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Jim Thompson Books in Order

Find every Jim Thompson book in order, including standalone titles and complete series reading orders with publication years.

Updated 2026-07-11 / 33 books / 2 series

American author Jim Thompson is best known for his hardboiled crime novels, including *The Killer Inside Me* and *The Grifters*. A master of noir, he received the Edgar Award for his screenplay for *The Killing*. This page lists Jim Thompson’s books in order, including both chronological and series reading order.

All Jim Thompson Books in Chronological Order

1942 Now and on Earth POoSN / 1 Buy
1946 Heed the Thunder POoSN / 2 Buy
1949 Nothing More Than Murder / Murder at the Bijou POoSN / 3 Buy
1952 Cropper's Cabin / Sharecropper Hell POoSN / 4 Buy
1952 The Killer Inside Me POoSN / 5 Buy
1953 Bad Boy POoSN / 6 Buy
1953 The Criminal POoSN / 7 Buy
1953 Recoil POoSN / 8 Buy
1953 The Alcoholics POoSN / 9 Buy
1953 Savage Night POoSN / 10 Buy
1954 The Golden Gizmo POoSN / 11 Buy
1954 A Swell-Looking Babe POoSN / 12 Buy
1954 The Nothing Man POoSN / 13 Buy
1954 A Hell of a Woman POoSN / 14 Buy
1954 Roughneck POoSN / 15 Buy
1954 King Blood POoSN / 16 Buy
1955 After Dark, My Sweet POoSN / 17 Buy
1957 The Kill-Off POoSN / 18 Buy
1957 Flint(As: Gil Dodge) POoSN / 19 Buy
1957 Wild Town POoSN / 20 Buy
1958 The Getaway POoSN / 21 Buy
1961 The Transgressors POoSN / 22 Buy
1963 The Grifters POoSN / 23 Buy
1964 Pop. 1280 POoSN / 24 Buy
1965 Texas by the Tail POoSN / 25 Buy
1967 South of Heaven POoSN / 26 Buy
1967 Ironside POoSN / 27 Buy
1969 The Undefeated POoSN / 28 Buy
1970 Nothing But a Man POoSN / 29 Buy
1972 Child of Rage POoSN / 30 Buy
1988 ireworks: The Lost Writings POoC / 1 Buy
1988 The Cellini Chalice POoSN / 31 Buy
1989 The Rip-Off POoSN / 32 Buy

Jim Thompson Book Series Reading Orders / browse all ->

Standalone Books in Reading Order 32 books / 1942-1989
01 Now and on Earth 1942 Buy
02 Heed the Thunder 1946 Buy
03 Nothing More Than Murder / Murder at the Bijou 1949 Buy
04 Cropper's Cabin / Sharecropper Hell 1952 Buy
05 The Killer Inside Me 1952 Buy
06 Bad Boy 1953 Buy
07 The Criminal 1953 Buy
08 Recoil 1953 Buy
09 The Alcoholics 1953 Buy
10 Savage Night 1953 Buy
11 The Golden Gizmo 1954 Buy
12 A Swell-Looking Babe 1954 Buy
13 The Nothing Man 1954 Buy
14 A Hell of a Woman 1954 Buy
15 Roughneck 1954 Buy
16 King Blood 1954 Buy
17 After Dark, My Sweet 1955 Buy
18 The Kill-Off 1957 Buy
19 Flint(As: Gil Dodge) 1957 Buy
20 Wild Town 1957 Buy
21 The Getaway 1958 Buy
22 The Transgressors 1961 Buy
23 The Grifters 1963 Buy
24 Pop. 1280 1964 Buy
25 Texas by the Tail 1965 Buy
26 South of Heaven 1967 Buy
27 Ironside 1967 Buy
28 The Undefeated 1969 Buy
29 Nothing But a Man 1970 Buy
30 Child of Rage 1972 Buy
31 The Cellini Chalice 1988 Buy
32 The Rip-Off 1989 Buy
01 ireworks: The Lost Writings 1988 Buy

Where to start with Jim Thompson

What is the best order to read Jim Thompson books?

Publication order is usually the safest place to start. If a book belongs to a series, follow the numbered series reading order shown on this page.

Are standalone books and series both included?

Yes. Standalone titles appear in the full chronological bibliography, and series are broken out separately with reading-order links when catalog data is available.

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Source note: Sequencebooks organizes author, book, and series records from its catalog data. Publication years and series order are shown when available.