Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quarry | 1976 | Max Allan Collins | N/A |
| 2 | Quarry / The Broker | 1976 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 3 | Quarry’s List | 1976 | Max Allan Collins | N/A |
| 4 | Quarry’s List / The Broker’s Wife | 1976 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 5 | Quarry’s Deal / The Dealer | 1976 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 6 | Quarry’s Ex | 2011 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 7 | Quarry’s Cut / The Slasher | 1977 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 8 | Quarry’s Cut: Quarry | 1977 | Max Allan Collins | N/A |
| 9 | Quarry’s Vote | 1987 | Max Allan Collins | N/A |
| 10 | Quarry’s Vote / Primary Target | 1988 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 11 | The Last Quarry | 2006 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 12 | The First Quarry | 2008 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 13 | The Wrong Quarry | 2014 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 14 | Quarry’s Choice | 2015 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 15 | Quarry in the Black | 2016 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 16 | Quarry in the Middle | 2009 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 17 | Quarry’s Climax | 2017 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 18 | Killing Quarry | 2019 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 19 | Quarry’s Blood | 2021 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
| 20 | Quarry’s Return | 2024 | Max Allan Collins | Buy |
The Quarry series by Max Allan Collins is one of the longest-running hitman franchises in crime fiction. First published in 1976, the series follows a Vietnam veteran known only as Quarry who is recruited into a professional killing operation after returning from the war. Over twenty books spanning nearly fifty years, Quarry takes on contracts, double-crosses his handlers, and navigates the violent underworld of organized crime.
Collins originally wrote four Quarry novels in the late 1970s before the series went dormant. It was revived in 2006 with The Last Quarry and has continued steadily since, with new entries published regularly. The revival brought the character to a wider audience, and the series was adapted into a Cinemax television show in 2016.
The books include both original titles and reissued editions with alternate names, reflecting the series’ long publishing history. Some early entries appear under different titles depending on the edition. Despite the complexity of the publication history, the core appeal remains the same: a spare, hard-boiled writing style and a protagonist who lives in a world of moral gray areas.