Sammy Keyes Books in Order
Part ofWendelin Van Draanen Books in OrderSee the Sammy Keyes books in order by Wendelin Van Draanen, with quick summaries, series background, and simple tips on where to start.
Last updated: July 7, 2026
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Sammy Keyes books in publication order
18 books
Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1998
Sammy spots a hotel burglary through binoculars, but no one believes her. To prove she's telling the truth, she digs into the case while juggling middle school drama and life with her grandmother at the Heavenly Hotel.
Sammy Keyes and the Skeleton Man
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1998
A Halloween outing turns creepy when Sammy and her friends stumble into a real crime. Rumors, disguises, and a haunted house push her toward a mystery that is darker than it first looks.
Sammy Keyes and the Runaway Elf
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1999
A Christmas parade, a missing girl, and a dognapped Pomeranian drop Sammy into a messy holiday case. Blackmail, grudges, and neighborhood secrets make this one personal fast.
Sammy Keyes and the Sisters of Mercy
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1999
While helping at a soup kitchen, Sammy learns that a girl her age is living on the streets. Between that mystery and a dirty softball rivalry, she starts seeing how much trouble can hide in plain sight.
Sammy Keyes and the Curse of Moustache Mary
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2000
A spooky trip outside town lands Sammy and her friends in the middle of an old feud, a suspicious fire, and rumors of hidden gold. The deeper she digs, the stranger Moustache Mary's world gets.
Sammy Keyes and the Hollywood Mummy
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2001
Sammy heads to Hollywood hoping to learn the truth about her mother. Instead she walks into a murder investigation where ambition, old lies, and family pain are tangled together.
Sammy Keyes and the Search for Snake Eyes
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2002
When a terrified teen thrusts a bag at Sammy, she discovers there is a baby inside. Soon she is dodging gang trouble and trying to protect both mother and child before Snake Eyes finds them.
Sammy Keyes and the Art of Deception
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2003
A stolen painting turns Sammy's latest case into a collision of art scams, danger, and school drama. She has to sort real talent from fraud while facing Heather and a growing crush.
Sammy Keyes and the Psycho Kitty Queen
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2004
Cats keep disappearing, Sammy's mother brings bad news, and a mysterious wrestler-in-training seems to know more than he says. Personal upheaval and a strange animal case crash together in classic Sammy style.
Sammy Keyes and the Dead Giveaway
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2005
After a prank goes wrong, everyone blames Heather for something Sammy secretly caused. While wrestling with whether to confess, Sammy uncovers a bigger mystery involving an older woman and land everyone wants.
Sammy Keyes and the Wild Things
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2007
A camping trip turns dangerous when Sammy and her friends get lost in rough country. Snakes, scorpions, and a condor poacher make survival and sleuthing happen at the same time.
Sammy Keyes and the Cold Hard Cash
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2008
Sammy scares a stranger to death by accident, then ends up with a stash of cash people are willing to chase her for. Summer fun vanishes fast when free money turns deadly.
Sammy Keyes and the Wedding Crasher
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2010
Threats against the school's most hated teacher pull Sammy into a suspect-filled mystery just as wedding chaos takes over her life. Between bridesmaid duties and boy trouble, she still has to catch who means real harm.
Sammy Keyes and the Night of Skulls
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2011
A zombie costume outing leads Sammy into graveyards, skulls, and people who are hiding something around Halloween. Spooky fun gives way to a smart mystery about death, culture, and what gets buried.
Sammy Keyes and the Power of Justice Jack
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2012
A self-styled superhero on a dirt bike wants Sammy as his sidekick, but crime seems worse since he arrived. Sammy investigates whether Justice Jack is helping the town or making everything messier.
Sammy Keyes and the Killer Cruise
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2013
Sammy and her newly found father board a cruise that turns into a locked-room style mystery at sea. Codes, suspects, and greed make it hard to tell who on board can be trusted.
Sammy Keyes and the Showdown in Sin City
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2013
A trip to Las Vegas forces long-buried family questions into the open. With Elvis impersonators, casinos, and nonstop chaos around her, Sammy chases answers and a new mystery at the same time.
Sammy Keyes and the Kiss Goodbye
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2014
In the final Sammy Keyes mystery, Sammy is suddenly the one in real danger. As familiar faces return, she has to put everything she has learned to work for one last case.
Sammy Keyes books in chronological order

Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1998Sammy Keyes, Book 1
Sammy Keyes and the Skeleton Man
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1998Sammy Keyes, Book 2
Sammy Keyes and the Sisters of Mercy
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1999Sammy Keyes, Book 3
Sammy Keyes and the Runaway Elf
by Wendelin Van Draanen
1999Sammy Keyes, Book 4
Sammy Keyes and the Curse of Moustache Mary
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2000Sammy Keyes, Book 5
Sammy Keyes and the Hollywood Mummy
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2001Sammy Keyes, Book 6
Sammy Keyes and the Search for Snake Eyes
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2002Sammy Keyes, Book 7
Sammy Keyes and the Art of Deception
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2003Sammy Keyes, Book 8
Sammy Keyes and the Psycho Kitty Queen
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2004Sammy Keyes, Book 9
Sammy Keyes and the Dead Giveaway
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2005Sammy Keyes, Book 10
Sammy Keyes and the Wild Things
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2007Sammy Keyes, Book 11
Sammy Keyes and the Cold Hard Cash
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2008Sammy Keyes, Book 12
Sammy Keyes and the Wedding Crasher
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2010Sammy Keyes, Book 13
Sammy Keyes and the Night of Skulls
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2011Sammy Keyes, Book 14
Sammy Keyes and the Power of Justice Jack
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2012Sammy Keyes, Book 15
Sammy Keyes and the Showdown in Sin City
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2013Sammy Keyes, Book 16
Sammy Keyes and the Killer Cruise
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2013Sammy Keyes, Book 17
Sammy Keyes and the Kiss Goodbye
by Wendelin Van Draanen
2014Sammy Keyes, Book 18
Series background & context
Sammy Keyes is a middle grade mystery series built around a heroine who is smart, stubborn, funny, and almost always in over her head. Sammy lives with her grandmother in the seniors-only Heavenly Hotel, which means she is already bending rules before the first mystery even starts. She is starting seventh grade, her mother is mostly absent, and adults do not always take her seriously. That makes her a great kid detective. She notices things because she has learned not to assume somebody else will.
She also cannot leave well enough alone.
The books follow Sammy through seventh and eighth grade in the fictional California town of Santa Martina, with each case landing about a month after the one before it. Some mysteries begin with a burglary or a missing person. Others start with a Halloween scare, a softball rivalry, a camping trip, or a family secret that refuses to stay buried. The fun of the series is that everyday middle school life and real criminal trouble sit right next to each other. One minute Sammy is dealing with Heather Acosta, the queen of mean. The next, she is sneaking into a hotel, searching a graveyard, or trying not to become the next target herself.
These are fast books, but they are not lightweight.
What keeps the series going is the mix of comedy and emotional stakes. Sammy is funny and irreverent, but she is also carrying big questions about family, trust, and where she belongs. Her friends, her grandmother, and the wider town all matter, and over time the series builds an ongoing story about growing up, not just cracking cases. That longer thread is one reason readers who start with Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief often want to keep going. By the time you reach the later books, the mysteries still deliver, but so does the payoff of watching Sammy change.
The tone sits somewhere between classic kid-detective fiction and a lively school story. There are suspects, clues, disguises, red herrings, and narrow escapes, but there are also crushes, awkward dances, bad teachers, and all the social chaos that comes with middle school. Van Draanen lets Sammy be brave without making her perfect. She jumps to conclusions. She gets mad. She makes messes. Then she keeps going.
If you like reading series in order, this one rewards it. The first fifteen books can work on their own, but the relationships and family questions build steadily, and the final stretch hits hardest when you know the full cast. Expect funny mysteries, real danger, and a heroine who solves problems the same way she lives, headfirst.
Edited by
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