Jack Davis Books in Order

Joel Goldman’s Jack Davis series follows a former FBI special agent who loses his badge but cannot give up the work. Jack spent 25 years hunting criminals, then a rare movement disorder forced him into retirement. The condition causes unpredictable shaking, spasms, and trouble speaking, which is a dangerous complication when a gun is nearby or somebody is trying to kill him.

Jack still answers when people need help.

The first book, Shakedown, introduces him in Kansas City, where a murder connected to the drug trade pulls him into a violent investigation. Leaks inside the case make it hard to know who can be trusted, and the danger reaches toward Jack’s daughter. The crime story gives Jack a reason to keep working, while his disorder forces him to face the fact that skill and determination cannot control every part of his body.

That tension carries through the series. Jack is not a superhero who simply powers past his diagnosis. He has to account for it, fear it, and sometimes work around it in the moment. The condition is part of his daily life, but it does not become his whole identity. He remains deeply committed to the idea that people who harm others should be held accountable.

In The Dead Man, a Kansas City billionaire’s neuroscience research appears connected to terrible nightmares that come true. Jack investigates as people die and old secrets surface. No Way Out finds him meeting Roni Chase during a shootout, then following her into a long-brewing web of deception where time is short and the people involved are ready to eliminate witnesses.

Jack’s relationship with jury consultant Kate Scranton adds a personal thread to the books. Kate is skilled at reading quick facial signals, while Jack is accustomed to relying on training and instinct. Their relationship is complicated by Jack’s past, his uncertain health, and the kind of cases that make a normal life difficult. Private investigator Simon Alexander also gives Jack a practical connection to investigations after the FBI.

These are direct, high-pressure crime thrillers, rooted mainly in the Kansas City area. The cases include drugs, murder, conspiracies, and people who believe they can avoid consequences. Start with Shakedown, then read The Dead Man and No Way Out in order. The three books work as individual cases, but the sequence gives Jack’s personal life and his changing relationship with his condition more room to develop.