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Cody's War Books in Order

Part ofStephen Mertz Books in Order

Browse 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

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10 books

1

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.

2

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.

3

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.

4

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.

5

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.

6

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.

7

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.

8

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.

9

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.

10

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

  1. Book cover for "Dragonfire!"

    Dragonfire!

    by Stephen Mertz

    2019Cody's War, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "Camp David Has Fallen!"

    Camp David Has Fallen!

    by Stephen Mertz

    2019Cody's War, Book 2
  3. Book cover for "The Fires of Allah"

    The Fires of Allah

    by Stephen Mertz

    2019Cody's War, Book 3
  4. Book cover for "Day of Reckoning"

    Day of Reckoning

    by Stephen Mertz

    2019Cody's War, Book 4
  5. Book cover for "The Last Refuge"

    The Last Refuge

    by Stephen Mertz

    2019Cody's War, Book 5
  6. Book cover for "Cody's Return"

    Cody's Return

    by Stephen Mertz

    2022Cody's War, Book 6
  7. Book cover for "Lethal Assault"

    Lethal Assault

    by Stephen Mertz

    2022Cody's War, Book 7
  8. Book cover for "Final Strike"

    Final Strike

    by Stephen Mertz

    2022Cody's War, Book 8
  9. Book cover for "Afghanistan Payback"

    Afghanistan Payback

    by Stephen Mertz

    2022Cody's War, Book 9
  10. Book cover for "Hellfire in Syria"

    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

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 shaped MRB and its growth.

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