Reading order
| # | Title | Year | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transfer of Power | 1999 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 2 | The Third Option | 2000 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 3 | Separation of Power | 2001 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 4 | Executive Power | 2003 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 5 | Memorial Day | 2004 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 6 | Consent to Kill | 2005 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 7 | Act of Treason | 2006 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 8 | Protect and Defend | 2007 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 9 | Extreme Measures | 2008 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 10 | Pursuit of Honor | 2009 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 11 | American Assassin | 2010 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 12 | Kill Shot | 2012 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 13 | The Last Man | 2012 | Vince Flynn | Buy |
| 14 | The Survivor | 2015 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 15 | Order to Kill | 2016 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 16 | Enemy of the State | 2017 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 17 | Red War | 2018 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 18 | Lethal Agent | 2019 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 19 | Total Power | 2020 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 20 | Enemy at the Gates | 2021 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 21 | Oath of Loyalty | 2022 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 22 | Code Red | 2023 | Kyle Mills | Buy |
| 23 | Capture or Kill | 2024 | Don Bentley | Buy |
| 24 | Denied Access | 2025 | Don Bentley | Buy |
Mitch Rapp is the CIA’s most lethal operative. He kills terrorists. He interrogates prisoners using methods that would be illegal if anyone admitted he existed. He operates outside official channels because official channels are too slow, too political, and too compromised. Vince Flynn created him in 1999 with Transfer of Power, written before 9/11 made terrorism the defining concern of American fiction.
Flynn drew on extensive research and government contacts to give the series its authenticity. The tradecraft feels real because he talked to people who’d done the work. After 9/11, Flynn’s earlier novels seemed prophetic, and his readership grew substantially.
The series can be read in publication or chronological order. Publication order starts with Transfer of Power, where Rapp is already established as an operative. Chronological order starts with American Assassin, which shows his recruitment and training. Both approaches work; publication order lets you experience the series as Flynn wrote it.
Flynn died of prostate cancer in 2013 at 47. Before his death, he selected Kyle Mills to continue the series. Mills wrote nine Rapp novels, maintaining the character’s edge while developing his own take. Don Bentley took over in 2024, bringing his military and FBI background to the franchise.
American Assassin was adapted as a 2017 film starring Dylan O’Brien. The movie condensed Rapp’s origin story and introduced the character to audiences who’d never read the books.