Myron Bolitar
mystery
Series · cozy mystery
Constable Evans
The Constable Evans series by Rhys Bowen has 10 known books (10 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with Evans Above (1997).
- Books
- 10 known books (10 novels)
- Published
- 10
- First published
- 1997
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime
- Last checked
Start here: Evans Above (1997) — 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:
Evans Above
Evans Above (1997) opens the series with young constable Evan Evans leaving Swansea for the quiet village of Llanfair at the foot of Mount Snowdon -- quiet that doesn't last once rival chapel ministers, a flirtatious barmaid, and three other men named Evans all turn out to share the village with him.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evans Above - Book 2:
Evan Help Us
Evan Help Us (1998) keeps Evan Evans investigating among Llanfair's gossiping, chapel-going locals, with his slow-burn romance with schoolteacher Bronwen Price developing alongside the mystery. It runs 214 pages.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan Help Us - Book 3:
Evanly Choirs
Evanly Choirs (1999) sends Evan Evans back into Llanfair's ensemble of rival chapel ministers and endlessly bickering locals, the gentler, comic register Rhys Bowen wrote before Molly Murphy or Her Royal Spyness.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evanly Choirs - Book 4:
Evan and Elle
Evan and Elle (2000) continues Evan Evans's patient, unglamorous police work in Llanfair, with his romance with Bronwen Price complicated by the arrival of a glamorous outsider. It runs 274 pages.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan and Elle - Book 5:
Evan Can Wait
Evan Can Wait (2001) keeps Evan Evans investigating among the hikers and locals of Llanfair, the Welsh village at the foot of Snowdon he was only ever supposed to be passing through.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan Can Wait - Book 6:
Evans to Betsy
Evans to Betsy (2002), at 336 pages the longest entry in the series, follows Evan Evans deeper into Llanfair's small-town texture -- chapel rivalries, gossip, and the three other men who share his surname.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evans to Betsy - Book 7:
Evan Only Knows
Evan Only Knows (2003) continues Evan Evans's slow-burn romance with Bronwen Price and his standing among Llanfair's ensemble of chapel-going, bickering locals, following Evans to Betsy.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan Only Knows - Book 8:
Evan's Gate
Evan's Gate (2004) keeps Constable Evan Evans investigating with the same patient, neighborly style that's defined the series, deep into his life among Llanfair's Welsh hill-country community. It runs 272 pages.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan's Gate - Book 9:
Evan Blessed
Evan Blessed (2005) continues Evan Evans's mysteries in Llanfair, the North Wales village whose chapel rivalries and gossiping locals have anchored the series since Evans Above.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evan Blessed - Book 10:
Evanly Bodies
Evanly Bodies (2006) closes out Constable Evans, Rhys Bowen's ten-book series set among the rival ministers, gossiping locals, and slow-burn romance she wrote before creating Molly Murphy and Lady Georgiana.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Evanly Bodies
About the Constable Evans series
Evan Evans is a young police constable who leaves the bustle of Swansea for the quiet of Llanfair, a village at the foot of Mount Snowdon in North Wales, after his policeman father is killed in the line of duty. Quiet does not last: Llanfair turns out to be stuffed with rival chapel ministers competing for souls, a flirtatious barmaid, and no fewer than three other men named Evans — Evans-the-Meat, Evans-the-Milk, and Evans-the-Post — all before the first body turns up among the hikers on the mountain above the village. Evan investigates each case with patient, unglamorous police work, more interested in understanding his neighbors than showing off, while slowly becoming part of the community he was only supposed to be passing through.
Rhys Bowen wrote this series before Molly Murphy or Her Royal Spyness, and it shows a gentler, more purely comic side of her writing: the mysteries are cozy village puzzles, but the real pleasure is the ensemble of chapel-going, gossiping, endlessly bickering Llanfair locals, and Evan's slow-burn romance with schoolteacher Bronwen Price (complicated by the arrival of glamorous outsider Sergeant Watkins' sister-in-law). Welsh language, landscape, and small-town Nonconformist culture are rendered with warmth and a light satirical edge rather than exoticized. It's a ten-book series that never outstays its welcome, ending on its own terms rather than fizzling out, and it remains a favorite entry point for readers who want Bowen's voice before she found her two longer-running heroines.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in the Constable Evans series?
There are 10 books, from Evans Above (1997) to Evanly Bodies (2006). The series is complete.
What order should I read the Constable Evans books in?
Publication order, starting with Evans Above. Evan's romance with Bronwen Price and his place in the village of Llanfair develop across the series, though each book's mystery is self-contained.
Is the Constable Evans series finished?
Yes. Rhys Bowen wrote ten books between 1997 and 2006 and has not added to the series since, having moved on to her Molly Murphy and Her Royal Spyness series.
Where is the Constable Evans series set?
In the fictional village of Llanfair, at the foot of Mount Snowdon in North Wales, where Evan Evans serves as the local police constable.
Is Constable Evans connected to Rhys Bowen's other series?
No. It has no shared characters or setting with Molly Murphy or Her Royal Spyness, though all three showcase Bowen's research-driven historical and regional detail.
If you like the Constable Evans series
Reading order last verified .