Reading Order
Key West Mysteriesseries.seoTitleShort
Start with Florida Straits and continue through all 17 books in the listed reading order.
Start Here
Start with Florida Straits
Book 1 by Laurence Shames • Published 1992
Low level New York mob gofer Joey Goldman bolts for Key West with his girlfriend, hoping to reinvent himself as a big time gangster. When half brother Gino arrives with stolen emeralds and furious rivals, Joey must fi...
Complete List
Key West Mysteries reading order
Ends with Relative Humidity
- 1
Book 1:Florida Straits
Laurence Shames • 1992
Low level New York mob gofer Joey Goldman bolts for Key West with his girlfriend, hoping to reinvent himself as a big time gangster. When half brother Gino arrives with stolen emeralds and furious rivals, Joey must fi...
- 2
Book 2:Scavenger Reef
Laurence Shames • 1994
When painter Augie Silver disappears in a Key West boating accident, his friends mourn him and watch the value of his work soar. Then Augie limps back to town, and someone starts trying to kill him for real, forcing t...
- 3
Book 3:Sunburn
Laurence Shames • 1995
A lifetime of secrets is crushing aging godfather Vincente Delgatto, so son Joey arranges a tell all memoir with a naive local editor. As the project spooks mobsters, law enforcement, and jealous heirs, loyalties fray...
- 4
Book 4:Tropical Depression
Laurence Shames • 1996
Depressed bra magnate Murray Zemelman walks away from his New Jersey life and heads to Key West in search of meaning. Teaming up with Native American fishing guide Tommy Tarpon on a tribal casino plan, he collides wit...
- 5
Book 5:Virgin Heat
Laurence Shames • 1997
Angelina Amaro, daughter of a Brooklyn mob boss, secretly loves Sal Martucci, the man who informed against her father. When she spots Sal tending bar in a Key West home video, she chases him south, setting off a chaot...
- 6
Book 6:Mangrove Squeeze
Laurence Shames • 1998
Former Wall Street deal maker Aaron Katz buys a crumbling Key West guesthouse, dreaming of a slower life. Ambitious ad seller Suki Sperakis instead uncovers a Russian mob racket hidden behind tourist T shirt shops, an...
- 8
Book 8:The Naked Detective
Laurence Shames • 2000
Early retired Pete Amsterdam lives quietly in Key West with a sham private eye license he uses as a tax dodge. When a mysterious blond visitor turns up dead after begging for help, he is forced into real sleuthing ami...
- 9
Book 9:Shot on Location
Laurence Shames • 2013
A hit reality show brings a Hollywood production to the Keys, complete with a tantrum prone star, an exhausted showrunner, and a bitter ghostwriter. When insurance scams, stunts, and mob money intersect, locals like B...
- 10
Book 10:Chickens
Laurence Shames • 2014
In this short Key West story, a furious neighborhood rooster squares off against retired gangster Bert the Shirt and his undersized chihuahua. What starts as a noisy nuisance becomes a small, funny lesson in fear, pri...
- 11
Book 11:Tropical Swap
Laurence Shames • 2014
Manhattan couple Meg and Peter Kaplan swap their apartment for a Key West house with a pool, expecting a lazy escape from winter. Instead they inherit a panicked low level mobster, coconut delivered death threats, nos...
- 12
Book 12:Key West Luck
Laurence Shames • 2015
Fresh from prison after playing the wrong kind of girlfriend, Phoebe Goodyear lands in Key West determined to make a go of a shabby sno cone truck. When a sleazy lender threatens to repossess it, she and musician Nick...
- 13
Book 13:One Strange Date
Laurence Shames • 2017
Renita Daughtry is young, romantic, and seemingly easy to fool, which makes her a tempting mark for professional liar Richie Pestucci. As their cat and mouse courtship deepens, friends and family, including a devoted...
- 14
Book 14:One Big Joke
Laurence Shames • 2017
Out of work television writer Lenny Sullivan flees New York for Key West to recharge at his friend Pat's struggling comedy club. When a ruthless investor and a pair of bumbling mobsters move to burn the place down, Le...
- 15
Book 15:Nacho Unleashed
Laurence Shames • 2019
Nacho, a tiny but fearless chihuahua, adores his master Bert the Shirt and falls hard for wisecracking newcomer Rita Janneau. When Rita's bartending job at a waterfront rum distillery exposes a shady operation and a r...
- 16
Book 16:The Paradise Gig
Laurence Shames • 2020
In 1964 the Beatles briefly land in Key West, play an unannounced hotel bar set, and somehow misplace a notebook full of songs. Decades later a kidnapped yogi, an eager singer, and a trail of bodies convince Bert the...
- 17
Book 17:Key West Normal
Laurence Shames • 2021
Two broke friends quietly tow away an abandoned hot dog truck, not realizing a sleepless New Yorker and a fortune in smuggled goods are hidden inside. As criminals close in, homeless philosopher Pineapple and aging mo...
- 18
Book 18:Relative Humidity
Laurence Shames • 2023
Reluctant detective Pete Amsterdam is enjoying sunny idleness until his sharp tongued mother Gertie arrives in Key West and volunteers him to help charming Uncle Gianni. With pickleball pro Penelope Calabro in danger...
Quick Answers
Key West Mysteries FAQ
What is the best order to read the Key West Mysteries series?
The recommended reading order is the numbered order shown on this page, starting with Florida Straits.
How many books are in the Key West Mysteries series?
There are 17 books currently listed in the Key West Mysteries series on GurusReads.
Where should I start with the Key West Mysteries series?
New readers should start with Florida Straits, the first book in the reading order.
Is the Key West Mysteries series complete?
Based on the publication years we have, the series appears likely complete and spans releases from 1992 to 2023.