🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About P.D. James
Crime writing is one of the most entertaining pieces of literature, especially if it is written by someone with a first hand knowledge of what detective work involves. P.D James is one of the excellent crime writers and her novels are there to prove it. Although she is now in her retirement, many readers will still anticipate to see an inspired protégée who can match her level of professionalism and entertainment in crime writing.
All Book Series by P.D. James
The Maul and The Pear Tree
Series opener · book 1 of 4 · published 1971 Co-authored · T.A. Critchley
A Good Man Is Hard To Find
Series opener · book 1 of 28 · published 1955 Anthology · Flannery O'Connor
Sonny Liston Was a Friend of Mine
Book 7 of 28 · published 1998 Anthology · Thom Jones
The Shielding of Mrs Forbes
Book 9 of 28 · published 2011 Anthology · Alan Bennett
The Cheater's Guide to Love
Book 10 of 28 · published 2012 Anthology · Junot Díaz
Come Rain or Come Shine
Book 14 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Kazuo Ishiguro
Dante and the Lobster
Book 16 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Samuel Beckett
The Lydia Steptoe Stories
Book 19 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Djuna Barnes
Mary Ventura and The Ninth Kingdom
Book 20 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Sylvia Plath
The Forester's Daughter
Book 23 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Claire Keegan
Three Types of Solitude
Book 24 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Brian W. Aldiss
Intruders
Latest in the series · book 28 of 28 · published 2019 Anthology · Adrian Tomine
Tales of Obsession: Mystery Stories of Fatal Attractions and Deadly Desires
Book 6 of 8 · published 1994
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is P.D. James?
Crime writing is one of the most entertaining pieces of literature, especially if it is written by someone with a first hand knowledge of what detective work involves. P.D James is one of the excellent crime writers and her novels are there to prove it. Although she is now in her retirement, many readers will still anticipate to see an inspired protégée who can match her level of professionalism and entertainment in crime writing.
Which P.D. James series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Adam Dalgliesh series, the earliest of P.D. James's multi-book series: it opens with Cover Her Face (1962) and runs to 14 books across 1962–2008, ending with The Private Patient (2008).
How many books has P.D. James written?
P.D. James has 62 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1955 and 2019. 44 of them belong to 3 named series — the largest being the Adam Dalgliesh series with 14 books — and 18 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should P.D. James's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. P.D. James's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Adam Dalgliesh (1962–2008, 14 books) and Cordelia Gray (1972–1982, 2 books).
How are P.D. James's books organised into series?
This guide splits P.D. James's 62 books into 3 named series and 18 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Adam Dalgliesh (14 books, 1962–2008); Cordelia Gray (2 books, 1972–1982); Faber Stories (28 books, 1955–2019).