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The name Joe DeMarco refers to a series of Mystery Thriller novels that follow the exploits of Joe DeMarco, a lawyer with a sordid history who does dangerous work for the Speaker of the House.
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Order of Joe DeMarco Series
| # | Read | Title | Published | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Inside Ring | 2005 | Description / Buy | |
| 2 | The Second Perimeter / The Payback | 2006 | Description / Buy | |
| 3 | House Rules / Dead on Arrival | 2008 | Description / Buy | |
| 4 | House Secrets / Dead Man’s List | 2009 | Description / Buy | |
| 5 | House Justice | 2010 | Description / Buy | |
| 6 | House Divided | 2011 | Description / Buy | |
| 7 | House Blood | 2012 | Description / Buy | |
| 8 | House Odds | 2013 | Description / Buy | |
| 9 | House Reckoning | 2014 | Description / Buy | |
| 10 | House Rivals | 2015 | Description / Buy | |
| 11 | House Revenge | 2016 | Description / Buy | |
| 12 | House Witness | 2018 | Description / Buy | |
| 13 | House Arrest | 2019 | Description / Buy | |
| 14 | House Privilege | 2020 | Description / Buy | |
| 15 | House Standoff | 2021 | Description / Buy | |
| 16 | Alligator Alley | 2023 | Description / Buy | |
| 17 | Kingpin | 2024 | Description / Buy |
Readers meet DeMarco in The Inside Ring, the first novel in the series where the president, his best friend and a secret service agent are shot. The president survives the assassination attempt but Andy Banks, a US general is shaken.
Days earlier, Andy received a mysterious note asking him to cancel the president’s upcoming engagement. The note claimed that the president’s inside ring had been compromised.
Andy had informed the Secret Service director of the note and Patrick Donnelly had proceeded to ignore it.
When the threat the note warned against came to fruition, Andy turned to Mahoney, the speaker of the House for guidance. If the president’s inside ring had indeed been compromised, they had to find a way of investigating the assassination without looping anyone in.
And that was where Mahoney came in. The Speaker had a guy, Joe DeMarco, whose skills he had deployed on multiple occasions to resolve unsavory situations. The advantage of using DeMarco emanated from the fact that his very existence could be denied.
If things went wrong, if DeMarco was discovered doing things that Mahoney couldn’t afford to have associated with his office, then the Speaker of the house could simply deny ever knowing him.
DeMarco had no idea what awaited him when he took Andy’s case. He had no idea that his investigation would open the door to one of the most fascinating mysteries of the 20th Century.
The Joe DeMarco series tells Joe DeMarco’s story. It follows him around as he contends with the cases that his boss, Mahoney brings to his doorstep in every single book.
While all of DeMarco’s work comes from Mahoney, DeMarco is, without a doubt, the protagonist of this series, with Mahoney only making brief appearances in any given story.
DeMarco fascinates readers because he isn’t like most of his counterparts in the crime thriller genre.
In a way, DeMarco is a larger than life hero, no different from the likes of Jack Reacher. When injustices are committed, more often than not, DeMarco is the only man capable of saving the day and delivering the punishments the bad guys deserve.
But at the end of the day, the hero is just a lawyer. His career prospects have never been particularly bright, primarily because he is the son of a well-known gangster.
DeMarco’s sordid origins have always kept him from getting meaningful work, and he was fortunate to land a position in Mahoney’s office, even though he occupied an unmarked office in the basement and he had no official title to speak of.
DeMarco always approaches Mahoney’s cases with gusto. However, his history as a lawyer means that he lacks the physical prowess to take on the bad guys. As such, the protagonist spends most novels running for his life, taking beatings, and relying on his intelligence to stay ahead of killers, spies, and terrorists.
Joe DeMarco Awards
House Reckoning was nominated for a Barry Award. While House Witness was nominated for an Edgar Award.
Best Joe DeMarco Books
These novels have been commended for their rapid pace and unique take on the crime thriller action hero, with some of the best books in the series including:
The Second Perimeter: When the secretary of the Navy gets wind of fraudulent activities happening under his roof, he reaches out to Jack Mahoney who deploys Joe DeMarco.
DeMarco’s investigation reveals that his current partner, DIA Agent Emma destroyed a woman’s promising career. Now that woman has become a ruthless operative who won’t stop until she has used her espionage cell to destroy Emma.
House Rules: When the US barely escapes an elaborate series of terrorist attacks, paranoia grips the country. When a senator proposes a bill to deport all non-citizen Muslims, Mahoney calls upon Joe DeMarco to get to the bottom of the situation before America does something it will regret.
Other Book Series You May Like
The “Themis Files” Series by Sylvain Neuvel is another good read. Rose was a little girl when she fell into a mysterious hole whose walls were covered with intricate symbols. Years later, Rose is a brilliant scientist that has spent her extensive career trying to discover the truth behind the artifact and those who wish to use it for nefarious purposes.
You may also like the Alexandra Cooper Series by Linda Fairstein. The author, Linda Fairstein was an actual sex-crimes prosecutor before she started writing this series which follows the exploits of a leading sex crimes attorney in Manhattan.
What Is The Next Book in The Joe Demarco Series?
There doesn't seem to be an upcoming book in The Joe Demarco Series. The newest book is Kingpin and was released on February, 6th 2024.