Cody's War Books in Order
Part ofStephen Mertz Books in OrderBrowse the Cody's War books in order by Stephen Mertz, with summaries, series background, and where to start with Jack Cody's modern missions.
Last updated: July 4, 2026
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Cody's War books in publication order
10 books
Camp David Has Fallen!
by Stephen Mertz
2019
When terrorists strike Camp David during a high-level summit, Cody is thrown into a deadly siege at one of America's most protected sites. Tight security, confusion, and close-quarters combat drive the action.
Day of Reckoning
by Stephen Mertz
2019
Sara goes missing on a deep-cover mission in Afghanistan, and Cody charges in after a rescue attempt goes wrong. Stranded in brutal country, the two have to survive the elements and a relentless Taliban pursuit.
Dragonfire!
by Stephen Mertz
2019
Jack Cody must extract defecting physicist Dr. Kwan before China's new super-weapon changes the balance of power. A missing U.S. plane, vanished dive team, and a coup in Beijing turn the mission into a full crisis.
The Fires of Allah
by Stephen Mertz
2019
Still recovering from personal loss, Cody is forced back into action when American Nazis, Islamic terrorists, and stolen Russian nukes threaten Houston. The result is a fast, hard run toward disaster prevention.
The Last Refuge
by Stephen Mertz
2019
A presidential visit to a tiny border town turns into a hostage crisis when a murderous clan takes control. Cody and Sara must fight a domestic terror nightmare from different sides of the chaos.
Afghanistan Payback
by Stephen Mertz
2022
After America's withdrawal from Afghanistan, Cody learns U.S. personnel may have been left behind in Taliban hands. He launches a one-man mission into a collapsing war zone to bring them home or die trying.
Cody's Return
by Stephen Mertz
2022
Back in Washington after a brutal Russian mission, Cody expects rest and finds only more danger. Foreign hit teams, an injured Sara, a fugitive princess, and a nuclear dealer turn the capital into a kill zone.
Final Strike
by Stephen Mertz
2022
Now operating without official cover, Cody and Sara race from Syria to the Italian Alps to stop a doomsday plot. Hit teams, betrayal, and a ticking nuclear threat keep the pressure on every page.
Lethal Assault
by Stephen Mertz
2022
Cody faces a chilling alliance between media titan Thelma Justice and nuclear strategist Vetrov. Their partnership raises the stakes from ordinary terrorism to something much larger, and much deadlier.
Hellfire in Syria
by Stephen Mertz
2023
Cody and Sara head into war-ravaged Syria to rescue an American woman and her son before a defection turns deadly. A remote outpost, 500 mercenaries, and impossible odds make this one especially brutal.
Cody's War books in chronological order

Dragonfire!
by Stephen Mertz
2019Cody's War, Book 1
Camp David Has Fallen!
by Stephen Mertz
2019Cody's War, Book 2
The Fires of Allah
by Stephen Mertz
2019Cody's War, Book 3
Day of Reckoning
by Stephen Mertz
2019Cody's War, Book 4
The Last Refuge
by Stephen Mertz
2019Cody's War, Book 5
Cody's Return
by Stephen Mertz
2022Cody's War, Book 6
Lethal Assault
by Stephen Mertz
2022Cody's War, Book 7
Final Strike
by Stephen Mertz
2022Cody's War, Book 8
Afghanistan Payback
by Stephen Mertz
2022Cody's War, Book 9
Hellfire in Syria
by Stephen Mertz
2023Cody's War, Book 10
Series background & context
Cody's War takes the old-school mission thriller and updates it without sanding off the rough edges. Jack Cody is a CIA field agent known as Suicide Cody, a man marked by personal loss and drawn again and again toward assignments that nobody sane should want.
He does not get the easy jobs, and he would not know what to do with them if he did.
From Dragonfire! onward, the series throws him into one geopolitical crisis after another. A rogue Chinese weapons plot, a terrorist assault on Camp David, a nuclear threat aimed at Houston, a desperate survival run in Afghanistan, domestic terrorism on the Mexican border, and later rogue operations stretching from Syria and the Alps to post-withdrawal Afghanistan, the books keep widening the battlefield while staying tightly locked to Cody's battered point of view.
Sara is crucial to the series. Sometimes she is Cody's control officer, sometimes his partner in the field, and sometimes the one person keeping him from burning straight through whatever is left of his life. Their partnership gives the novels an emotional spine that balances all the gunfire, conspiracies, and collapsing plans. Cody is at his best when he has someone equally tough pushing back against him, and Sara does that.
These books are big on motion and pressure. Mertz likes ticking clocks, badly outnumbered heroes, and plans that go wrong the moment the mission starts. But there is continuity here, too. Cody carries trauma, anger, and a stubborn streak that shape how he fights and whom he trusts. As the series moves forward, the action stays huge, but the damage on the hero keeps mattering.
If you like action thrillers with international stakes but still want a central character who feels scarred and recognizably human, Cody's War is a strong fit. The books are blunt, fast, and very hard on their hero. That is exactly why he works.
Edited by
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