Elly Griffiths Books in Order

Elly Griffiths is a British crime fiction author and USA Today bestseller, best known for the Ruth Galloway forensic archaeology series set in Norfolk. Winner of the Edgar Award for Best Novel for The Stranger Diaries, the CWA Dagger in the Library for her work, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award, she is one of the most consistently awarded British crime writers of her generation. She writes under the name Domenica de Rosa for her earlier women’s fiction.

This page lists all Elly Griffiths books in order, including the Ruth Galloway, Brighton Mysteries, Harbinder Kaur, and Ali Dawson series, the Justice Jones children’s series, standalone novels, and books written under the name Domenica de Rosa.

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How the Series Connect

Elly Griffiths’ four main series are independent, so you can start them in any other you choose. They do share some traits, like a strong sense of place, the literary atmosphere and the character-driven plots, but not the characters or storylines. The one exception is a short story Ghost of Max Mephisto, which is in the collection The Man in Black: And Other Stories, that brings the main characters Ruth Galloway, Harbinder Kaur and Max Mephisto together. It is a fun read for the fans of all series, but it’s entirely optional.

Ruth Galloway Series (Books in Order)

The Ruth Galloway series follows forensic archaeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway, a lecturer at the University of North Norfolk, who is regularly consulted by DCI Harry Nelson when human remains, ancient or otherwise, need her expert analysis. The series, set in the atmospheric Norfolk salt marshes and along the coastline, bridges archaeological discovery with present-day crime mystery. What makes the series distinctive is the slow-burn personal relationship between Ruth and Nelson, which is present through all 15 books.

Each mystery is self-contained, but the relationships between the main characters develops over times, especially from book 4 onwards. Thus reading the series in order is recommended, not because of the mysteries, but because of the underlying relationship arc. The series is best started with Crossing Places. If you start with a later book, each cases will make sense, but to see Ruth and Nelson’s dynamic developing, you’ll want to go back to the beginning of the series.

Reading Order

1. The Crossing Places, 2009
2. The Janus Stone, 2010
3. The House at Sea’s End, 2010
4. A Room Full of Bones, 2011
5. Ruth’s First Christmas Tree, 2012 (short story)
6. A Dying Fall, 2012 (also titled The Tomb of the Raven King)
7. The Outcast Dead, 2014
8. The Ghost Fields, 2015
9. The Woman In Blue, 2016
10. The Chalk Pit, 2017
11. The Dark Angel, 2018
12. The Stone Circle, 2019
13. The Lantern Men, 2020
14. The Night Hawks, 2021
15. The Locked Room, 2022
16. The Last Remains, 2023

Brighton Mysteries Series (Books in Order)

The Brighton Mysteries series, also known as the Stephens & Mephisto series, follows Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens and his wartime friend and unlikely partner Max Mephisto, a stage magician turned actor, as they investigate murders and solve crimes in the criminal underworld of 1950s Brighton. The postwar setting gives the series a different feel from the Ruth Galloway books. They are more atmospheric, more theatrical, and have a strong sense of period.

Each case stands alone, but the friendship between Stephens and Mephisto develops across the series, so publication order is the better read here. The series is separate from Ruth Galloway, so there is no prior knowledge of Ruth Galloway needed. The short story Ruth Galloway and the Ghost of Max Mephisto (included in the collection The Man in Black: And Other Stories) mentions all three main series (Ruth Galloway, Max Mephisto and Harbinder Kaur), but it is only a minor Easter egg and not an important part of either storyline.

1. The Zig Zag Girl, 2014
2. Smoke And Mirrors, 2016
3. The Blood Card, 2016
4. The Vanishing Box, 2017
5. Now You See Them, 2019
6. The Midnight Hour, 2021
7. The Great Deceiver, 2023

Harbinder Kaur Series (Books in Order)

The Harbinder Kaur series follows DS Harbinder Kaur, a British-Indian detective in Sussex, working cases that give the whole series a Gothic and literary atmosphere. The first book, The Stranger Diaries, won the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2020 and was originally intended to be a standalone. Even today, it can still be read on its own.

The series is loosely connected than Ruth Galloway. Each book has a different main point of view and setting, with Harbinder Kaur being the main detective that ties them together. Reading in order is recommended but the first book especially works well as a standalone novel, making this a good choice for readers who aren’t sure if they want to commit to a long series.
If you enjoyed Anthony Horowitz’s Magpie Murders, the tone here is similar.

Reading Order

1. The Stranger Diaries, 2018
2. The Postscript Murders, 2021
3. Bleeding Heart Yard, 2022
4. The Last Word, 2024

Justice Jones Series (Books in Order)

The Justice Jones series follow, a sharp and determined schoolgirl sleuth, Justice Jones, solving mysteries at a boarding school in 1930s England. It is a children’s series with classic golden age atmosphere, inspired by the traditional school story genre.

Reading Order

1. A Girl Called Justice, 2019
2. The Smugglers’ Secret, 2020
3. A Ghost in the Garden, 2021
4. The Spy at the Window, 2022

Ali Dawson Mysteries Series (Books in Order)

The Ali Dawson Mysteries are Elly Griffiths’ newest series, launched in 2025 with The Frozen People. Ali Dawson leads a covert cold case unit whose investigators travel back in time to gather evidence from various historical crime scenes. The series feels different from the author’s other books, as they are more speculative, and darker in tone, with a time-traveling element included as well.

Reading Order

• The Frozen People, 2025
• The Killing Time, 2026
• The Case of the Christmas Card, 2026

Short Story Collections & Anthologies

• Killer Women Crime Club Anthology 2, 2017
• Exit Wounds, 2019
• Marple: Twelve New Mysteries, 2022 (with Val McDermid, and others)
• The Man in Black: And Other Stories, 2024

Written as Domenica de Rosa

• The Little Book of Shakespeare and Food, 2001
• The Italian Quarter, 2004 (also titled Return to the Italian Quarter)
• The Eternal City, 2005
• Villa Serena, 2007 (also titled Secret of Villa Serena)
• Summer School, 2008 (also titled One Summer in Tuscany)

Elly Griffiths Biography

Elly Griffiths is a British author who writes under the pen name Elly Griffiths, while also publishing earlier books under her real name, Domenica de Rosa.
Official website: ellygriffiths.co.uk

Domenica de Rosa was born in London on 17 August 1963. The name comes from her grandmother, Ellen Griffiths. Her publisher suggested changing Ellen to Elly as it sounded younger, and this was the pen name she used for her crime novels while she continued publishing family drama and romance novels under her real name.

After reading English at King’s College London, Elly Griffiths worked in publishing for several years, eventually becoming editorial director for children’s books at HarperCollins. She only began writing fiction when she was on maternity leave in 1998, at the age of 35.

Her debut crime novel, The Crossing Places, was published in 2009 under the Elly Griffiths name. It was the first book in what became the Ruth Galloway series. It was originally conceived as a standalone novel, but readers wanted more, so she wrote a second book, which led to a series that now includes 15 novels. The character of Ruth Galloway, a forensic archaeologist in the Norfolk marshes, is a mosaic created from several strong women in the author’s life, including her two older sisters and her aunt. The Crossing Places won the Mary Higgins Clark Award in 2011.

Her second series, the Brighton Mysteries (also known as Stephens & Mephisto series), began in 2014 with The Zig Zag Girl, set in 1950s Brighton. The Harbinder Kaur series followed in 2018 with The Stranger Diaries, which won the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2020, one of crime fiction’s most prestigious honors. Her fourth series and currently her newest, the Ali Dawson Mysteries, launched in 2025 with The Frozen People, adding time-travel elements to her mysteries.

As Domenica de Rosa she has published four novels of family drama and Italian-set fiction, including The Italian Quarter (2004).

Elly Griffiths lives in Brighton with her husband and two children.

Elly Griffiths Awards and Honors

Elly Griffiths has received numerous awards and nominations across her career, including major wins for both her crime fiction and her body of work as a whole. The section below lists her major highlights followed by the full record.

Major Awards and Honors

• The Crossing Places – Mary Higgins Clark Award (2011)
• CWA Dagger in the Library (2016)
• The Stranger Diaries – Edgar Award for Best Novel (2020)
• The Postscript Murders – CWA Gold Dagger nomination (2021)
• Author of the Year Award at the Booksellers Association Conference Awards (2024)
• Theakston Old Peculier Outstanding Contribution Award (2025)

Awards (Full List)

Nominations and Shortlists

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