Long Beach Homicide Reading Order
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| A King of Infinite Space | 2009 | Buy |
| The Pain Scale | 2012 | Buy |
| A Cold and Broken Hallelujah | 2014 | Buy |
| Come Twilight | 2016 | Buy |
Standalone Novels
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Mercy Dogs | 2018 | Buy |
Tyler Dilts is the son of a policeman and grew up wanting to follow his father into law enforcement. His career took a different path, and he became an instructor at California State University, Long Beach, but he never lost his interest in the daily work of homicide detectives. His writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and The Best American Mystery Stories.
The Long Beach Homicide series, starting with A King of Infinite Space (2009), follows Detective Danny Beckett through a set of cases that take him deep into the city he calls home. Beckett is a believable character, good at his job but carrying personal damage that makes his life outside the squad room difficult. The Pain Scale (2012), A Cold and Broken Hallelujah (2014), and Come Twilight (2016) continue the series, with each book offering a self-contained case while building on Beckett’s ongoing story.
Dilts also published the standalone novel Mercy Dogs (2018). His books are praised for their grounded depiction of detective work and for capturing the feel of Long Beach as a real, lived-in place rather than a generic backdrop.