The Inheritance Games
mystery
Series · mystery
Atticus Priest
The Atticus Priest series by Mark Dawson has 5 known books (5 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with The House in the Woods (2020).
- Books
- 5 known books (5 novels)
- Published
- 5
- First published
- 2020
- Status
- ongoing
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime
- Last checked
Start here: The House in the Woods (2020) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The House in the Woods
Mark Dawson opened the Atticus Priest series in 2020 with The House in the Woods, introducing the former rising star of Wiltshire Police's murder squad now working as a Salisbury private investigator after a very public error ended his career. The 496-page opener sets up his uneasy, unofficial partnership with DCI Mackenzie Jones, his former colleague.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The House in the Woods - Book 2:
A Place to Bury Strangers
A Place to Bury Strangers followed in 2021 at 434 pages, over 60 pages shorter than the series opener, continuing Priest's use of his obsessive, borderline-photographic memory to crack cases everyone else has given up on.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Place to Bury Strangers - Book 3:
The Red Room
The Red Room, the third novel, appeared in 2023 -- skipping 2022 entirely -- at 480 pages, keeping Priest's uneasy partnership with DCI Mackenzie Jones at the center of Dawson's straighter English procedural mystery.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Red Room - Book 4:
All the Devils Are Here
All the Devils Are Here, published in 2024 at 581 pages, is the longest book in the series so far, continuing the puzzle-driven, classic English procedural style that sets Atticus Priest apart from Dawson's globe-trotting Group Fifteen thrillers.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of All the Devils Are Here - Book 5:
The Inheritance
The Inheritance, the fifth and most recent entry, was published in 2025, continuing Dawson's now-unbroken yearly release pace since 2023 and Priest's ongoing, unofficial partnership with DCI Mackenzie Jones as they work another case together.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Inheritance
About the Atticus Priest series
Atticus Priest was a rising star of Wiltshire Police's murder squad until a very public error ended his career; a few years on he's working as a private investigator in Salisbury, using an obsessive, borderline-photographic memory to solve the cases everyone else has given up on. Mark Dawson's series opens with The House in the Woods (2020) and repeatedly puts Priest in uneasy, unofficial partnership with DCI Mackenzie Jones, his former colleague, whose professional standing depends on staying at arm's length from the disgraced detective even as she keeps needing his help.
Unlike Dawson's Group Fifteen-world thrillers, Atticus Priest is a straighter English procedural mystery, closer to a classic English cozy-adjacent puzzle-driven detective story than to Milton's globe-trotting action, and it's spun off its own further spin-off, the Casebook of Atticus Priest, tracked separately.
Frequently asked questions
How many Atticus Priest books are there?
Six novels, from The House in the Woods (2020) through The Forest (2026).
Is Atticus Priest connected to John Milton?
No -- it's set in Wiltshire and follows a disgraced former detective turned private investigator, entirely separate from the Group Fifteen world of Milton, Beatrix Rose, and Isabella Rose.
What is the Casebook of Atticus Priest?
A separate spin-off series of shorter mysteries featuring the same character, tracked as its own file in this catalogue.
If you like the Atticus Priest series
Reading order last verified .