Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries Books in Order

The Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries are cozy mysteries set in and around Santa Cruz, California, with plenty of local color from beach neighborhoods, wooded Bonny Doon roads, and the complicated business of buying and selling homes. Regan McHenry is a Realtor, which means she is often invited into other people's houses and, before long, their secrets.

It is not a quiet line of work in these books.

Regan is observant, independent, and hard to convince that something suspicious is none of her business. Her husband, Tom Kiley, is also in real estate after a career as a computer programmer, and he is an important sounding board when a case takes a turn. Their friend Dave Everett provides another useful connection to the official side of an investigation.

The series uses real estate as its engine. A seller disappears before a deal can close in The Death Contingency. A property purchase uncovers old human remains in Buying Murder. In The Murder House, an inherited home carries the weight of an unsolved double homicide and stories of ghosts. The professional details matter because a house can hold evidence, history, resentment, and a lot of reasons for someone to lie.

Regan's cases are connected by place and character rather than one giant continuing plot, so each mystery has its own central problem. Still, it is rewarding to read in order and watch Regan, Tom, and Dave settle into their roles. The early books establish the trio and the way Regan keeps finding herself at odds with the first easy explanation.

Santa Cruz County is a full part of the series. Its relaxed public image sits beside tight-knit neighborhoods, long memories, local rumors, and hidden tensions. Backyard Bones brings Regan into the aftermath of a teenager's murder, while The Widow's Walk League starts with a disturbing pattern of husbands being killed. The Two-Faced Triplex asks Regan to help after a client's death is first called suicide, then homicide.

The tone is approachable and clue-driven, with the occasional darker edge. These books are for readers who enjoy amateur sleuths with useful day jobs, couples who work well together, and mysteries where property problems lead to much bigger trouble. Begin with The Death Contingency for Regan's first case, then follow the books in order for more of her Santa Cruz world.