Order of Lilian Jackson Braun Books
Lilian Jackson Braun (1913-2011) was an American author of cozy mystery novels. Her series is The Cat Who (aka the Jim Qwilleran Feline Whodunnit series) books featuring a pair of feline sleuths and their rich and eccentric owner Jim Qwilleran. Braun wrote sports poetry as a teenager for the Detroit News and wrote some copy for department stores. She also worked for the Detroit Free Press as the editor of the Good Living section. Lilian never wrote on a computer or even a word processor, sticking to writing using a typewriter.
Lilian Jackson Braun made her debut as a published novelist in 1966 with The Cat Who Read Backwards. After two critically acclaimed follow-ups, she would leave the publishing industry for nearly 20 years, returning in 1986 with The Cat Who Saw Red. She also wrote three collections of short stories in her The Cat Who series. Below is a list of Lilian Jackson Braun’s books in order of when they were originally published (and in chronological order):
Publication Order of Cat Who... Books
| The Cat Who Could Read Backwards | (1966) |    |
| The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern | (1967) | |
| The Cat Who Turned On And Off | (1968) | |
| The Cat Who Saw Red | (1986) | |
| The Cat Who Played Brahms | (1987) | |
| The Cat Who Played Post Office | (1987) | |
| The Cat Who Knew Shakespeare | (1988) | |
| The Cat Who Sniffed Glue | (1988) | |
| The Cat Who Went Underground | (1989) | |
| The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts | (1990) | |
| The Cat Who Lived High | (1990) | |
| The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal | (1991) | |
| The Cat Who Moved a Mountain | (1992) | |
| The Cat Who Wasn't There | (1992) | |
| The Cat Who Went into the Closet | (1993) | |
| The Cat Who Came to Breakfast | (1994) | |
| The Cat Who Blew the Whistle | (1994) | |
| The Cat Who Said Cheese | (1995) | |
| The Cat Who Tailed a Thief | (1997) | |
| The Cat Who Sang for the Birds | (1998) | |
| The Cat Who Saw Stars | (1999) | |
| The Cat Who Robbed a Bank | (1999) | |
| The Cat Who Smelled a Rat | (2001) | |
| The Cat Who Went Up the Creek | (2002) | |
| The Cat Who Brought Down the House | (2003) | |
| The Cat Who Talked Turkey | (2004) | |
| The Cat Who Went Bananas | (2004) | |
| The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell | (2006) | |
| The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers | (2007) | |
| The Cat Who Smelled Smoke is book #30 but has yet to be released. | ||
Publication Order of Cat Who Short Story Collections
| The Cat Who Had 14 Tales | (1988) | |
| Short and Tall Tales / Qwilleran's Short and Tall Tales | (2002) | |
| The Private Life of the Cat Who... | (2003) | |
Publication Order of Midnight Louie Books
(with J.A. Jance, Carole Nelson Douglas, Nancy Pickard, Toni L.P. Kelner)
| Catnap | (1992) | |
| Pussyfoot | (1993) | |
| Cat On A Blue Monday | (1994) | |
| Cat in a Crimson Haze | (1995) | |
| Cat in a Diamond Dazzle | (1996) | |
| Cat with an Emerald Eye | (1997) | |
| Cat in a Flamingo Fedora | (1997) | |
| Cat in a Golden Garland | (1997) | |
| Cat on a Hyacinth Hunt | (1998) | |
| Midnight Louie's Pet Detectives | (1998) | |
| Cat in an Indigo Mood | (1999) | |
| Cat in a Jeweled Jumpsuit | (1999) | |
| Cat in a Kiwi Con | (2000) | |
| Cat in a Leopard Spot | (2001) | |
| Cat in a Midnight Choir | (2002) | |
| Cat in a Neon Nightmare | (2003) | |
| Midnight Louie In Something Fishy | (2003) | |
| Cat in an Orange Twist | (2004) | |
| Cat in a Hot Pink Pursuit | (2005) | |
| Cat in a Quicksilver Caper | (2006) | |
| Cat in a Red Hot Rage | (2007) | |
| Cat in a Sapphire Slipper | (2008) | |
| Cat in a Topaz Tango | (2009) | |
| Cat in an Ultramarine Scheme | (2010) | |
| Cat in a Vegas Gold Vendetta | (2011) | |
| Fruit of the Tomb | (2012) | |
| Cat in a White Tie and Tails | (2012) | |
| Cat in an Alien X-Ray | (2013) | |
| Cat in a Yellow Spotlight | (2014) | |
| Cat in a Zebra Zoot Suit | (2015) | |
| Cat in an Alphabet Endgame | (2016) | |
| If you are reading the Midnight Louie series in chronological order, you will want to read the Cat and a Playing Card series prior to the Midnight Louie series. However, this is not required. | ||
Publication Order of Anthologies
| Sisters in Crime 3 | (1990) | |
| Mystery Cats | (1991) | |
| More Mystery Cats | (1993) | |
| Mystery Cats 3: More Feline Felonies | (1995) | |
| Tar Heel Dead | (2005) | |
What is an anthologie?
A collection of stories by various different authors.
For the person who does not read romance novels—billions are sold every year to men and women. They are an escape from work, children, dishes, etc., etc. What’s wrong with a happy ending?
What about the Mystery Cat Series of 3?
At the time we added Lilian, we did not include anthologies. I’ll have those added soon!