Ms. Tree

Q: "How many books are in the Ms. Tree series?"

"There are six books in the Ms. Tree series, published between 2019 and 2022."

Q: "What is the first book in the Ms. Tree series?"

"The first book in the Ms. Tree series is One Mean Mother, published in 2019."

Q: "Who is Ms. Tree?"

"Ms. Tree is a female private investigator created by Max Allan Collins and artist Terry Beatty. Originally a comic book character who debuted in 1981, Ms. Tree (real name Michael Tree) took over her murdered husband's detective agency. The character is known for her tough, no-nonsense approach and willingness to use violence, making her a female counterpart to hard-boiled detectives like Mike Hammer."

Reading order

#	Title	Published	Author	Buy on Amazon
1	One Mean Mother	2019	Max Allan Collins	Buy
2	Ms. Tree, Vol. 2: Skeleton in the Closet	2020	Max Allan Collins	N/A
3	Skeleton in the Closet	2020	Max Allan Collins	Buy
4	The Cold Dish	2021	Max Allan Collins	Buy
5	Deadline	2022	Max Allan Collins	Buy
6	Ms. Tree, Vol. 1: One Mean Mother	2019	Max Allan Collins	N/A

Ms. Tree is a crime comic series created by Max Allan Collins and artist Terry Beatty. The character first appeared in 1981 as one of the few female hard-boiled private eyes in comics. These collected editions reprint the original stories in graphic novel format, with the first volume, One Mean Mother, released in 2019.

Michael Tree, known as Ms. Tree, inherits her dead husband’s detective agency and takes on cases that often turn violent. Collins modeled the character partly on Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer, but with a female perspective that gave the stories a different energy. The comic ran for years across several publishers before these collected editions brought the stories back into print.

The graphic novel collections span from 2019 to 2022, gathering classic Ms. Tree stories that were previously available only in single-issue comics. For fans of Collins’ crime fiction or hard-boiled detective stories in general, these collections offer a look at one of the more distinctive characters in crime comics.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books are in the Ms. Tree series?

There are six books in the Ms. Tree series, published between 2019 and 2022.

What is the first book in the Ms. Tree series?

The first book in the Ms. Tree series is One Mean Mother, published in 2019.

Who is Ms. Tree?

Ms. Tree is a female private investigator created by Max Allan Collins and artist Terry Beatty. Originally a comic book character who debuted in 1981, Ms. Tree (real name Michael Tree) took over her murdered husband’s detective agency. The character is known for her tough, no-nonsense approach and willingness to use violence, making her a female counterpart to hard-boiled detectives like Mike Hammer.

Reading order#

Frequently Asked Questions

Reading order