David Gordon Books in Order

Where Should You Start Reading David Gordon?

David Gordon is a master of blending pulp detective tropes with sharp, literary humor. If you want a quick introduction to his unique style, your best starting point is his award-winning standalone debut, The Serialist. It is a self-contained, hilarious, and dark mystery that showcases his talent for meta-fiction and crime parodies.

For readers who prefer a serialized narrative, start with The Bouncer, the first book in his highly acclaimed Joe the Bouncer series. This series should be read in publication order, as the protagonist's relationships, personal life, and status within the New York criminal underworld evolve significantly from book to book.

The Joe the Bouncer Series

This is David Gordon's flagship series, focusing on Joe Brody—a Harvard dropout and former Special Forces operative suffering from PTSD. Back in Queens, New York, Joe takes a job as a strip club bouncer, but his unique skill set soon makes him the official "fixer" and mediator for the city's diverse mob families. The books are known for their fast-paced capers, eccentric casts, and rich New York atmosphere.

Joe the Bouncer Books in Publication Order

1. The Bouncer (2018) – Joe is hired to defend a strip club but gets caught in a massive federal conspiracy involving the FBI, local mobsters, and a high-stakes heist.
2. The Hard Stuff (2019) – Joe is called in to broker a peace deal between New York's black-market marijuana distributors and ruthless international cartels trying to take over the market.
3. Against the Law (2021) – Joe deals with a corrupt ex-cop, a missing diamond, and a crew of rogue actors planning an audacious heist.
4. The Wild Life (2022) – When a high-end sex worker is murdered, Joe's investigation plunges him into the surreal worlds of performance art, tech billionaires, and secretive cults.
5. The Pigeon (2023) – Joe must track down a stolen painting, navigating the double-crosses of the fine art world and the criminal underground.

Joe the Bouncer Chronological Reading Order

For the most part, the chronological order matches the publication order. However, there is a rare holiday-themed short story chapbook that fits neatly between the third and fourth novels:

1. The Bouncer (Book 1)
2. The Hard Stuff (Book 2)
3. Against the Law (Book 3)
4. Sergeant Santa: A Joe the Bouncer Tale (2021 Short Story) – This festive, limited-edition chapbook follows Joe dealing with a missing Santa and a holiday heist. It fits chronologically between books 3 and 4.
5. The Wild Life (Book 4)
6. The Pigeon (Book 5)

David Gordon's Standalone Novels

In addition to his series work, Gordon has written several standalone crime novels that explore the fringes of society, the struggles of writers, and the seedier sides of major cities.

Standalone Novels in Publication Order

• The Serialist (2010) – A struggling pulp-fiction writer is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of a notorious serial killer on death row, only for copycat murders to start happening.
• Mystery Girl (2013) – Sam Kornberg, a failed experimental novelist in Los Angeles, becomes an assistant to an eccentric private eye and gets dragged into a bizarre noir conspiracy involving occultists and Hollywood figures.
• Behind Sunset (2025) – Set in 1994 Los Angeles, this crime novel follows Elliott Gross, a New York transplant working for a low-rent adult magazine called Raunchy. When the magazine's starlet disappears, Elliott's investigation leads him into the dark underbelly of the pornography industry and celebrity wellness cults.

Short Stories, Collections, and Anthologies

David Gordon's short fiction frequently features the same blend of hard-boiled noir, dark comedy, and surreal genre elements, including ex-gangsters, vampires, and artists.

• The Amateur (2014 Novella) – A hard-boiled tale of a young man in Paris who crosses paths with a mysterious expatriate, leading to a dark confession. It was published as a standalone digital single and is also collected in White Tiger on Snow Mountain.
• White Tiger on Snow Mountain (2014 Collection) – A comprehensive anthology of Gordon's short stories, including "The Amateur."
• Spring (2017 Novella) – Published in Electric Literature's Recommended Reading, this story follows a man helping his wife stage a fashion show, serving as an uneasy portrait of marriage.
• "Selflessness" in Reports from the Deep End (2023 Anthology) – Gordon contributed this Ballardian science fiction short story to a multi-author tribute anthology inspired by the works of J. G. Ballard.

What to Know Before You Start

David Gordon's writing draws heavily from his own eclectic life experiences, including his time working for adult magazines in the 1990s and his academic background in comparative literature. Readers should expect stories that seamlessly transition from high-brow literary references to low-brow pulp humor. While the standalones can be enjoyed in any order, we strongly recommend reading the Joe the Bouncer books sequentially to get the full benefit of the continuing character development and recurring side characters.