Can I read Attack Surface without reading Little Brother first?

Yes, but it is not recommended. While Attack Surface focuses on Masha rather than Marcus, it features returning characters and relies heavily on the political and technological world-building established in Little Brother and Homeland .

Are Walkaway and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom directly connected?

No. While they share themes of post-scarcity, digital backups, and high-tech fabrication, they are independent stories. Walkaway serves as a spiritual, thematic prequel showing the transition to the world seen in Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom .

Is Martin Hench a real-world term?

No, Martin Hench is a fictional character. However, his profession—forensic accounting—is a real-world career path. Doctorow based Hench's adventures on real financial systems, cryptocurrency mechanics, and tax-evasion loopholes.

Why can't I find some of Cory Doctorow's audiobooks on Audible?

Doctorow refuses to sell his audiobooks with Digital Rights Management (DRM) . Because Amazon-owned Audible mandates DRM for all books sold on its platform, Doctorow distributes his audiobooks independently or through platforms like Libro.fm.

What is 'Unauthorized Bread' about?

Featured in the collection Radicalized , Unauthorized Bread is a novella about a refugee living in subsidized housing whose smart toaster and oven are locked by corporate DRM, making it illegal to use third-party bread or ingredients.

What order should I read the Martin Hench books in?

You can read them in publication order ( Red Team Blues , The Bezzle , Picks and Shovels ) or chronological order ( Picks and Shovels , The Bezzle , Red Team Blues ). Either path works, though publication order is the way the author introduced the character's history.

Cory Doctorow Books in Order

Where to Start with Cory Doctorow

For readers new to Cory Doctorow's distinct brand of techno-optimist activism and cautionary cyberpunk, choosing a starting point depends entirely on what flavor of digital intrigue you prefer. Doctorow writes across multiple lanes, but his two major ongoing universes and his thematic standalone novels offer clear entry points.

The Teen Hacker Rebellion: Little Brother

If you want high-stakes surveillance thrillers, start with Little Brother (2008). This is Doctorow's most famous work, set in a near-future San Francisco where teenage hackers battle the Department of Homeland Security. It is fast-paced, politically charged, and teaches real-world security concepts. It serves as the gateway to his most popular series.

The Cyber-Forensic Accountant: Red Team Blues

If you prefer adult financial thrillers, start with Red Team Blues (2023). This book introduces Martin Hench, a 67-year-old forensic accountant who works in Silicon Valley tracking down stolen cryptocurrency and high-tech wealth. It reads like a classic noir detective novel updated for the blockchain era, serving as the first book published in the Hench trilogy.

The Post-Scarcity Classic: Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom

For fans of classic, mind-bending science fiction, start with Doctorow's debut novel, Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom (2003). Set in a future where death has been cured and reputation ("Whuffie") has replaced money, it is a quick, imaginative exploration of what happens when a post-scarcity society runs on social media clout.

The Little Brother Series in Order

The Little Brother universe explores civil liberties, surveillance capitalism, and hacktivism. While the main novels tell a continuous story, the third book shifts perspective, and there are key short works that bridge the gaps.

Little Brother (2008) – Introduces Marcus Yallow (under the handle "w1n5t0n") as he is wrongfully detained by the DHS after a terrorist attack and organizes a teenage rebellion using peer-to-peer technology.
Homeland (2013) – Set a few years later, Marcus is given a state-secrets-exposing archive by a former government contractor, forcing him to navigate whistleblowing, election manipulation, and personal risk.
Lawful Interception (2013) – A bridge novella originally published on Tor.com. It is set between Homeland and Attack Surface, following Marcus as he navigates the aftermath of a major Oakland earthquake.
Force Multiplier (2020) – A rare promotional short story featuring Marcus Yallow. It centers on the dangers of stalkerware and personal cyber harassment, functioning as a bridge directly leading into the third novel.
Attack Surface (2020) – The third main novel. Rather than following Marcus, it shifts the focus to Masha Maximow, a secondary character from the first two books who works for private surveillance contractors. The events of this book run somewhat parallel to and immediately after the previous books, showing the dark side of building cyber-weapons.

The Martin Hench Series: Two Ways to Read

The Martin Hench series is unique because Doctorow wrote it backward in terms of chronological order. Hench is a specialized accountant who has spent decades unraveling complex corporate scams and digital heists. You can approach this series in two distinct ways:

Option 1: Publication Order (Recommended)

Reading the books as they were released allows you to experience Hench as Doctorow originally conceived him—starting at the end of his career and working backward to reveal his history.

Red Team Blues (2023) – The "final volume" conceit. We meet a retirement-ready, 67-year-old Martin Hench taking on one last job involving a secure cryptocurrency key.
The Bezzle (2024) – Set in 2006. Martin travels to California's Channel Islands and uncovers a massive financial scam exploiting the private prison system.
Picks and Shovels (2025) – A prequel set in the 1980s. This book goes back to the dawn of the personal computer revolution, showing how a young Martin first got into the forensic accounting business.

Option 2: Chronological Order

If you prefer to follow Martin's life and career from his youth to his retirement, you should read the books in reverse order of publication:

Picks and Shovels (Set in the 1980s)
The Bezzle (Set in 2006)
Red Team Blues (Set in the present day)

Thematic Duologies and Standalone Novels

While Doctorow has written several standalone books, many share intense thematic DNA, creating informal companion pairs.

The Post-Scarcity Companion: Walkaway and Down and Out

Though not canonically linked, Walkaway (2017) acts as a spiritual prequel to Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom. While Down and Out takes place in a fully realized post-scarcity world, Walkaway shows the painful transition period—how society shifts when 3D printing and digital brain backups first make traditional labor and death obsolete, and how the ruling class tries to stop it.

Gaming and Remix Culture Standalones

For the Win (2010) – A novel about gold farmers in massive multiplayer online games unionizing against exploitative virtual sweatshops.
Pirate Cinema (2012) – Set in a near-future UK, this YA novel explores copyright enforcement, remix culture, and creative freedom through a group of teenage filmmakers.
Makers (2009) – A story about the maker movement, 3D printing, and micro-manufacturing, illustrating how small-scale entrepreneurs try to rebuild a broken economy.

Solarpunk and Climate: The Lost Cause

Published in 2023, The Lost Cause is a solarpunk novel set thirty years in the future. Unlike traditional post-apocalyptic fiction, it presents a hopeful yet realistic look at a world actively fighting climate change, focusing on generational struggles between those trying to rebuild the planet and those clinging to the past.

Short Story Collections and Non-Fiction

To fully appreciate Doctorow's impact, readers should look beyond his novels to his short fiction and essays.

Radicalized (2019) – A collection of four novellas, including the acclaimed Unauthorized Bread, which details the struggles of refugees dealing with smart appliances locked down by corporate digital rights management (DRM).
In Real Life (2014) – A graphic novel co-created with illustrator Jen Wang, expanding on his short story "Anda's Game" to explore gaming, economy, and online friendships.
Non-Fiction Essays – Doctorow has published major non-fiction works like Chokepoint Capitalism (2022, co-authored with Rebecca Giblin) and The Internet Con (2023), which detail his theories on tech monopolies, digital rights, and the "enshittification" of online platforms.

What to Know Before You Start

Before jumping in, it helps to understand Doctorow's publishing philosophy. As a digital rights activist, he is a major proponent of the Creative Commons framework. Almost all of his books are released under Creative Commons licenses, allowing readers to share them freely. He also refuses to allow his audiobooks to be sold on platforms that enforce proprietary DRM (such as Audible), choosing instead to distribute them through independent channels. His fiction is heavily grounded in real-world computer science, copyright law, and economics, making his speculative futures feel frighteningly plausible.