Akashic Noir books in order

Reading order

The Akashic Noir series is one of the largest and longest-running anthology series in crime fiction. Published by Akashic Books, the series launched with San Francisco Noir in 2002 and has grown to over 120 volumes. Each book focuses on a specific city or region, with original noir fiction written by authors who know the location firsthand. Guest editors with local connections curate each volume.

The geographic range is enormous. The series covers American cities from Brooklyn to San Diego, international capitals from Paris to Tehran, and less expected locations like Addis Ababa, Kingston, and Palm Springs. Some cities have received multiple volumes (Brooklyn Noir 1, 2, and 3; Manhattan Noir and Manhattan Noir 2). There are also “Classics” editions that reprint older noir fiction set in cities already covered by the series.

John Crowley, the literary fantasy author known for Little, Big and the Aegypt sequence, contributed to the series. The Akashic Noir books can be read in any order since each volume stands alone. Readers interested in noir fiction will find the series a good way to discover both well-known and emerging crime writers from around the world, with each anthology grounded in the character of its particular city.