🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Marcia Talley
Marcia Talley is a multiple award-winning American mystery author best known for the “Hannah Ives Mysteries”, a collection of short stories and two collaborative novels. Before she became a full time writer in 2000, she worked as a librarian. Talley was born in 1943 Cleveland to career US Marine Corps officer Thomas Chester and registered nurse Elizabeth Tuckerman. She went to Oberlin College from where she graduated with a bachelors in 1965, before she got a job working for the Bryn Mawr School as a librarian. Three years later she moved to Annapolis to work for St John’s College as a cataloguer.
All Book Series by Marcia Talley
Murder Most Sacred
Series opener · book 1 of 12 · published 1989 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Murder Most Medieval
Book 2 of 12 · published 1993 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Murder Most Delicious
Book 3 of 12 · published 1995 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg,Barbara Paul
Murder Most Delectable
Book 5 of 12 · published 2000 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Murder Most Romantic
Book 7 of 12 · published 2001 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg,Susan Sizemore
Murder Most Postal
Book 8 of 12 · published 2001 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Murder Most Feline
Book 9 of 12 · published 2001 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg,Ed Gorman
Murder Most Confederate
Book 10 of 12 · published 2003 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Murder Most Celtic
Book 11 of 12 · published 2003 Anthology · Martin H. Greenberg
Mystery Most Humorous
Latest in the series · book 12 of 12 · published 2025 Co-authored · Donna Andrews,Gigi Pandian,Steve Shrott,Hugh Lessig,Melinda Mullet,Becky Clark,Victoria Dowd,Sylvia Maultash Warsh,Nikki Knight,Suzanne Flaig,Nina Mansfield,Susan Love Brown,Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier,Gregory Meece,M.S. Greene,P. J. Nelson,Sarah Bewley,Melissa Westemeier
Chesapeake Crimes
Series opener · book 1 of 3 · published 2004 Anthology · Donna Andrews
Chesapeake Crimes 3
Book 2 of 3 · published 2008 Co-authored · Donna Andrews,Carla Coupe
Chesapeake Crimes: Fur, Feathers, and Felonies
Latest in the series · book 3 of 3 · published 2018 Anthology · Donna Andrews,Shari Randall,Carla Coupe
Chesapeake Crimes: Invitation to Murder
Latest in the series · book 12 of 12 · published 2020
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Marcia Talley?
Marcia Talley is a multiple award-winning American mystery author best known for the "Hannah Ives Mysteries", a collection of short stories and two collaborative novels. Before she became a full time writer in 2000, she worked as a librarian. Talley was born in 1943 Cleveland to career US Marine Corps officer Thomas Chester and registered nurse Elizabeth Tuckerman.
Which Marcia Talley series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Hannah Ives Mystery series, the earliest of Marcia Talley's multi-book series: it opens with Sing It To Her Bones (1999) and runs to 20 books across 1999–2024, ending with Circles of Death (2024). Marcia Talley's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Marcia Talley written?
Marcia Talley has 60 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1989 and 2025. 35 of them belong to 3 named series — the largest being the Hannah Ives Mystery series with 20 books — and 25 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Marcia Talley's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Marcia Talley's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Hannah Ives Mystery (1999–2024, 20 books) and Chesapeake Crimes (2004–2018, 3 books).
How are Marcia Talley's books organised into series?
This guide splits Marcia Talley's 60 books into 3 named series and 25 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Hannah Ives Mystery (20 books, 1999–2024); Chesapeake Crimes (3 books, 2004–2018); Murder Most (12 books, 1989–2025).