Stephen Leather Books in Order

Stephen Leather is a British bestselling author best known for the Spider Shepherd series.

This page lists all Stephen Leather books in order, including his series, standalone novels, and short stories, organized primarily by publication order.

Latest Stephen Leather Books

Underdogs
Underdogs, February 2026

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Mike Cramer Series (Books in Order)

The Mike Cramer series follows former SAS soldier Mike Cramer, who is drawn back into dangerous missions after leaving military service.

Reading Order

  1. The Foreigner, 1992 (aka The Chinaman)
  2. The Long Shot, 1995
  3. The Double Tap, 1996

Spider Shepherd Series (Books in Order)

The Spider Shepherd series follows Dan ‘Spider’ Shepherd, an ex-SAS trooper now detective, who is working undercover for an elite police unit on high-risk investigations.

Reading Order

  1. Hard Landing, 2004
  2. Soft Target, 2005
  3. Cold Kill, 2006
  4. Hot Blood, 2007
  5. Dead Men, 2008
  6. Live Fire, 2009
  7. Rough Justice, 2010
  8. Fair Game, 2011
  9. False Friends, 2012
  10. True Colours, 2013
  11. White Lies, 2014
  12. Black Ops, 2015
  13. Dark Forces, 2016
  14. Light Touch, 2017
  15. Tall Order, 2018
  16. Short Range, 2019
  17. Slow Burn, 2020
  18. Fast Track, 2021
  19. Dirty War, 2022
  20. Clean Kill, 2023
  21. First Strike, 2024
  22. Last Chance, 2025
  23. Broken Promises, 2026

Spider Shepherd Short Stories

Spider Shepherd: SAS Stories

  1. The Sandpit, 2016
  2. Moving Targets, 2018
  3. Drop Zone, 2020
  4. Russian Roulette, 2021
  5. Baltic Black Ops, 2023

Jack Nightingale Series (Books in Order)

The Jack Nightingale series follows former London police negotiator turned private detective Jack Nightingale who becomes involved in supernatural investigations.

Reading Order

  1. Nightfall, 2010
  2. Midnight, 2011
  3. Nightmare, 2012
  4. Nightshade, 2013
  5. Lastnight, 2014
  6. San Francisco Night, 2014
  7. New York Night, 2015
  8. Tennessee Night, 2018
  9. New Orleans Night, 2021
  10. Las Vegas Night, 2022
  11. Rio Grande Night, 2022

Jack Nightingale Novellas and Short Stories

Inspector Zhang Series (Books in Order)

The Inspector Zhang series follows Singapore Police Force Inspector Zhang as he solves complex cases using observation and deductive reasoning.

Reading Order

  1. Inspector Zhang Gets His Wish, 2011
  2. Inspector Zhang and the Falling Woman, 2011
  3. Inspector Zhang and the Dead Thai Gangster, 2011
  4. Inspector Zhang and the Disappearing Drugs, 2011
  5. Inspector Zhang And The Perfect Alibi, 2012
  6. Inspector Zhang Goes To Harrogate, 2012
  7. Inspector Zhang and the Island of the Dead, 2013
  8. The Eight Curious Cases of Inspector Zhang, 2013 (aka The Inspector Zhang Collection)

Lex Harper Series (Books in Order)

The Lex Harper series follows mercenary operative Lex Harper who is involved in high-risk international missions.

Reading Order

  1. Takedown, 2016
  2. Plausible Deniability (#1.5), 2019
  3. Breakout, 2020

Richard Yokely Series (Books in Order)

The Richard Yokely series follows American operative Richard Yokely carrying out covert missions for a secret government agency.

Reading Order

  1. Rogue Warrior, 2019
  2. The Chase, 2022

Matt Standing Series (Books in Order)

The Matt Standing series follows SAS trooper Matt “Lastman” Standing, as he goes on high-stakes missions to take down international operatives and criminal cartels.

Reading Order

  1. Last Man Standing, 2019
  2. Standing Alone, 2022
  3. Still Standing, 2023
  4. Standing Strong, 2024

Standalone Novels

Hong Kong Novels

Women In Charge Novels

  1. Birthday Girl, 1995
  2. The Bombmaker, 1999
  3. The Stretch, 2000
  4. Take Two, 2013

Thailand Novels

Other Standalone Novels

Short Story Collections and Anthologies

Non-Fiction Books

Stephen Leather Biography

Stephen Leather is a British thriller writer and former journalist, best known for the long-running Spider Shepherd series.
Official website: stephenleather.com

Born in 1956 in Manchester, England, he studied biochemistry at the University of Bath. Initially he worked as a baker, a petrol pump attendant, quarry limestone shoveler, and a bartender. Later, he worked as a journalist for more than a decade, writing for publications such as the Glasgow Herald, Daily Mirror, The Times, and Daily Mail, and the South China Morning Post during his time living in Hong Kong. His career as a reporter exposed him to international crime, politics, and issues of national security, which later became topics in his novels.

His debut novel, Pay Off, was published in 1987, followed by several standalone thrillers set in Asia, including The Fireman and Hungry Ghost.

Stephen Leather became a full-time author in the 1990s, and he has since written more than 70 books including thriller series and standalone novels. In addition to fiction, he has also written screenplays for television series such as London’s Burning, The Knock, and Murder in Mind.

While most of his novels are thrillers focusing on crime, terrorism, spy, and military service, he also wrote a supernatural detective series, Jack Nightingale, featuring an ex-police hostage negotiator who inherited a mansion with a priceless library from his father, who said that Nightingale’s soul was sold at his birth.

Stephen Leather Books Adaptations

  • The Chinaman/The Foreigner – adapted into the movie The Foreigner (2017)
  • Tango One – adapted into a crime drama (2018)
  • The Stretch – adapted into a mini-series (2000)
  • The Bombmaker – adapted into a mini-series (2001)

Stephen Leather Awards and Nominations

Nominations and Shortlists

  • Tango One – CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger (2002)
  • Hard Landing – CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger (2004)
  • Cold Kill – ITW Award for Best Novel (2007)
  • Cold Kill – Barry Award for Best Thriller (2007)

Edited by

Marika

Founder of Mystery Sequels, a reference site focused on listing mystery and thriller books in the correct reading order. I maintain and update the site’s bibliographies as new titles are released, ensuring accuracy and consistency across author and series pages.

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2 Comments

  1. just read Triggers couldnt put it down hope there is a sequel

  2. Just started reading Dan Shepherds escapades and as a retired undercover cop I can relate to his actions totally. Brilliant writing and story content. Keep it up. Thanks

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