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Michael J Malone Books in Order

Explore Michael J Malone's books in order, with quick summaries, series guides, and starting points for his Scottish crime, gothic, and psychological thrillers.

Last updated: July 15, 2026

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Michael J Malone books in publication order

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14 books

Blood Tears

by Michael J Malone

2012

When a Glasgow murder victim is marked with wounds resembling the stigmata, DI Ray McBain recognizes a link to the Catholic children's home of his past. His hidden connection to the case soon makes him the prime suspect.

A Taste for Malice

by Michael J Malone

2013

Stuck on filing duty, DI Ray McBain finds old cases pointing to a woman who enters vulnerable families, gains their trust, and leaves cruelty behind. Nobody believes his theory, so he must act before another family is destroyed.

Beyond The Rage

by Michael J Malone

2014

Glasgow criminal Kenny O'Neill wants answers after his girlfriend is attacked and his long-absent father tries to reconnect. His search for the culprit and the truth about his family draws him into dangerous secrets and revenge.

The Guillotine Choice

by Michael J Malone

2014

In 1920s French-controlled Algeria, Kaci is accused of murdering his employer. He can name his cousin as the killer or face years of hard labor on Devil's Island, where endurance, loyalty, and dignity are tested to the limit.

A Suitable Lie

by Michael J Malone

2016

Widowed father Andy Boyd believes Anna offers him and his young son a second chance at happiness. After their wedding night ends in hospital, he begins to see the abuse and manipulation hidden beneath their seemingly perfect new life.

Bad Samaritan

by Michael J Malone

2016

DI Ray McBain is struggling with panic attacks and nightmares when a young woman is found murdered in Glasgow. As the investigation deepens, a figure tied to Ray's childhood returns, threatening his career, his friends, and his life.

Dog Fight

by Michael J Malone

2017

When Kenny O'Neill's cousin is trapped in a brutal underground fight ring, Kenny goes after the gang exploiting vulnerable men. Protecting family means entering a violent world where even an experienced fighter may not control the outcome.

House of Spines

by Michael J Malone

2017

Struggling writer Ran McGhie inherits an enormous Glasgow mansion from a relative he barely knew. Its vast library seems like a gift, until eerie encounters and family tensions make Ran question the house, his past, and his grip on reality.

After He Died

by Michael J Malone

2018

After her husband dies, grieving Paula Gadd receives a note at his funeral suggesting he was not the man she believed him to be. Her search for answers brings another woman close and puts both of them in danger.

In the Absence of Miracles

by Michael J Malone

2019

While clearing his mother's home after her stroke, John Docherty finds evidence of an older brother he never knew existed. With his younger brother, he investigates a decades-old disappearance and uncovers memories his family kept buried.

A Song of Isolation

by Michael J Malone

2021

Film star Amelie Hart retreats to rural Lanarkshire with her partner Dave after a traumatic event. When Dave is accused of abusing a child, Amelie must decide whom to trust as fear, doubt, and hidden loyalties close in.

Quicksand of Memory

by Michael J Malone

2021

Jenna and Luke hope a new relationship can help them escape painful pasts. But someone is watching them, driven by old wounds and revenge, and the secrets they carry threaten the fragile life they are trying to build.

The Murmurs

by Michael J Malone

2023

On her first day at a care home, Annie Jackson knows a resident is going to die. As terrifying premonitions multiply, she and her twin brother uncover a family curse, lost memories, and long-hidden crimes.

The Torments

by Michael J Malone

2024

Annie Jackson hides from the death visions that haunt her until her adoptive mother's nephew vanishes. With her brother Lewis, Annie leaves her refuge to investigate a disappearance connected to old secrets, danger, and her family's curse.

Where to start with Michael J Malone

For Glasgow police crime: Blood TearsA Taste for MaliceBad Samaritan
For Kenny O'Neill's darker underworld stories: Beyond The RageDog Fight
For domestic psychological suspense: A Suitable LieAfter He DiedQuicksand of Memory
For gothic mysteries with a supernatural edge: The MurmursThe Torments

Annie Jackson Mysteries books in order

Explore this series
  1. Book cover for "The Murmurs"

    The Murmurs

    by Michael J Malone

    2023Annie Jackson Mysteries, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "The Torments"

    The Torments

    by Michael J Malone

    2024Annie Jackson Mysteries, Book 2

Annie Jackson Mysteries books in chronological order

  1. Book cover for "The Murmurs"

    The Murmurs

    by Michael J Malone

    2023Annie Jackson Mysteries, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "The Torments"

    The Torments

    by Michael J Malone

    2024Annie Jackson Mysteries, Book 2

DI Ray McBain books in order

Explore this series
  1. Book cover for "Blood Tears"

    Blood Tears

    by Michael J Malone

    2012DI Ray McBain, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "A Taste for Malice"

    A Taste for Malice

    by Michael J Malone

    2013DI Ray McBain, Book 2
  3. Book cover for "Bad Samaritan"

    Bad Samaritan

    by Michael J Malone

    2016DI Ray McBain, Book 3

DI Ray McBain books in chronological order

  1. Book cover for "Blood Tears"

    Blood Tears

    by Michael J Malone

    2012DI Ray McBain, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "A Taste for Malice"

    A Taste for Malice

    by Michael J Malone

    2013DI Ray McBain, Book 2
  3. Book cover for "Bad Samaritan"

    Bad Samaritan

    by Michael J Malone

    2016DI Ray McBain, Book 3

Kenny O'Neill books in order

Explore this series
  1. Book cover for "Beyond The Rage"

    Beyond The Rage

    by Michael J Malone

    2014Kenny O'Neill, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "Dog Fight"

    Dog Fight

    by Michael J Malone

    2017Kenny O'Neill, Book 2

Kenny O'Neill books in chronological order

  1. Book cover for "Beyond The Rage"

    Beyond The Rage

    by Michael J Malone

    2014Kenny O'Neill, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "Dog Fight"

    Dog Fight

    by Michael J Malone

    2017Kenny O'Neill, Book 2

Standalone Michael J Malone books

  1. Book cover for "The Guillotine Choice"

    The Guillotine Choice

    by Michael J Malone

    2014
  2. Book cover for "A Suitable Lie"

    A Suitable Lie

    by Michael J Malone

    2016
  3. Book cover for "House of Spines"

    House of Spines

    by Michael J Malone

    2017
  4. Book cover for "After He Died"

    After He Died

    by Michael J Malone

    2018
  5. Book cover for "In the Absence of Miracles"

    In the Absence of Miracles

    by Michael J Malone

    2019
  6. Book cover for "A Song of Isolation"

    A Song of Isolation

    by Michael J Malone

    2021
  7. Book cover for "Quicksand of Memory"

    Quicksand of Memory

    by Michael J Malone

    2021

Author bio

Michael J Malone was born and brought up in Ayrshire, in the part of southwest Scotland often called Burns country. That landscape, with its towns, coast, close-knit communities, and long memories, has stayed close to his work. His novels frequently return to Scotland, where ordinary lives can be shaken by old secrets, violence, grief, or one terrible choice.

Before publishing fiction, Malone worked in several corners of the book world and beyond. He was a bookseller, an independent financial adviser, and a regional sales manager for Faber & Faber, covering northern England and Scotland. He also spent years judging and commenting on poetry, short-story, and novel competitions, and served as the Scottish correspondent for Writers' Forum.

Poetry came first.

Malone has published more than 200 poems in literary magazines and has written poetry collections as well as fiction. That background shows in the close attention he gives to voice, memory, and place, but his novels are built to move. He likes characters under pressure, especially people trying to make sense of a past that will not stay buried.

His first full-length novel, Blood Tears, introduced Glasgow detective DI Ray McBain. It won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association of Writers and began a run of dark crime stories set in and around Glasgow. McBain is damaged, funny, stubborn, and often in danger of making a bad situation worse. His old friend Kenny O'Neill, a criminal with a conscience, became important enough to lead books of his own, including Beyond The Rage and Dog Fight.

Malone's later work widened the frame. A Suitable Lie follows a widowed father whose new marriage becomes a frightening trap, looking directly at male domestic abuse and the isolation it can bring. House of Spines turns toward gothic suspense, with a troubled writer inheriting a vast old house and finding that the place has its own hold on him. In After He Died and In the Absence of Miracles, grief and family history open doors that cannot easily be closed.

The past is rarely finished in a Michael J Malone novel.

His newer Annie Jackson mysteries add an unsettling supernatural edge. Beginning with The Murmurs, the series follows a young woman plagued by visions of death and a family curse that reaches back through generations. It keeps the emotional focus of Malone's psychological thrillers while bringing in Scottish folklore, isolated settings, and the uneasy question of whether a warning can ever arrive in time.

Across crime fiction, domestic suspense, and gothic mystery, Malone writes about people who are carrying more than they can say. His stories can be hard-edged, but they also make room for loyalty, dark humor, and characters who keep going when they have little reason to feel safe. He lives in Ayr and continues to write fiction and poetry.

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