P. D. James Reading Order
1 series · 75 books
P. D. James was an English crime novelist renowned for her sophisticated and psychologically complex mysteries that elevated the detective fiction genre to literary achievement. Her standalone novels and series featuring detective Adam Dalgliesh established her as a master of the British procedural, blending meticulous plotting with deep character development and social commentary. Published across several decades, her work is celebrated for intellectual rigor, moral ambiguity, and prose that rivals mainstream literary fiction.
Standalone Novels Series
Ongoing75 books
Start with A Taste for Death, the first of 75 books in the Standalone Novels series.
| # | Title |
|---|---|
| 1 | "What's so special about books? or how to answer the child who says that Dickens would have written for video if he'd had the chance" |
| 2 | "What's so special about books?, or, how to answer the child who says that Dickens would have written for video if he'd had the chance" |
| 3 | A Case of Classic Whodunits |
| 4 | A Certain Justice |
| 5 | A Dalgliesh Trilogy |
| 6 | A Mind to Murder |
| 7 | A Taste for Death Part 2 of 2 |
| 8 | A suitable job for a woman |
| 9 | Acts of the Apostles |
| 10 | An Unsuitable Job for a Woman |
| 11 | Country House Murders |
| 12 | Cover Her Face |
| 13 | Cover Her Face / A Mind to Murder / Unnatural Causes / An Unsuitable Job for a Woman |
| 14 | Crime Times Three |
| 15 | Deadly pleasures |
| 16 | Death comes to Pemberley |
| 17 | Death in Holy Orders |
| 18 | Death of a Expert Witness |
| 19 | Devices and Desires |
| 20 | Ein reizender Job für eine Frau / Tod eines Sachverständigen. Zwei Romane in einem Band |
| 21 | Ellery Queen's murder menu |
| 22 | Encounters with Lord Peter |
| 23 | Girl Who Loved Graveyards |
| 24 | Innocent Blood |
| 25 | Les Meurtres |
| 26 | Les enquêtes d'Adam Dalgliesh. 1 |
| 27 | Meurtres En Blouse Blanche |
| 28 | Murder Most Foul |
| 29 | Murder in the Dark |
| 30 | Murder in triplicate |
| 31 | NURSING STORIES |
| 32 | Ne zhenskoe delo ; Lit︠s︡o ee zakroĭte ; Neestestvennye prichiny |
| 33 | No és feina de dones |
| 34 | O mavros pirgos |
| 35 | Obras de |
| 36 | Octava Victima, La |
| 37 | Omnibus |
| 38 | Original Sin |
| 39 | P. D. James's Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries |
| 40 | P. D. James's Cordelia Gray Mysteries |
| 41 | Par Action Et Par Omission |
| 42 | Poco Digno Para Una Mujer |
| 43 | Pristrastie k smerti |
| 44 | Sans Les Mains |
| 45 | Sightlines |
| 46 | Sleep no more |
| 47 | Tales of Obsession |
| 48 | Talking about detective fiction |
| 49 | Taste for Death Part 1 |
| 50 | The Black Tower |
| 51 | The Black Tower / Death of an Expert Witness / Innocent Blood / The Skull Beneath the Skin |
| 52 | The Children of Men |
| 53 | The Detection Collection |
| 54 | The Lighthouse |
| 55 | The Maul and the Pear Tree |
| 56 | The Mistletoe Murder |
| 57 | The Murder Room |
| 58 | The Omnibus P. D. James |
| 59 | The Private Patient |
| 60 | The Verdict of Us All |
| 61 | Three complete novels |
| 62 | Threebies |
| 63 | Time To Be In Earnest |
| 64 | Trilogy of death |
| 65 | Una Notte Di Luna Per L' Ispettore Dalgliesh |
| 66 | Une Folie Meurtriere |
| 67 | Unnatural Causes |
| 68 | Último acto |
| 69 | Victim |
| 70 | What's so special about books? |
| 71 | [Murder, mystery, and morals |
| 72 | A Taste for Death 1991 |
| 73 | The Skull Beneath the Skin 1991 |
| 74 | Periptosi Dikeosinis 2000 |
| 75 | Shroud for a Nightingale 9881 |
Frequently Asked Questions
- How many books has P. D. James written?
- P. D. James has written 75 books across 1 series. Their published works span from 1991 to 9881.
- Is P. D. James still writing new books?
- Yes, P. D. James has 1 ongoing series: Standalone Novels.