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Carlotta Carlyle Books in Order

Part ofLinda Barnes Books in Order

Read Linda Barnes's Carlotta Carlyle books in order, with case summaries and a starting guide to the mysteries featuring a Boston private investigator.

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Carlotta Carlyle books in publication order

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16 books

1

A Trouble of Fools

by Linda Barnes

1987

Former Boston police officer Carlotta Carlyle takes a missing-person case from an elderly woman seeking her brother, an Irish cabdriver. An attack on her client complicates the search, drawing Carlotta toward organized crime and federal investigators.

2

The Snake Tattoo

by Linda Barnes

1989

Carlotta Carlyle investigates two disappearances: a schoolgirl has vanished, and a crucial witness could clear a police lieutenant accused of brutality. Searching Boston’s Combat Zone, she follows the distinctive tattoo that may identify the missing witness.

3

Coyote

by Linda Barnes

1990

A woman’s request for identification papers draws Carlotta Carlyle into a disturbing murder investigation. As the woman disappears and Carlotta’s young friend Paolina keeps secrets, the detective confronts the dangers facing undocumented immigrants in Boston.

4

Steel Guitar

by Linda Barnes

1991

A chance reunion with blues singer Dee Willis brings Carlotta Carlyle a job locating a former bassist who claims Dee stole his songs. Murder and blackmail complicate a case entangled with Carlotta’s own musical past.

5

Snapshot

by Linda Barnes

1993

Anonymous photographs of a little girl intrigue Carlotta Carlyle until the child’s grieving mother hires her. Investigating a seven-year-old’s death from leukemia, Carlotta questions a respected hospital while trouble involving her young friend Paolina adds pressure.

6

Hardware

by Linda Barnes

1995

Robberies against Boston cabdrivers threaten the company where Carlotta Carlyle works part-time. Hired to investigate, she acquires a computer and considers upgrading her weapon, then faces escalating violence that strikes people close to her.

7

Cold Case

by Linda Barnes

1997

New manuscript pages suggest that literary prodigy Thea Janis, presumed murdered twenty-four years earlier, might still be alive. Carlotta Carlyle investigates their origin as blackmail threatens Thea’s influential family during a fiercely contested political campaign.

8

Flashpoint

by Linda Barnes

1999

Carlotta Carlyle helps an elderly recluse secure her apartment, only to find the woman murdered soon afterward. Questions about inheritance, property development, and a past robbery turn the favor into an investigation that attracts an arsonist.

9

The Big Dig

by Linda Barnes

2002

Carlotta Carlyle goes undercover to investigate possible fraud involving Boston’s enormous construction project, the Big Dig. Working inside a contractor’s operation, she discovers that pursuing corruption can expose her to threats far beyond ordinary financial wrongdoing.

10

Deep Pockets

by Linda Barnes

2004

A Harvard professor hires Carlotta Carlyle to stop blackmail over his affair with a student who has died. Recovering the compromising letters proves only the beginning as further violence draws her toward university secrets and fraud.

11

Heart of the World

by Linda Barnes

2006

When her young friend Paolina disappears, Carlotta Carlyle follows her trail from Boston to Colombia. Paolina’s search for the father she believes is a powerful druglord leads both of them into a dangerous criminal world.

12

Lie Down with the Devil

by Linda Barnes

2008

Troubled by her lover’s disappearance, Carlotta Carlyle accepts a bride-to-be’s request to investigate suspected infidelity. When the client dies and her identity proves false, Carlotta becomes a murder suspect and must untangle a deeply personal deception.

13

Lucky Penny

by Linda Barnes

2013

Moonlighting as a Boston cabdriver, private investigator Carlotta Carlyle is robbed at gunpoint while waiting for a fare. With little help forthcoming from the police, she pursues the thief herself and investigates the peculiar crime.

14

Miss Gibson

by Linda Barnes

2013

A blues singer offers Carlotta Carlyle a treasured guitar once owned by Reverend Gary Davis in exchange for help. The private investigator must locate and stop a stalker whose unwanted attention has become increasingly threatening.

15

Stealing First

by Linda Barnes

2013

Carlotta Carlyle expects a pleasant afternoon watching baseball at Fenway Park. An encounter with a petty thief from her police days instead sends the Boston private investigator into a chase that interrupts the game with dangerous complications.

16

Three short mysteries follow Boston private investigator Carlotta Carlyle through an unusual cab robbery, a blues singer’s stalker problem, and trouble at Fenway Park. The collection includes Lucky Penny, Miss Gibson, and Stealing First.

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shape MRB and its growth.

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