Jack McEvoy
crime
Series · mystery
John Pellam
The John Pellam series by Jeffery Deaver has 3 known books (3 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with Shallow Graves (1992). The latest book with a fully recorded publication date is Hell's Kitchen.
- Books
- 3 known books (3 novels)
- Published
- 3
- First published
- 1992
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime
- Last checked
Start here: Shallow Graves (1992) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Shallow Graves
Shallow Graves, published 1 January 1992, introduces Jeffery Deaver's John Pellam -- a Hollywood location scout and former stuntman -- across 336 pages, an early amateur-detective mystery written before the Lincoln Rhyme books made Deaver's name.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Shallow Graves - Book 2:
Bloody River Blues
Bloody River Blues followed a year later at 363 pages, sending Hollywood location scout John Pellam's job into a new town and a fresh set of small-town suspects. Jeffery Deaver originally published both this and Shallow Graves under the pseudonym William Jefferies before reissuing the series under his own name, writing it in a traditional amateur-detective register closer to his early career than the forensic procedurals that would later make him a bestseller.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Bloody River Blues - Book 3:
Hell's Kitchen
Nearly a decade passed before Hell's Kitchen closed the trilogy in 2001, its longest entry at 371 pages, relocating Pellam's amateur sleuthing to contemporary New York real-estate corruption.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Hell's Kitchen
About the John Pellam series
John Pellam is a Hollywood location scout — a former stuntman turned scenery-scouting freelancer for film productions — who keeps stumbling into local murders and small-town conspiracies wherever his job sends him. Jeffery Deaver wrote the first two Pellam novels early in his career, before the Lincoln Rhyme series made him a bestseller, under conditions closer to a traditional amateur-detective mystery than the forensic puzzle-boxes he'd later become known for: a likable outsider protagonist whose professional reason for being in town gives Deaver an excuse to drop him into a new location and cast of small-town suspects each time.
After a near-decade gap, Deaver returned to the character for Hell's Kitchen (2001), moving Pellam's world into contemporary New York real-estate corruption. The series is a low-key, character-driven counterpart to Deaver's more elaborate later thrillers, and a good entry point for readers who want his prose and plotting instincts without the full forensic-procedural machinery of Lincoln Rhyme.
Frequently asked questions
How many John Pellam books are there?
Three novels: Shallow Graves (1992), Bloody River Blues (1993) and Hell's Kitchen (2001).
What order should I read the John Pellam books in?
Publication order. Each is a self-contained mystery, so the series can also be read in any order without confusion.
Is John Pellam connected to Deaver's other series?
No shared characters with Lincoln Rhyme, Kathryn Dance or Colter Shaw — it's an earlier, standalone mystery series with its own cast.
Is there a new John Pellam book coming?
No new entry has been announced since Hell's Kitchen (2001), and the series is generally considered complete.
If you like the John Pellam series
Reading order last verified .