Frank Quinn

Frank Quinn is the former NYPD homicide detective protagonist of John Lutz's Frank Quinn thriller series — a brilliant investigator forced to resign under a cloud of scandal who now works as a private consultant on the most difficult murder cases the department cannot solve, particularly those involving serial killers. Lutz pairs Quinn with a small team that includes Pearl Kasner and Fedderman, and the ensemble approach gives the series a different texture from the lone-detective format.

Lutz is one of American crime fiction's most experienced writers, with decades of novels in multiple series, and the Quinn books reflect his deep familiarity with serial killer investigation as a narrative form. His plotting is meticulous and his killer characterizations draw on genuine criminological research.

Quinn's complicated personal and professional history — the scandal that ended his career, his relationships with his team, and his specific psychological approach to understanding killers — give the series its character dimension alongside the procedural plotting. Lutz handles the darkness of serial killer material with the craft of someone who has written extensively in this territory.

Begin with Darker Than Night and read in order.