M.J. Arlidge Books In Order – Helen Grace Series

The Sunday Times bestselling author M.J. Arlidge is a British crime mystery writer known for his Helen Grace British crime thriller novels. Reading his books in order means delving into the crazy world of Detective Inspector Helen Grace, a series which right now is at book #12 with Forget Me Not, released in 2024.

Here are the M.J. Arlidge books in order for his crime series and standalone novels. The book list will be updated with any other novel he will be writing in the future.

Latest M.J. Arlidge Books

Helen Grace Books in Publication Order

So far the reading order is the same as the publication order, except for the short novellas in between (e.g. No Way Back is a short story from the early years, and Running Blind has Helen Grace fresh out of Police College, assigned to her very first case.)

1. Eeny Meeny (#1), 2014
2. Pop Goes the Weasel (#2), 2014
3. The Doll’s House (#3), 2015
4. Liar Liar (#4), 2015
5. Little Boy Blue (#5), 2016
6. No Way Back (#5.5), 2016
7. Hide and Seek (#6), 2016
8. Running Blind (#6.5), 2016
9. Love Me Not (#7), 2017
10. Down to the Woods (#8), 2018
11. All Fall Down #9), 2020
12. Truth or Dare (#10), 2022
13. Cat and Mouse (#11), 2022
14. Forget Me Not (#12), 2024

Helen Grace Short Stories in Publication Order

• No Way Back (#5.5), 2016
• Running Blind (#6.5), 2016

Other M.J. Arlidge Books – Standalone Novels in Publication Order

• Six Degrees of Assassination, 2015 (only as an audiobook)
• A Gift For Dying (aka The Last Rites), 2019
• Eye For an Eye, 2023
• The Wrong Child, 2024 (with Julia Crouch)
• The Reunion, 2024 (with Stephanie Broadribb)
• The Deal, 2025 (with Andy Maslen)
• The Mistake, 2025 (with Lisa Hall)

M.J. Arlidge Biography – About the Author

M.J. Arlidge, aka Matthew J. Arlidge, was born in 1974 in London, where he also grew up and attended the University College School between the age of 7-18.

His father, Anthony Arlidge, a QC (Queen’s Counsel) barrister had a major influence on the to-be author’s career due to him prosecuting several high-profile criminals, including Jeremy Bamber, who murdered both his parents.

After getting over his shock when following these trials, M J became intrigued and also interested in the world of killers and how best to catch and prosecute them.

Before he went to college, he traveled quite a lot to countries such as Singapore, Australia, and India. After his return to the UK, he got an English Literature degree at St Johns College in Cambridge. Soon after enrolled at Bristol University to study Film and TV Production.

During this time won the Douglas Chivers Prize for outstanding Shakespeare scholarship.

Prior to his fiction writing career, he gained experience in television production. He started as a story liner and then became a script editor at Eastenders, a popular BBC1 TV soap opera known for its high-end drama production. After leaving Eastenders, he joined Ecosse Films, a British production company, where he worked as a storyliner and editor on the TV show Monarch of the Glen.

He was later promoted to the role of TV development producer and contributed to shows such as Mistresses and Cape Wrath.

In 2007, M.J. Arlidge founded his own production company, TXTV Limited. He has created popular TV shows like Torn, The Little House, and Undeniable. Recently, he has been working on crime thrillers for ITV and is currently involved in adapting The Last of the Mohicans for BBC. In 2015, he wrote a 10-part thriller called Six Degrees of Assassination for Audible, a leading audiobook company.

The first book by M.J. Arlidge, Eeny Meeny was published in 2014. This was the author’s UK’s bestselling crime debut novel. The book turned out to be the first in the DI Helen Grace series, featuring the tough, slightly enigmatic detective who solves the hardest cases involving serial killers of the worst kind.

In an interview, the author MJ Arlidge admitted that he chose the name of his main character because…

she is constantly seeking redemption – a state of Grace – that she will never achieve.

The M.J. Arlidge novels are a joy to read for anyone who loves suspenseful and thrilling crime mystery novels featuring a tough and troubled heroine.

About the Helen Grace Thrillers Series – Who is Helen Grace?

The Detective Helen Grace book series follows Helen, a DI in the England police force who is battling her past demons that still weigh heavily on her. Helen is cold, unapproachable, and highly enigmatic with lots of secrets tucked away.

Secrets that would not only get her kicked out of the force but more. At the same time, she is also very good at her job, doing what she knows best to do: solve cases and put murderers behind bars.

As the Detective Inspector Helen Grace thriller series continues, we get to learn more and more about Helen, what makes her tick and why she is the way she is.

As I mentioned before, Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge is the author’s debut novel, where we are first introduced to the enigmatic detective DI Helen Grace who is tasked to find and stop a ruthless serial killer who plays the well-known children’s game eeny meeny moo while abducing pairs of people with some dire consequences.

We first learn here about detective Helen Grace’s demons she is battling, a bit of her past and the secrets she is trying desperately to hide from her peers.

In The Doll’s House, DI Helen Grace has again a very difficult case (she seems to be getting only the toughest of cases) where another sick killer kidnaps similar-looking young women, leaves them to starve to death and then disposes of them in various locations. We learn again a bit more about Helen, what drives her and why her past is so twisted as it is.

In Little Boy Blue, Helen has to investigate a case that is very close to her heart. A body is found at a bondage club, and Helen seems to have known that person quite well. This is why reading the M.J. Arlidge Helen Grace books in order is so important.

Hide and Seek is the sixth in the detective Helen Grace books by M.J. Arlidge, and here we find Helen sitting in prison for a crime we all know didn’t commit. She was framed and now she has to suffer the consequences of her previous actions.

Not only that but knowing Helen, she can’t stand idle, so while her colleagues are trying to prove she was innocent of the crime, Helen is also working on a case of her own. Helen works against the clock to solve the puzzling murders. An inmate was killed and Helen wants and needs to find out who the killer is.

What Is the First Book in the DI Helen Grace Thriller Series?

The first novel is Eeny Meeny. If you want to start the Detective Helen Grace book series, this novel is the perfect entry point.

M.J. Arlidge found inspiration from Stieg Larsson’s Lisbeth Salander. He admired Salander’s complexity and darkness, which motivated him to create a similarly complex protagonist in Helen Grace. Originally, the series was intended as a TV show, but M.J. Arlidge changed the idea into a novel series due to its quite dark nature.

Are There Any M.J. Arlidge Book Adaptations?

M.J. Arlidge’s DI Helen Grace books are being adapted into a television series called “A State Of Grace.” The show, consisting of 6 episodes, is based on Arlidge’s bestselling novels. The adaptation will start with the story from the first one, “Eeny Meeny.” It is a collaboration between ZDF Enterprises and Red Arrow’s Endor Productions and aims to deliver the intense suspense and intricate storytelling that fans love.