🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Faith Martin
Faith Martin isn’t the sort of person you might have expected to get into writing, at least not writing fiction. Martin was born in Oxford and nothing about her life suggested that she would pursue writing. Her life in the employment arena began when she took a secretarial post at Somerville College. Martin has always had a free spirit, unique to her, even if others do not always see it. She harbored a love for writing, but it quickly got buried under the strain and requirements of her academic life. And it isn’t like Faith Martin was miserable or anything. Rather she loved college life and Oxford academe. That much was never in doubt. However, her desire to strike out as a successful author finally won out over her love for college life.
All Book Series by Faith Martin
Murder on the Oxford Canal / A Narrow Escape
Series opener · book 1 of 23 · published 2004
Murder at the University / On the Straight and Narrow
Book 2 of 23 · published 2005
Murder in the Garden / Across the Narrow Blue Line
Book 9 of 23 · published 2010
The Birthday Mystery / Birthdays Can Be Murder
Series opener · book 1 of 9 · published 2010
Castle Mystery / The Invisible Murder
Latest in the series · book 9 of 9 · published 2012
The Vicarage Murder / An Unholy Mess
Series opener · book 1 of 3 · published 2015
The Manor House Murder / An Unholy Shame
Latest in the series · book 3 of 3 · published 2016
A Dangerous Train of Thought
Latest in the series · book 3 of 3 · published 2026
The Lavender Lady / The Lavender Lady Casefile
Single-title series · published 2019
Stolen Fire
Series opener · book 1 of 7 · published 1993 Anthology · Maxine Barry
His Last Gamble
Latest in the series · book 7 of 7 · published 2012 Anthology · Maxine Barry
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Faith Martin?
Faith Martin isn’t the sort of person you might have expected to get into writing, at least not writing fiction. Martin was born in Oxford and nothing about her life suggested that she would pursue writing. Her life in the employment arena began when she took a secretarial post at Somerville College.
Which Faith Martin series should I start with?
The best place to start is the DI Hillary Greene series, the earliest of Faith Martin's multi-book series: it opens with Murder on the Oxford Canal / A Narrow Escape (2004) and runs to 23 books across 2004–2026, ending with Murder Most Final (2026). Faith Martin's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Faith Martin written?
Faith Martin has 56 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1993 and 2027. 48 of them belong to 6 named series — the largest being the DI Hillary Greene series with 23 books — and 8 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Faith Martin's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Faith Martin's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are DI Hillary Greene (2004–2026, 23 books), Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries (2010–2022, 9 books) and Monica Noble (2015–2016, 3 books), plus 3 more.
How are Faith Martin's books organised into series?
This guide splits Faith Martin's 56 books into 6 named series and 8 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: DI Hillary Greene (23 books, 2004–2026); Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries (9 books, 2010–2022); Ryder & Loveday Mystery (8 books, 2018–2022); Monica Noble (3 books, 2015–2016); The Val & Arbie Mysteries (3 books, 2024–2026), plus 1 further series.