Kingfisher P.I. Books in Order

Kingfisher P.I. is one of Washburn’s newer mystery ventures, written with James Reasoner, and it leans much more toward action than her cozier work. The series centers on Callista and Joseph Kingfisher, a brother and sister investigative team with very different skills. Callie is a former mixed martial arts fighter and Hollywood stunt performer. Joseph is an experienced private investigator. Together, they make a pair who can talk their way into a case and fight their way out of one.

The first book brings Callie back to Texas after an on-set accident, which is a smart way to launch the series. She is tough, restless, and used to danger, but real cases are not choreographed. Once she joins Joseph on a fugitive hunt, the books quickly establish that the Kingfishers operate in a world of crime families, conspiracies, and people who are more than willing to kill.

So this is not a gentle amateur-sleuth series.

The later books widen the range even more. One case reaches into a therapeutic riding center and a dangerous international web. Another heads to Mexico in search of a notorious swindler and the secrets hidden around him. The geography changes, but the engine stays the same: fast movement, family banter, escalating stakes, and heroes who keep going even when the odds are ugly.

What makes the series work is the partnership. Callie and Joseph do not solve problems in the same way, and that keeps the cases lively. There is a family energy to the books that softens the harder edge without diluting it.

If you want to see Washburn on the thriller side of mystery, Kingfisher P.I. is a strong place to start. It keeps her eye for character and place, but trades bake-offs and book tours for fugitives, hidden agendas, and full-speed private eye action.