Mike Daley and Rosie Fernandez Books in Order
Part ofSheldon Siegel Books in OrderThis page covers the Mike Daley and Rosie Fernandez legal thriller series by Sheldon Siegel, with all the books in order, short plot summaries, series background, and guidance on the best place to start reading.
Last updated: January 16, 2026
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Publication Order
18 books
Unfinished Business
by Sheldon Siegel
2026
Decades after teenager Luther Johnson was gunned down in Hunters Point and no one was charged, new ballistics evidence leads to the arrest of retired cop Sully Sullivan, and Mike and Rosie join Luther’s legendary detective father to untangle a cold case soaked in loyalty, racism, and regret.
Never Plead Guilty
by Sheldon Siegel
2025
When a wealthy Marina District lawyer is beaten to death in his driveway, a homeless heroin addict named Freddie Alvarez is found at the scene and blamed, and Mike and Rosie race from mansions to encampments to learn whether the evidence against him was built or simply found.
Last Dance
by Sheldon Siegel
2024
In an upscale North Beach strip club, former cop Cesar Ochoa is accused of stabbing star dancer Chloe Carson, and Mike and Rosie must sort through surveillance footage, jealous lovers, and the secrets of San Francisco’s nightlife elite to decide whether a disgraced officer is being framed.
Dead Coin
by Sheldon Siegel
2023
Tyson Gore, rockstar CEO of a cryptocurrency start up, is shot dead in Salesforce Park, and a homeless addict is charged with his murder, pushing Mike and Rosie into a case that reveals greed, broken tech dreams, and corruption stretching from downtown San Francisco to Sand Hill Road.
Last Call
by Sheldon Siegel
2022
Late one night in a neighborhood bar, a troubled off duty officer is stabbed, and a young bartender Mike knows wakes to find himself charged with killing the cop, sending Mike, Rosie, and Pete through bars, encampments, and case files to unravel what truly happened before closing time.
Double Jeopardy
by Sheldon Siegel
2022
After three combat tours left him addicted and living on the streets, Lenny Garcia is accused of killing a friend with fentanyl laced pills he swears were legitimate, and when the pandemic delays court, Mike scrambles alone to clear him as the city begins to shut down.
Final Out
by Sheldon Siegel
2021
Sports agent Robbie Blum, whose client list runs from Giants sluggers to Bay Area stars, is pulled from San Francisco Bay with his skull crushed and a bat floating nearby, and streetwise vendor Jaylen Jenkins becomes the prime suspect Mike and Rosie are determined to defend.
The Dreamer
by Sheldon Siegel
2020
Dreamer student Mercy Tejada, an undocumented aspiring nurse, finds celebrity chef Carlos Cruz dying behind his Mission District restaurant with a knife in his gut and her fingerprints on it, pulling Rosie into a politically charged murder case that could destroy Mercy’s future in the country.
Hot Shot
by Sheldon Siegel
2019
San Francisco sugar baby Lexy Low is accused of killing her billionaire lover when he dies from a heroin injection during an after party, and Mike and Rosie trace the drugs, the money, and the grudges through Silicon Valley’s venture capital circles and exclusive hillside mansions.
Serve and Protect
by Sheldon Siegel
2018
After rookie cop Johnny Bacigalupi, Mike’s godson, kills a Black motorist during a rainy night traffic stop, body cam footage, protests, and politics collide, and Mike takes leave from the Public Defender’s Office to defend Johnny while Rosie holds the office together under fire.
Felony Murder Rule
by Sheldon Siegel
2017
High school senior Thomas Nguyen never went inside the liquor store where his friend was shot by the owner, yet California’s felony murder rule leaves him facing a murder charge, and Mike and Rosie must attack both the case and the harsh law that put him there.
Perfect Alibi
by Sheldon Siegel
2009
When their sixteen year old daughter’s boyfriend is discovered holding the bloody hammer that killed his father, a respected judge, Grace Daley becomes his only alibi, and Mike and Rosie uncover a sex scandal that links a troubled family to San Francisco’s most powerful citizens.
Judgment Day
by Sheldon Siegel
2008
With only days before the execution of Nate Fineman, a former mob lawyer convicted of a Chinatown triple murder, Mike and Rosie race to prove his innocence, even as new evidence threatens the reputation of Mike’s late father, one of the cops first on the scene.
The Confession
by Sheldon Siegel
2004
When the lawyer leading a devastating sexual harassment suit against the San Francisco Catholic Archdiocese turns up dead, suspicion lands on Father Ramon Aguirre, and Mike and Rosie battle damning forensics and buried church secrets to defend Mike’s old friend from a potential life sentence.
Final Verdict
by Sheldon Siegel
2003
Years after a controversial trial wrecked Mike and Rosie’s marriage, their former client Leon Walker reappears accused of stabbing a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, and the dying, homeless defendant insists they clear his name while police and prosecutors seem determined to bury him for good.
Criminal Intent
by Sheldon Siegel
2002
After egotistical film director Big Dick MacArthur is bludgeoned to death with his own Oscar, suspicion falls on his coked up young wife, Angelina Angel Chavez, and Mike and Rosie must navigate movie financing schemes and city development deals to keep their client out of prison.
Incriminating Evidence
by Sheldon Siegel
2001
When ambitious district attorney Prentice Skipper Gates wakes up beside a dead teenage prostitute, the man who helped get Mike Daley fired suddenly needs his representation, and Mike and Rosie dig into San Francisco’s political machine to learn whether Gates is a killer or a target.
Special Circumstances
by Sheldon Siegel
2000
Fired from a powerhouse San Francisco law firm, ex priest and former public defender Mike Daley opens a tiny practice just as his best friend is charged with a brutal double murder, forcing him and his ex wife Rosie to confront their old firm’s darkest secrets.
Series background & context
At the center of Sheldon Siegel’s San Francisco novels are Mike Daley and Rosie Fernandez, a pair of criminal defense lawyers who used to be married and never quite got over each other. Mike is a former priest and ex public defender, Rosie is a tough neighborhood kid who grew into a fearless trial lawyer.(books.apple.com)
The early books open with Mike being pushed out of a powerful corporate firm and striking out on his own in Special Circumstances. Almost immediately he is defending a close friend accused of double murder, and the case forces him and Rosie to probe the secrets of a gleaming San Francisco law office.(barnesandnoble.com)
From there, the series follows them through a changing city. They take on cases that mix politics, big money, and personal history: a district attorney charged with killing a young man in a luxury hotel in Incriminating Evidence, a film director bludgeoned with his own Oscar in Criminal Intent, and a tech billionaire who overdoses under suspicious circumstances in Hot Shot.(publishersweekly.com)
As the books progress, Mike and Rosie move from a converted martial arts studio in the Mission District back into the Public Defender’s Office. Novels like Felony Murder Rule and Serve and Protect put them at the center of debates over harsh charging laws, police shootings, and the way social media and street protests can shape a case before it ever reaches a jury.(books.apple.com)
Later entries such as The Dreamer, Final Out, Last Call, Double Jeopardy, and Dead Coin keep the focus firmly on San Francisco itself. Mercy Tejada faces both a murder charge and threats to her immigration status, a sports agent turns up dead after a Giants game, a volatile cop is killed outside a neighborhood bar, and homeless defendants are swept up in cases involving fentanyl, cryptocurrency, and life on the margins.(barnesandnoble.com)
Through it all, the books return to the same core pieces: long days in cramped offices, last minute motions, cross examinations that can turn a trial, and the strain that big cases put on Mike and Rosie’s patched together family. Their investigator, Mike’s brother Pete, and their children, especially their daughter Grace, show how a life in criminal law spills over into every family dinner and school event.(publishersweekly.com)
Readers who start at the beginning will see careers, relationships, and even the city skyline shift over time, but each novel also works as a stand alone mystery built around one big case. Taken together, the series offers an ongoing tour of San Francisco’s courtrooms, jails, alleyways, and high rise offices, viewed through two lawyers who still care deeply about what happens to the people they represent.(sheldonsiegel.com)
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