennett, along with his ten adopted children, their nanny, and his grandfather, are hidden safely on a rural California farm, with guards courtesy of the FBI's witness protection program. Perrine begins to embark on an escalating series of assassinations across the country, killings whose brazenness and audacity bring into question the possibility of safety and law in the US. The FBI has no choice but to ask Detective Bennett to risk it all in Perrine's war on America. With explosive action and fierce villainy that rivals James Bond movies at their best, GONE is the next astounding novel by James Patterson"--
Burn
Plot details hidden until you finish "Gone".
Detective Michael Bennett finally returns to New York City—and to the most unsettling, horrific case of his career in this #1 New York Times bestseller. At last, Detective Michael Bennett and his family are coming home to New York City. Thanks to Bennett, the ruthless crime lord whose vengeful mission forced the Bennett family into hiding has been brought down for good. Back in the city that never sleeps, Bennett takes over a chaotic Outreach Squad in Harlem, where he receives an unusual call: a man claims to have seen a group of well-dressed men holding a bizarre party in a condemned building. With no clear crime or evidence, Bennett dismisses the report. But when a charred body is found in that very same building, he is forced to take the demented caller seriously—and is drawn into an underground criminal world of terrifying depravity.
Alert
Plot details hidden until you finish "Burn".
In this New York Times bestseller, Detective Michael Bennett must race against time to save New York City from chaos by tracking down the source of two mysterious attacks. New Yorkers aren't easily intimidated, but someone is doing their best to scare them, badly: why? After two inexplicable high-tech attacks, the city that never sleeps is on edge. Detective Michael Bennett, along with his old pal, the FBI's Emily Parker, have to catch the shadowy criminals who claim responsibility—but they're as good at concealing their identities as they are at wreaking havoc. In the wake of a shocking assassination, Bennett begins to suspect that these mysterious events are just the prelude to the biggest threat of all. Soon he's racing against the clock, and against the most destructive enemy he's faced yet, to save his beloved city—before everyone's worst nightmare becomes a reality.
Bullseye
Plot details hidden until you finish "Alert".
Snow blankets the avenues of Manhattan's exclusive Upper West Side. The storm is the perfect cover for a fashionable, highly trained team of lethal assassins as they prowl the streets, hunting their prey. But their first hit is simply target practice. Their next mission may very well turn the Cold War red-hot once again. Stepping directly into the line of fire, the president of the United States is in New York for a summit at the United Nations with his Russian counterpart. Pulled away from his family and pressed into service, Detective Michael Bennett must trace the source of a threat that could rip the country apart-- and ignite a war the likes of which the world has never seen. With allegiances constantly in doubt and no one above suspicion, only Bennett can save the president-- and the country-- before the assassins' deadly kill shot hits its mark.
Haunted
Plot details hidden until you finish "Bullseye".
"Detective Michael Bennett is ready for a vacation after a series of crises push him, and his family, to the brink. He settles on an idyllic, small town in the beautiful Maine woods, a recommendation from a former colleague. But just when Bennett thinks he can relax, he gets pulled into a case that has shocked the tight-knit community. Kids are disappearing left and right with no explanation -- until several bodies turn up in the woods. As Bennett investigates, he discovers that the seemingly perfect town is reeling from a deadly addiction, and the violence is about to reach a fever pitch. Far from the city streets he knows so well, Bennett faces off against a horrific evil next door that threatens a town, the law, and the family that Bennett loves above all else." -- From Amazon.com.
Ambush
Plot details hidden until you finish "Haunted".
"An anonymous tip about a crime in Upper Manhattan proves to be a setup. An officer is taken down--and, despite the attackers' efforts, it's not Michael Bennett. New York's top cop is not the only one at risk. One of Bennett's children sustains a mysterious injury. And a series of murders follows, each with a distinct signature, alerting Bennett to the presence of a professional killer with a flair for disguise. Bennett taps his best investigators and sources, and they fan out across the five boroughs. But the leads they're chasing turn out to be phantoms. The assassin takes advantage of the chaos, enticing an officer into compromising Bennett, then luring another member of Bennett's family into even graver danger. Michael Bennett can't tell what's driving the assassin. But he can tell it's personal, and that it's part of something huge. Through twist after twist, he fights to understand exactly how he fits into the killer's plan, before he becomes the ultimate victim" -- Provided by publisher.
Blindside
Plot details hidden until you finish "Ambush".
It's not a jock book. It's not a sociology book. It's a storybook about modern society, ancient virtues, and the power of love, money and talent to do a little good." -- Jay Hancock, Baltimore Sun One day Michael Oher will be among the most highly paid athletes in the National Football League. When we first meet him, he is one of thirteen children by a mother addicted to crack; he does not know his real name, his father, his birthday, or how to read or write. He takes up football, and school, after a rich, white, evangelical family plucks him from the streets. Then two great forces alter Oher: the family's love and the evolution of professional football itself into a game in which the quarterback must be protected at any cost. Our protagonist becomes the priceless package of size, speed, and agility necessary to guard the quarterback's greatest vulnerability: his blind side. This paperback edition contains a brand-new 2007 afterword.
The Russian
Plot details hidden until you finish "Blindside".
A killer crashes Detective Michael Bennett's wedding. A series of gruesome murders in New York City has Michael Bennett angry -- but when he identifies similar cases in Atlanta and San Francisco, his feelings escalate into all-out alarm. All of the victims are young women. And each one is killed in a horrifyingly distinct fashion. In the midst of such devastating loss of life, Bennett's longtime love, Mary Catherine, is soon to become his bride. As Bennett toils to connect the cases, the killer strikes again, adding to his criminal signature an ability to evade detection. Just when New York's top investigator should be donning his wedding finery, he may be stepping into a diabolical trap.
Shattered
Plot details hidden until you finish "The Russian".
Obsessed
Plot details hidden until you finish "Shattered".
A superstitious killer targeting young women in every borough of New York City has Detective Michael Bennett facing his most terrifying case since Step on a Crack. Aboard a police boat on the Hudson River, Detective Michael Bennett casts a wary eye into the cold, rough water. NYPD is searching for a murder victim--a young college student. They find her tossed in the dark waves, dressed for a night out in a sparkly black gown. The gruesome sight fills Bennett with the dread only a father could fathom. As the obsessive killer extends his spree, a pattern emerges. One that Bennett's eldest daughter fits to a disturbing degree. Now NYPD's top detective must lure the murderer into the light of day before the next deadly strike lands closer to home than Bennett could ever bear--as a parent, or as a protector.
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View on Amazon →Frequently Asked Questions
What order should I read Michael Bennett in?
Start with Step on a Crack (2007).
How many books are in Michael Bennett?
15 main books, published 2007–2023.
Can I read Michael Bennett out of order?
Yes. Each book tells a complete story, so you can start anywhere; reading in order adds the background that builds up between books.