The best New Mexico mysteries begin with Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn & Chee novels, set among the Navajo Tribal Police, and run through Anne Hillerman's continuation, Michael McGarrity's Kevin Kerney series, Steven Havill's Posadas County procedurals, and Rudolfo Anaya's Sonny Baca quartet. The state's landscape — vast, empty, layered with three cultures and a thousand years of history — turns out to be perfect for crime fiction, where place is half the story. This is a reader's guide to the series worth your time. For the collector's view, see collecting New Mexico mystery & crime fiction; for the wider canon, Best Books Set in New Mexico.
Published June 2026 · Curated by Josh Eldred, New Mexico Literacy Project
The Leaphorn & Chee novels — Tony Hillerman
The foundation. Eighteen mysteries, from The Blessing Way (1970) to The Shape Shifter (2006), following Navajo Tribal Police officers Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee across the high desert. Hillerman, who taught journalism at the University of New Mexico from 1966 to 1987 and died in Albuquerque in 2008, wove Navajo culture and landscape into the procedural so well that the Navajo Nation named him a Special Friend of the Diné. Dance Hall of the Dead won the 1974 Edgar Award for Best Novel, and the books are the source of AMC's Dark Winds. Best starting points: A Thief of Time and Dance Hall of the Dead.
The Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito novels — Anne Hillerman
Tony's daughter took up the series in 2013 with Spider Woman's Daughter, a Spur Award winner that brought Officer Bernadette Manuelito from the margins to center stage. Anne Hillerman lives in Santa Fe and Tucson and makes frequent trips to the Navajo Nation, and the books, running through Shadow of the Solstice (2025), keep the same deep sense of place. A natural continuation and a fine entry point for new readers.
The Kevin Kerney novels — Michael McGarrity
Beginning with Tularosa (1996) and running through Head Wounds (2020), McGarrity's series follows lawman Kevin Kerney from Santa Fe across the whole state. A former Santa Fe County deputy sheriff who founded the department's sex crimes unit, McGarrity writes procedure that rings true and a New Mexico that's lived-in rather than scenic. His American West trilogy (Hard Country, Backlands, The Last Ranch) traces the Kerney family in New Mexico from 1875 to the Vietnam era.
The Posadas County mysteries — Steven F. Havill
Set in a fictional county on the southern New Mexico border, Havill's long-running series began with Heartshot (1991) and follows Bill Gastner, first as undersheriff and then sheriff, and later Undersheriff Estelle Reyes-Guzman. It is the great procedural of the rural borderland: small departments, big country, and small-town crime rendered with care.
The Ella Clah novels — Aimée & David Thurlo
A long series, beginning with Blackening Song (1995), featuring Ella Clah, a former FBI agent who becomes a special investigator for the Navajo police, navigating both modern law enforcement and traditional Navajo life on the reservation. A worthy companion to Hillerman from a husband-and-wife team based in Corrales; David Thurlo was raised on the Navajo reservation.
The Sonny Baca quartet — Rudolfo Anaya
The author of Bless Me, Ultima turned to crime fiction with four seasonal novels, Zia Summer (1995), Rio Grande Fall (1996), Shaman Winter (1999) and Jemez Spring (2005), following Albuquerque private investigator Sonny Baca. Anaya blends the procedural with Hispano and Native spirituality, making these unlike any other mysteries on this list.
Two more for the shelf. J. Michael Orenduff's comic Pot Thief mysteries, starting with The Pot Thief Who Studied Pythagoras (2009), are narrated by a pottery dealer in Albuquerque's Old Town. Anne Hillerman's Tony Hillerman's Landscape (2009), with photographs by Don Strel, is a guide to the real places behind her father's novels. For the Navajo Nation beyond the mystery shelf, see my Navajo (Diné) reading list, and for Sonny Baca's city, Best Books Set in Albuquerque.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best New Mexico mystery series?
Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn & Chee novels, set among the Navajo Tribal Police, are the definitive New Mexico mystery series. Start with A Thief of Time.
Who writes New Mexico mysteries now?
Anne Hillerman (continuing the Leaphorn/Chee/Manuelito series), Michael McGarrity (Kevin Kerney), and Steven F. Havill (Posadas County) are the leading contemporary names.
Did Rudolfo Anaya write mysteries?
Yes. The Sonny Baca quartet (Zia Summer, Rio Grande Fall, Shaman Winter, Jemez Spring) is set in Albuquerque.
In what order should I read the Leaphorn and Chee novels?
In publication order: The Blessing Way (1970), Dance Hall of the Dead (1973), Listening Woman (1978), People of Darkness (1980), The Dark Wind (1982), The Ghostway (1984), Skinwalkers (1986), A Thief of Time (1988), Talking God (1989), Coyote Waits (1990), Sacred Clowns (1993), The Fallen Man (1996), The First Eagle (1998), Hunting Badger (1999), The Wailing Wind (2002), The Sinister Pig (2003), Skeleton Man (2004) and The Shape Shifter (2006). The first three star Joe Leaphorn alone, the next three introduce and follow Jim Chee, and Skinwalkers brings the two together.
What order are Anne Hillerman's Leaphorn, Chee and Manuelito novels in?
Spider Woman's Daughter (2013), Rock with Wings (2015), Song of the Lion (2017), Cave of Bones (2018), The Tale Teller (2019), Stargazer (2021), The Sacred Bridge (2022), The Way of the Bear (2023), Lost Birds (2024) and Shadow of the Solstice (2025). Spider Woman's Daughter won the Western Writers of America's 2014 Spur Award for best first western novel.
What is Dark Winds based on?
AMC's Dark Winds, which premiered in June 2022, adapts Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn and Chee novels, starting with Listening Woman and People of Darkness. Zahn McClarnon plays Joe Leaphorn, and Robert Redford and George R.R. Martin are among its executive producers.
Cite This Guide
Eldred, J. (June 2026). Best New Mexico Mystery & Crime Novels. New Mexico Literacy Project.
https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/best-new-mexico-mysteries
Original curation by Josh Eldred. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.