Clive Cussler published 100 novels, 1 short story collection, 1 non-fiction book, 1 children's book and 1 other book, beginning with The Mediterranean Caper (1973). The 5 series include Dirk Pitt (28 books, starting with The Mediterranean Caper), The NUMA Files (22 books, starting with Serpent) and Oregon Files (19 books, starting with Golden Buddha). The best-known is Treasure (1988).
Updated September 2026
Dirk Pitt books in order (28)Series page
Reading order: 1 The Mediterranean Caper (1973) · 2 Iceberg (1975) · 3 Raise the Titanic! (1976) · 4 Vixen 03 (1978) · 5 Night Probe! (1981) · 6 Pacific Vortex! (1983) · 7 Deep Six (1984) · 8 Cyclops (1986) · 9 Treasure (1988) · 10 Dragon (1990) · … all 28 below
- 1.
The Mediterranean Caper (1973)
- 2.
Iceberg (1975)
- 3.
Raise the Titanic! (1976)
- 4.
Vixen 03 (1978)
- 5.
Night Probe! (1981)
- 6.
Pacific Vortex! (1983)
- 7.
Deep Six (1984)
- 8.
Cyclops (1986)
- 9.
Treasure (1988)
- 10.
Dragon (1990)
- 11.
Sahara (1992)
- 12.
Inca Gold (1994)
- 13.
Shock Wave (1996)
- 14.
Flood Tide (1997)
- 15.
Atlantis Found (1999)
- 16.
Valhalla Rising (2001)
- 17.
Trojan Odyssey (2003)
- 18.
Black Wind (2004)
- 19.
Treasure of Khan (2006)
- 20.
Arctic Drift (2008)
- 21.
Crescent Dawn (2010)
- 22.
Poseidon's Arrow (Nov 2012)
- 23.
Havana Storm (2014)
- 24.
Odessa Sea (Nov 2016)
- 25.
Celtic Empire (2019)
- 26.
Clive Cussler's The Devil's Sea ĐĐ (2021)
- 27.
Clive Cussler's The Corsican Shadow ĐĐ (2023)
- 28.
Clive Cussler Obsidian Sky ĐĐ (2026)
The NUMA Files books in order (22)Series page
Reading order: 1 Serpent (1999) · 2 Blue Gold (2000) · 3 Fire Ice (2002) · 4 White Death (2003) · 5 Lost City (2004) · 6 Polar Shift (2005) · 7 The Navigator (2007) · 8 Medusa (2009) · 9 Devil's Gate (2011) · 10 The Storm (2012) · … all 22 below
- 1.
Serpent (1999)
- 2.
Blue Gold (2000)
- 3.
Fire Ice (2002)
- 4.
White Death (Jun 2003)
- 5.
Lost City (Jul 2004)
- 6.
Polar Shift (2005)
- 7.
The Navigator (Jun 2007)
- 8.
Medusa (Jun 2009)
- 9.
Devil's Gate (Nov 2011)
- 10.
The Storm (2012)
- 11.
Zero Hour (2013)
- 12.
Ghost Ship (May 2014)
- 13.
The Pharaoh’s Secret (2015)
- 14.
Nighthawk (2017)
- 15.
The Rising Sea (2018)
- 16.
Sea of Greed (2018)
- 17.
Journey of the Pharaohs (2020)
- 18.
Fast Ice (2021)
- 19.
Clive Cussler's Dark Vector (2022)
- 20.
Clive Cussler's Condor's Fury (2023)
- 21.
Clive Cussler's Desolation Code (2024)
- 22.
Clive Cussler's Cold Fire (2026)
Oregon Files books in order (19)Series page
Reading order: 1 Golden Buddha (2003) · 2 Sacred Stone (2004) · 3 Dark Watch (2005) · 4 Skeleton Coast (2006) · 5 Plague Ship (2008) · 6 Corsair (2009) · 7 The Silent Sea (2010) · 8 The Jungle (2011) · 9 Mirage (2012) · 10 Piranha (2015) · … all 19 below
- 1.
Golden Buddha (2003)
- 2.
Sacred Stone (2004)
- 3.
Dark Watch (2005)
- 4.
Skeleton Coast (Oct 2006)
- 5.
Plague Ship (Jun 2008)
- 6.
Corsair (Mar 2009)
- 7.
The Silent Sea (Mar 2010)
- 8.
The Jungle (2011)
- 9.
Mirage (2012)
- 10.
Piranha (2015)
- 11.
The Emperor's Revenge (2016)
- 12.
Typhoon Fury (Nov 2017)
- 13.
Shadow Tyrants (2018)
- 14.
Final Option (2019)
- 15.
Marauder (2020)
- 16.
Clive Cussler's Hellburner (2022)
- 17.
Clive Cussler's Fire Strike (2023)
- 18.
Clive Cussler's Ghost Soldier (2024)
- 19.
Clive Cussler's Quantum Tempest (2025)
Isaac Bell books in order (15)Series page
Reading order: 1 The Chase (2007) · 2 The Wrecker (2009) · 3 The Spy (2010) · 4 The Race (2011) · 5 The Thief (2012) · 6 The Striker (2013) · 7 The Bootlegger (2014) · 8 The Assassin (2015) · 9 The Gangster (2016) · 10 The Cutthroat (2017) · … all 15 below
- 1.
The Chase (2007)
- 2.
The Wrecker (2009)
- 3.
The Spy (Jun 2010), with Justin Scott
- 4.
The Race (2011)
- 5.
The Thief (Mar 2012), with Justin Scott
- 6.
The Striker (2013)
- 7.
The Bootlegger (2014)
- 8.
The Assassin (2015)
- 9.
The Gangster (2016)
- 10.
The Cutthroat (2017), with Justin Scott
- 11.
The Titanic Secret (2019)
- 12.
The Saboteurs (2021)
- 13.
Clive Cussler's The Sea Wolves (2022)
- 14.
Clive Cussler's The Heist (2024)
- 15.
Clive Cussler's The Iron Storm (2025)
Sam & Remi Fargo books in order (4)Series page
Reading order: 2 Lost Empire (2010) · 4 The Tombs (2012) · 5 The Mayan Secrets (2013) · 7 The Solomon Curse (2015)
- 2.
Lost Empire (Aug 2010)
- 4.
The Tombs (Sep 2012)
- 5.
The Mayan Secrets (Sep 2013)
- 7.
The Solomon Curse (Sep 2015)
Where to start with Clive Cussler
Start here
The Mediterranean Caper
Book 1 of Dirk Pitt, the series that includes Treasure, Clive Cussler's most-read book.
Highest rated
Sahara
Rated 4.4 out of 5 by 32 readers.
Standalone novels in order
The Sea Hunters (1996)
Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed (1998)
Spartan Gold (2009)
The Adventures of Hotsy Totsy (2010)
The Kingdom (2011)
The Eye of Heaven (2014)
Pirate (2016)
The Romanov Ransom (2017)
The Grey Ghost (2018)
The Oracle (2019)
Wrath of Poseidon (2020)
The Devil's Sea (2021)
Short story collections in order
Thriller 2 (2009)
Non-fiction in order
The Sea Hunters II (2002)
Children's books in order
The Adventures of Vin Fiz (2006)
Other books in order
Silent Killers (2011)
Film and TV adaptations
- Raise the Titanic (1980)Film · from Raise the Titanic!
- Sahara (2005)Film · from Sahara
About Clive Cussler
Clive Eric Cussler was an American adventure novelist and underwater explorer. His thriller novels, many featuring the character Dirk Pitt, have been listed on The New York Times fiction best-seller list more than 20 times. Cussler was the founder and chairman of the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA), which has discovered more than 60 shipwreck sites and numerous other notable underwater wrecks. He was the sole author or main author of more than 80 books. He often placed himself into his books as himself.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Clive Cussler FAQ
- How many books has Clive Cussler written?
- Clive Cussler published 100 novels, 1 short story collection, 1 non-fiction book, 1 children's book and 1 other book that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Clive Cussler's books in?
- Read each series in its own order: start Dirk Pitt with The Mediterranean Caper, The NUMA Files with Serpent and Oregon Files with Golden Buddha. The other books stand alone and can be read in any order.
- What is Clive Cussler's last book?
- Clive Cussler's The Sea Wolves (2022).
- What is Clive Cussler's most famous book?
- Treasure (1988) is Clive Cussler's most widely read book.
- Are Clive Cussler's books connected?
- 88 books belong to 5 series (Dirk Pitt, The NUMA Files, Oregon Files and Isaac Bell); the other 16 books stand alone.
- Which Clive Cussler books have been adapted?
- 2 books have been adapted for film or TV, including Raise the Titanic! (as Raise the Titanic, film, 1980) and Sahara (film, 2005).
Authors like Clive Cussler
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.