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Author James R. Benn pens this series that stars Billy Boyle, a fictional detective with the Boston Police Department. His family is made up of cops that have leanings toward the Irish Republicans.
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Order of Billy Boyle World War II Mysteries Series
| # | Read | Title | Published | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Billy Boyle | 2006 | Description / Buy | |
| 2 | The First Wave | 2007 | Description / Buy | |
| 3 | Blood Alone | 2008 | Description / Buy | |
| 4 | Evil for Evil | 2009 | Description / Buy | |
| 5 | Rag and Bone | 2010 | Description / Buy | |
| 6 | A Mortal Terror | 2011 | Description / Buy | |
| 7 | Death's Door | 2012 | Description / Buy | |
| 8 | A Blind Goddess | 2013 | Description / Buy | |
| 9 | The Rest is Silence | 2014 | Description / Buy | |
| 10 | The White Ghost | 2015 | Description / Buy | |
| 11 | Blue Madonna | 2016 | Description / Buy | |
| 12 | The Devouring | 2017 | Description / Buy | |
| 13 | Solemn Graves | 2018 | Description / Buy | |
| 14 | When Hell Struck Twelve | 2019 | Description / Buy | |
| 15 | The Red Horse | 2020 | Description / Buy | |
| 16 | Road of Bones | 2021 | Description / Buy | |
| 17 | From the Shadows | 2022 | Description / Buy | |
| 18 | Proud Sorrows | 2023 | Description / Buy | |
| 19 | The Phantom Patrol | 2024 | Description / Buy |
When the United States get into World War II, both his dad and others are afraid that he will be killed while defending the hated British, just like his uncle before him during the Great War. They call in some favors, and get Billy assigned to a cousin’s husband’s staff, he is a little known officer in the Army at this time and is named Dwight D. Eisenhower.
He is referred to as “Uncle Ike” while in private, and is not the war hero is now known to be during this time. Billy is brought along with Ike to solve crimes as an investigator in cases that need professionalism but also discretion. It is far from the safe and simple desk job that he had while in Boston, and he finds himself in danger during every mission he works on.
The first book in the series, titled “Billy Boyle” was released in the year 2006. The series is from the historical mystery genre. Since the first book was released, each year a book has been published. Many of the books come out in the month of September.
BEST BILLY BOYLE WWII MYSTERIES BOOKS
For those readers looking to get into the “Billy Boyle WWII Mysteries” series by James R. Benn, this section will help with that. It will go over the novels “Billy Boyle”, “The First Wave”, and “Blood Alone”.
Billy Boyle: This is the first novel in the “Billy Boyle WWII Mysteries” series and was released in the year 2006. Billy, who never left the city of Boston before enlisting and being sent to school as a candidate to be an officer, is unsure how good of a detective he is going to be. When Ike wants him to be his personal investigator, he dutifully goes off to Beardsley Hall. It is here that the Norwegian government (currently led by King Haakon and is in exile) is staying as a resident.
He has to catch a spy that could have been planted here. Accompanying him is a beautiful Brit WREN and an aristocratic Polish officer. Two killings and a theft test Billy as an investigator, and comes to terms with aspects of this war, one that he did not want to be a part of in the first place. To the surprise of many, including his own, Billy turns out to be much better at being a detective than expected.
The First Wave: This is the second novel in the “Billy Boyle WWII Mysteries” series and was released in the year 2007. Lieutenant Billy Boyle hesitantly goes with Major Samuel Harding (Boyle’s boss) in the first boat that lands on Algeria’s shores, at the start of the Allied invasion. Their job is to set up the Vichy French forces’ surrender.
There is dissension between Free French (under De Gaulle), the local militia, and the regular army. Black marketeers from America, working for the enemy, redirect medical supplies off to the Casbah. It leads to multiple killings that Billy has to solve, and try to rescue a captured British spy, who is the woman that he loves.
Blood Alone: This is the third novel in the “Billy Boyle WWII Mysteries” series and was released in the year 2008. Billy Boyle wakes up in a Sicilian field hospital and he has amnesia. There is a yellow silk handkerchief that has a L embroidered on it.
As he goes, he starts to remember that he was sent to shore before the troops, and has this item of Lucky Luciano. He is supposed to contact the Sicilian Mafia’s head. He has to stop a killing band of forgers of Army scrip that is led by someone called Vito Genovese.
OTHER BOOK SERIES YOU MAY LIKE
Be sure to check out the “John Russell WWII” series by David Downing. This series is able to create a fictional world that is rich with the expertise of a historian, but is still able to inject some heart and literary style. The series began in the year 2007, with the publication of “Zoo Station”.
Many readers also enjoy the “Maggie Hope Mystery” series by Susan Elia MacNeal. During WWII, Maggie Hope lives in London while working as a spy and a code breaker. She was born in America and is a math whiz.
What Is The Next Book in The Billy Boyle World War Ii Mysteries Series?
The next book in the The Billy Boyle World War Ii Mysteries Series by James R. Benn is The Phantom Patrol and will be released on September, 3rd 2024.
Up next; SOLEMN GRAVES, 9/4/18.