Order of P.D. James Books

P.D. James was the pen name of Phyllis Dorothy James, Baroness James of Holland Park. P.D. James was an English novelist of crime fiction, thrillers and dystopian fiction. She was best known for her detective fiction novels featuring Adam Dalgliesh, a policeman and poet. She has also written a couple of novels featuring Cordelia Gray and a few standalone novels.

P.D. James had been writing since 1962, when her first Adam Dalgliesh mystery entitled Cover Her Face was published.

P.D. James passed away on November 27th, 2014.

Below is a list of all of P.D. James’ books in order of publication and in chronological order (when necessary):

Publication Order of Adam Dalgliesh Books

Cover Her Face	(1962)
A Mind to Murder	(1963)
Unnatural Causes	(1967)
Shroud for a Nightingale	(1971)
The Black Tower	(1975)
Death of an Expert Witness	(1977)
A Taste for Death	(1986)
Devices and Desires	(1989)
Original Sin	(1994)
A Certain Justice	(1997)
Death in Holy Orders	(2001)
The Murder Room	(2003)
The Lighthouse	(2005)
The Private Patient	(2008)

Publication Order of Cordelia Gray Books

An Unsuitable Job for a Woman	(1972)
The Skull Beneath the Skin	(1982)

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Innocent Blood	(1980)
The Children of Men	(1992)
Death Comes to Pemberley	(2012)

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

The Part-Time Job	(2005)
The Victim	(2019)

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

The Mistletoe Murder	(2016)
Sleep No More	(2017)

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

The Maul and The Pear Tree (With: T.A. Critchley)	(1971)
Time To Be In Earnest	(1999)
Talking About Detective Fiction	(2009)
P.D. James in Her Own Words	(2017)

Publication Order of Anthologies

Great Law and Order Stories	(1990)
Tales of Obsession	(1994)
The Detection Collection	(2005)

If You Like P.D. James Books, You’ll Love…

• Elizabeth George
• Jacqueline Winspear
• Henning Mankell

6 Responses to “Order of P.D. James Books”

1. Marjorie Tuckerman: 1 month ago

   I appreciate being able to look up (and copy) lists of publications by my favorite authors!
   Thanks !!

   Reply

   • Graeme: 1 month ago

     You’re welcome 🙂 Thanks for saying that!

     Reply

2. Prof.rc: 2 months ago

   Thanks for a helpful research site. Acorn’s 2021 DALGLIESH series has some promise, but always read the book beforehand. An adaptation has “a cast of thousands”; the book is cast by one authority.(But Adam’s XKE-series Jag is a pleasure to watch.)

   Reply

3. Mary Elia: 1 year ago

   P.D. James died in November 2014. She’s greatly missed by her fans worldwide.

   Reply

4. Paul Springer: 3 years ago

   where is “A Case of Classic Whodunits” ??? I saw it somewhere in a list.

   Reply

5. Noreen Hotch: 8 years ago

   I have read every one of P.D. James books. She is the best mystery writer ever. I hope that she might write another book. I love her character Adam Daglish

   Reply