Maisie Dobbs
historical mystery
Series · historical mystery
William Monk
The William Monk series by Anne Perry has 24 known books (24 published). It is best read in publication order, starting with The Face of a Stranger (1990).
- Books
- 24 known books (24 novels)
- Published
- 24
- First published
- 1990
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Mystery & Crime , Historical Fiction
Start here: The Face of a Stranger (1990)
— 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 Face of a Stranger
The Face of a Stranger is the novel that opens William Monk, Anne Perry's series, first published in 1990. It's the natural place to begin, in a series that runs to 24 books in this catalogue and continues here with A Dangerous Mourning. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Face of a Stranger - Book 2:
A Dangerous Mourning
A Dangerous Mourning, the 2nd book in William Monk by Anne Perry, was published in 1991 at 344 pages. In the reading order it follows The Face of a Stranger and precedes Defend and Betray. Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Dangerous Mourning - Book 3:
Defend and Betray
Defend and Betray is the 3rd book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 1992 at 450 pages. In the reading order it follows A Dangerous Mourning and precedes A Sudden, Fearful Death. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Defend and Betray - Book 4:
A Sudden, Fearful Death
A Sudden, Fearful Death, the 4th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, was published in 1993 at 454 pages. In the reading order it follows Defend and Betray and precedes The Sins of the Wolf. Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Sudden, Fearful Death - Book 5:
The Sins of the Wolf
The Sins of the Wolf, the 5th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, was published in 1994 at 374 pages. In the reading order it follows A Sudden, Fearful Death and precedes Cain His Brother. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Sins of the Wolf - Book 6:
Cain His Brother
Cain His Brother is the 6th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 1995 at 480 pages. It follows The Sins of the Wolf and precedes Weighed in the Balance in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Cain His Brother - Book 7:
Weighed in the Balance
Weighed in the Balance is the 7th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 1996 at 313 pages. In the reading order it follows Cain His Brother and precedes The Silent Cry. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Weighed in the Balance - Book 8:
The Silent Cry
The Silent Cry is the 8th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 1997 at 361 pages. In the reading order it follows Weighed in the Balance and precedes A Breach of Promise. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Silent Cry - Book 9:
A Breach of Promise
A Breach of Promise is the 9th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 1997 at 384 pages. It follows The Silent Cry and precedes The Twisted Root in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Breach of Promise - Book 10:
The Twisted Root
The Twisted Root is the 10th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 1999 at 351 pages. It follows A Breach of Promise and precedes Slaves of Obsession in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Twisted Root - Book 11:
Slaves of Obsession
Slaves of Obsession is the 11th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 2000 at 344 pages. In the reading order it follows The Twisted Root and precedes A Funeral in Blue. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Slaves of Obsession - Book 12:
A Funeral in Blue
A Funeral in Blue is the 12th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2001 at 407 pages. In the reading order it follows Slaves of Obsession and precedes Death of a Stranger. Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Funeral in Blue - Book 13:
Death of a Stranger
Death of a Stranger is the 13th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2002 at 472 pages. It follows A Funeral in Blue and precedes The Shifting Tide in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Death of a Stranger - Book 14:
The Shifting Tide
The Shifting Tide is the 14th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2004 at 328 pages. It follows Death of a Stranger and precedes Dark Assassin in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Shifting Tide - Book 15:
Dark Assassin
Dark Assassin is the 15th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 2006 at 345 pages. In the reading order it follows The Shifting Tide and precedes Execution Dock. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Dark Assassin - Book 16:
Execution Dock
Execution Dock is the 16th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 2009 at 272 pages. In the reading order it follows Dark Assassin and precedes Acceptable Loss. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Execution Dock - Book 17:
Acceptable Loss
Acceptable Loss, the 17th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, was published in 2011 at 304 pages. In the reading order it follows Execution Dock and precedes A Sunless Sea. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Acceptable Loss - Book 18:
A Sunless Sea
A Sunless Sea, the 18th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, was published in 2012. It follows Acceptable Loss and precedes Blind Justice in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Sunless Sea - Book 19:
Blind Justice
Blind Justice is the 19th book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2013 at 571 pages. It follows A Sunless Sea and precedes Blood on the Water in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Blind Justice - Book 20:
Blood on the Water
Blood on the Water is the 20th entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 2014 at 309 pages. In the reading order it follows Blind Justice and precedes Corridors of the Night. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Blood on the Water - Book 21:
Corridors of the Night
Corridors of the Night is the 21st entry in William Monk, by Anne Perry, published in 2015. In the reading order it follows Blood on the Water and precedes Revenge in a Cold River. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Corridors of the Night - Book 22:
Revenge in a Cold River
Revenge in a Cold River is the 22nd book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2016 at 533 pages. In the reading order it follows Corridors of the Night and precedes An Echo of Murder. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Revenge in a Cold River - Book 23:
An Echo of Murder
An Echo of Murder is the 23rd book in William Monk by Anne Perry, published in 2017 at 497 pages. It follows Revenge in a Cold River and precedes Dark Tide Rising in this catalogue's reading order. Alternative text for cover: Cover of An Echo of Murder - Book 24:
Dark Tide Rising
Dark Tide Rising, published in 2018 at 289 pages, is the 24th and final William Monk novel, following An Echo of Murder in Anne Perry's Victorian detective series. It closes out the run for the amnesiac inspector who spent the series reconstructing his own past case by case alongside his wife Hester and barrister Oliver Rathbone, with no further entries published after Perry's death in 2023. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Dark Tide Rising
Key facts about the William Monk series
Our list has 24 books in the William Monk series. Since all 24 are out now, you can read the whole list today.
Start with The Face of a Stranger, since it opens the publication order in 1990. A Dangerous Mourning is book 2, from 1991. Defend and Betray is book 3, from 1992.
A Sudden, Fearful Death is book 4, from 1993. The Sins of the Wolf is book 5, from 1994. Cain His Brother is book 6, from 1995.
Weighed in the Balance is book 7, from 1996, while The Silent Cry is book 8, from 1997. A Breach of Promise is book 9, from 1997.
The Twisted Root is book 10, from 1999, while Slaves of Obsession is book 11, from 2000. A Funeral in Blue is book 12, from 2001. Since the list above shows all 24, you can find the rest there.
The list keeps the books in date order, while each title links to its own page. Each book page shows its dates and editions. Since the catalogue marks the series as complete, we list no next book.
The books came out between 1990 and 2018, while their length runs from 272 to 571 pages. That is a run of 28 years.
Anne Perry has 99 books on our list. Additionally, they write Charlotte and Thomas Pitt, The Christmas Novellas and The World War I Novels, plus 2 more series. We shelve the books under historical mystery.
About the William Monk series
William Monk opens on total disorientation: Inspector Monk wakes in a London hospital in 1856 with no memory of who he is, only the outward evidence of who he was -- a reputation among Metropolitan Police colleagues for ruthless brilliance and very few friends. He hides the amnesia and returns to work, forced to reconstruct his own past case by case, one buried resentment at a time, while the mystery of an unsolved investigation that may implicate Monk himself hangs over the opening books. Anne Perry uses the amnesia as a genuinely sustained structural device, not just a hook: Monk's uncertainty about his own moral character -- was he a good man before the accident? -- runs underneath the Victorian murder plots for years of the series.
He's partnered, in shifting configurations, by two people: Hester Latterly, a blunt, unclubbable Crimean War nursing veteran who becomes his professional ally and eventually his wife; and Oliver Rathbone, a barrister whose courtroom skill resolves many of the series' cases and whose personal entanglement with Hester complicates the central trio for books at a stretch. Perry's Victorian London is meticulously researched and often bleak, with cases reaching into asylums, the opium trade, dockside crime and the era's rigid class and gender lines, and the plots frequently hinge on Monk's investigative method: patient, procedural, and willing to implicate people society protects.
Frequently asked questions
How many William Monk books are there?
There are 24 novels, from The Face of a Stranger (1990) to Dark Tide Rising (2018).
What order should I read the William Monk books in?
Publication order, starting with The Face of a Stranger. Monk's recovered memory, his marriage to Hester Latterly, and his later move to the Thames River Police all build across the series.
Is William Monk connected to Anne Perry's Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series?
They share the same Victorian London setting and author but follow different characters with no direct crossover; either series can be read independently of the other.
Does William Monk ever recover his memory?
Fragments return gradually across the early books, but the series treats his amnesia as an ongoing part of his character rather than a mystery solved and closed in a single volume.
Is there a new William Monk book coming?
No further Monk novel has been published since Dark Tide Rising (2018); Anne Perry died in April 2023, and Dark Tide Rising is her final entry in the series.
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