Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | True Detective | 1983 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 2 | True Crime | 1984 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 3 | The Million-Dollar Wound | 1986 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 4 | Neon Mirage | 1988 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 5 | Stolen Away | 1991 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 6 | Carnal Hours | 1994 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 7 | Blood and Thunder | 1995 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 8 | Damned in Paradise | 1996 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 9 | Flying Blind | 1998 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 10 | Majic Man | 1999 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 11 | Angel in Black | 2001 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 12 | Chicago Confidential | 2002 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 13 | Bye Bye, Baby | 2011 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 14 | Target Lancer | 2012 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 15 | Ask Not | 2013 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 16 | Better Dead | 2016 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 17 | Do No Harm | 2020 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 18 | The Big Bundle | 2023 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 19 | Too Many Bullets | 2023 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
The Nathan Heller series follows a Chicago private eye from the Depression era through the second half of the 20th century. Each novel places Heller at the scene of a real unsolved crime or historical controversy, mixing detective fiction with meticulously researched history. Max Allan Collins has kept the series going since 1983, and the 19 novels cover everything from Prohibition-era gangsters to Cold War espionage.
True Detective, the first book, sets up Heller as a young cop turned PI in 1930s Chicago. From there the series ranges across decades and locations, always anchored by Heller’s first-person narration and his tendency to end up in the middle of trouble. The historical detail is a major draw, and Collins includes author’s notes in each book explaining what is real and what he invented.