Books
Bryant and May books in order
Meet Arthur Bryant and John May of London’s Peculiar Crimes Unit. The creation of author Christopher Fowler, this detective duo investigates cases with the potential to cause national scandal or public unrest. Set between the Second World War and the present day, Bryant and May tackle complex and sometimes seemingly impossible cases.
Eccentric, yet highly believable, the two detectives bring us humour, wit and charm, and have been labelled as contemporary crime fiction’s answer to double acts such as Holmes and Watson and Mulder and Scully.
To whet your appetite, we thought we’d take a quick look at Christopher’s Bryant and May books. If you’re yet to discover the series, you are in for a treat!
Christopher Fowler’s Bryant and May books in order:
Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler
In 1940s London, a beautiful dancer rehearsing for a sexy, sinister production is found without her feet. The investigation plunges Bryant and May into a bizarre gothic mystery, where a faceless man stalks terrified actors and death strikes in darkness.
The Water Room by Christopher Fowler
The body of an elderly woman is found at Number 5, Balaklava Street. Her death would appear to have been peaceful but for the fact that her throat is full of river water. It falls to Bryant and May to search for something resembling a logical solution.
Seventy-Seven Clocks by Christopher Fowler
Members of an aristocratic family are being killed in a variety of grotesque ways – by reptile, by bomb, by haircut. The investigation leads Bryant and May into a hidden world of class conflict, craftsmanship and the secret loyalties of big business.
Ten-Second Staircase by Christopher Fowler
A controversial artist is found dead in her own art installation inside a gallery with locked doors and windows. The only witness insists the murderer was a masked man on a horse. Then a television presenter is struck by lightning while indoors. Bryant and May’s investigations into the two seemingly impossible crimes explore the dark side of celebrity, conflicts of youth, age and class, and the myths of old London.
White Corridor by Christopher Fowler
A key member of staff at the Peculiar Crimes Unit has been found murdered – and Bryant and May, stranded on a desolate snowbound section of country road, aren’t on hand to solve the crime. As the blizzard worsens, they attempt to solve the crime long distance using only their mobile phones. But unknown to the detectives, an obsessed killer is stalking the stranded vehicles, searching for one particular victim…
The Victoria Vanishes by Christopher Fowler
One night, Bryant witnesses a drunk middle-aged lady coming out of a pub in a London backstreet. The next morning, she is found dead at the exact spot where their paths crossed – only the pub has vanished and the street itself has changed. Then it becomes clear that a number of women have met their ends in London pubs. It seems a silent, secret killer is at work, striking in full view… and yet nobody has a clue how, why, or where he’ll attack next.
On the Loose by Christopher Fowler
When a headless body is found in a freezer, and a gigantic figure dressed in deerskin and sporting antlers made of knives is spotted on a construction site, the recently disbanded PCU are suddenly back in business…
Bryant and May: Off the Rails by Christopher Fowler
Bryant and May are on the trail of an enigma: Mr Fox, a young man with a false identity who somehow he escaped from a locked room and murdered one of their best and brightest. The investigation leads them down into the darkest recesses of the London Underground – edging closer to what lies hidden beneath the city, and to the madness that is driving a man to murder.
Bryant and May and the Memory of Blood by Christopher Fowler
During Robert Kramer’s party, his new young wife goes to check on their baby boy. She finds the nursery door locked from the inside – and breaking in, they face an open window, an empty cot, and a grotesque antique puppet of Mr Punch lying on the floor. It seems that child was thrown from the building having been strangled, and the marks of the puppet’s hands are clearly visible on his throat.
Bryant and May and the Invisible Code by Christopher Fowler
Two small children are playing a game called ‘Witch-Hunter’. They place a curse on a young woman taking lunch in a church courtyard and wait for her to die. An hour later the woman is indeed found dead inside St Bride’s Church – a building that no-one else has entered.
Bryant and May and the Bleeding Heart by Christopher Fowler
Two teenagers see a dead man rising from his grave. Then one of them is killed in a hit and run accident. Stranger still, in the moments between when he was last seen alive and found dead on the pavement, someone changed his shirt. Bryant is not allowed to investigate and has been tasked with finding out how the ravens have vanished from The Tower of London. As legend has it, when the ravens leave, the nation falls…
Bryant and May: The Burning Man by Christopher Fowler
London is under siege. A banking scandal has filled the city with violent protests, and as the anger in the streets detonates, a young homeless man burns to death after being caught in the crossfire between rioters and the police. But all is not as it seems; an opportunistic killer is using the chaos to exact revenge, but his intended victims are so mysteriously chosen that the Peculiar Crimes Unit is called in to find a way of stopping him.
Using their network of eccentric contacts, Bryant and May hunt down a murderer who adopts incendiary methods of execution. But they soon find their investigation taking an apocalyptic turn as the case comes to involve the history of mob rule, corruption, rebellion, punishment and the legend of Guy Fawkes.
Bryant and May: Strange Tide by Christopher Fowler
The river Thames is London’s most important yet neglected artery. When a young woman is found chained to a post in the tide, no-one can understand how she came to be drowned there. At the Peculiar Crimes Unit, Bryant and May find themselves dealing with an impossible crime committed in a very public place. Soon they discover that the river is giving up other victims, but as the investigation extends from the coast of Libya to the nightclubs of North London, it proves as murkily sinister as the Thames itself.
As the detectives’ disastrous investigation comes unstuck, the whole team gets involved in some serious messing about on the river. In an adventure that’s as twisting as the river upon which it’s set, will there be anything left of the Peculiar Crimes Unit when it’s over?
Bryant and May: Wild Chamber by Christopher Fowler
In an exclusive London crescent, a woman walks her dog – but she’s being watched. When she’s found dead, the Peculiar Crimes Unit is called in to investigate. Why? Because the method of death is odd, the gardens are locked, the killer had no way in – or out – and the dog has disappeared. But the hows and whys of the murder are not the only mysteries surrounding the dead woman – there’s a missing husband and a lost nanny to puzzle over too. And it seems very like that the killer is preparing to strike again.
As Bryant delves into the history of London’s ‘wild chambers’ – its extraordinary parks and gardens, May and the rest of the team seem to have caused a national scandal. If no-one is safe then all of London’s open spaces must be closed…
Bryant and May: Hall of Mirrors by Christopher Fowler
The year is 1969 and ten guests are about to enjoy a country house weekend at Tavistock Hall. But one amongst them is harbouring thoughts of murder. Amongst the guests are Bryant and May – undercover, in disguise and tasked with protecting Monty Hatton-Jones, a whistle-blower turning Queen’s evidence in a massive bribery trial.
The scene is set for what could be the perfect country house murder mystery, except that this particular get-together is nothing like a Golden Age classic. The house’s owner – a penniless, dope-smoking aristocrat – is intent on selling the estate to a secretive millionaire but the weekend has only just started when the millionaire goes missing and murder is on the cards. But army manoeuvres have closed the only access road and without a forensic examiner, Bryant and May can’t solve the case.
It’s when a falling gargoyle fells another guest that the two incognito detectives decide to place their future reputations on the line. And in the process discover that in Swinging Britain nothing is quite what it seems…
Bryant and May: The Lonely Hour by Christopher Fowler
On a rainy winter night outside a run-down nightclub in the wrong part of London, four strangers meet for the first time at 4:00am. A few weeks later the body of an Indian textile worker is found hanging upside down inside a willow tree on Hampstead Heath. The Peculiar Crimes Unit is called in to investigate. The victim was found surrounded by the paraphernalia of black magic, and so Arthur Bryant and John May set off to question experts in the field. But the case is not what it appears. When another victim seemingly commits suicide, it becomes clear that in the London night is a killer who knows what people fear most. And he always strikes at 4:00am.
To catch him, the PCU must switch to night shifts, but still the team draws a blank. John May takes a technological approach, Arthur Bryant goes in search of academics and misfits for help, for this is becoming a case that reveals impossibilities at every turn, not least that there’s no indication of what the victims might have done to attract the attentions of a murderer that doesn’t seem to exist. But impossibilities are what the Peculiar Crimes Unit does best. As they explore a night city where all the normal rules are upended, they’re drawn deeper into a case that involves murder, arson, kidnap, blackmail, bats and the psychological effects of loneliness on Londoners. It’s a trail that takes them from the poorest part of the East End to the wealthiest homes in North London – an investigation that can only end in tragedy…
Bryant and May: Oranges and Lemons by Christopher Fowler
Bryant and May: Oranges and Lemons
One Sunday morning, the outspoken Speaker of the House of Commons steps out of his front door only to be crushed under a mountain of citrus fruit. Bizarre accident or something more sinister? The government needs to know because here’s a man whose knowledge of parliament’s biggest secret could put the future of the government at stake.
It should be the perfect case for Bryant & May and the Peculiar Crimes Unit, but unfortunately one detective is in hospital, the other is missing and the staff have all been dismissed. It seems the PCU is no more. But events escalate: a series of brutal crimes seemingly linked to an old English folk-song threatens the very foundation of London society and suddenly the PCU is offered a reprieve and are back in (temporary) business!
And if the two elderly detectives, ‘old men in a woke world’, do manage to set aside their differences and discover why some of London’s most influential figures are under life-threatening attack, they might not just save the unit but also prevent the entire city from descending into chaos…
Bryant and May: London Bridge is Falling Down by Christopher Fowler
Bryant and May: London Bridge is Falling Down – coming July 2021
When 91-year-old Amelia Hoffman died in her top-floor flat on a busy London road, it’s considered an example of what has gone wrong with modern society: she slipped through the cracks in a failing system. But detectives Arthur Bryant and John May of the Peculiar Crimes Unit have their doubts. Mrs Hoffman was once a government security expert, even though no one can quite remember her. When a link emerges between the old lady and a diplomat trying to flee the country, it seems that an impossible murder has been committed.
Mrs Hoffman wasn’t the only one at risk. Bryant is convinced that other forgotten women with hidden talents are also in danger. And, curiously, they all own models of London Bridge.
With the help of some of their more certifiable informants, the detectives follow the strangest of clues in an investigation that will lead them through forgotten alleyways to the city’s oldest bridge in search of a desperate killer. But just when the case appears to be solved, they discover that Mrs Hoffman was smarter than anyone imagined. There’s a bigger game afoot that could have terrible consequences.
It’s time to celebrate Bryant and May’s twentieth anniversary as their most lunatic case yet brings death and rebirth to London’s most peculiar crimes unit.
Plus…
Bryant and May: London's Glory by Christopher Fowler
Arthur Bryant has decided to open the files on eleven of these previously unseen investigations that required the collective genius and unique modus operandi of Bryant, May and the Peculiar Crimes Unit – investigations that range from different times and a variety of places: a circus freak show, on board a London Tour Bus and even a yacht off the coast of Turkey.
Bryant and May's Mystery Tour by Christopher Fowler
Bryant and May’s Mystery Tour – digital short story
When Bryant is summoned by the Home Office to attend a crime scene, Bryant and May find themselves in pursuit of the individual who strangled a 54-year-old cleaning lady in her flat. It soon becomes clear that this ‘normal’ murder is anything but straightforward.
Bryant and May: England's Finest by Christopher Fowler
The Peculiar Crimes Unit has solved many extraordinary cases over the years, but some were hushed up and hidden away. Until now.
Arthur Bryant remembers these lost cases as if they were yesterday. Unfortunately, he doesn’t remember yesterday, so the newly revealed facts could come as a surprise to everyone, including his exasperated partner John May.
Here, then, is the truth about the Covent Garden opera diva and the seventh reindeer, the body that falls from the Tate Gallery, the ordinary London street corner where strange accidents keep occurring, the consul’s son discovered buried in the unit’s basement, the corpse pulled from a swamp of Chinese dinners, a Hallowe’en crime in the Post Office Tower, and the impossible death that’s the fault of a forgotten London legend. All of the unit’s oddest characters are here, plus the detectives’ long-suffering sergeant Janice Longbright gets to reveal her own forgotten mystery. These twelve crimes must be solved without the help of modern technology, mainly because nobody knows how to use it. Expect misunderstood clues, lost evidence, arguments about Dickens, churches, pubs and disorderly conduct from the investigative officers they laughingly call ‘England’s Finest’!
There you have it – Christopher Fowler’s Bryant and May books in order! How many have you read? Let us know in the comments below…
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I was never an avid reader but at the age of 83
I found The Bryant & May detective stories in the library. The cover I found intriguing and then I realised they were about the parts of London I knew well, having worked there for many years. Two years later, I have now read 18, I am not a fast reader, as you can guess, but I find your writing so descriptive and funny and accurate, I recognise so many of the places your intrepid Detectives find themselves, so thank you CF and I have just finished The Paper Boy, which I found heart wrenching, but a wonderful read. Thanks again Christopher, please keep going, I am looking forward to the next one. All the best for the future.
Have loved these books and they have got me into being a regular visitor to the library. They are characters you care about and the humour and history are great additions. I always picture Jim Broadbent as Arthur Bryant but still searching for my best John May!
Found these wonderful characters during the first lockdown. Have now listened to all but 5 (plus the ‘Plus’ 3)
Having come so far will read the remaining 5 then think I will start again in order! Wonderful characters fantastically read by Tim Goodman and the wealth of historical facts is such a bonus . Thank you Christopher Fowler
I’ve always loved Bryant and May from their early beginnings in ‘Rune’ and ‘Darkest Day’, and would agree that Timothy Spall would make an excellent Arthur Bryant for TV or film whereas Bill Nighy would make a well chosen John May. Clever outlines, fine humour, great knowledge of London.
It is interesting to speculate who should play these wonderful characters in a mini series. I would venture Ben Miles and Timothy Spall and if you have to ask who plays who, you have not read these clever, witty and completely absorbing books.
I found Bryant and May during lockdown, when the only books I could get through the library were digital.
Glad to see at nearly 100 years old, they are still employed! First case 1940, so good for them. I wonder when they will be picked up for a mini series? Doubtful any actor could get Arthur right!
I’ve been waiting for London Bridge is falling Down and then I shall start at Full Dark House and read them all again for the umpteenth time and always finding something new – or something I’ve forgotten. These books have been an absolute delight; London and the PCU. Thank you Mr Fowler for all the very many hours of pleasure you have given me.
I found the first book ‘Full Dark House’ in a branch of W H Smith in a box of slightly damaged books which were being sold for £1 each. This was seven years ago. Since then I nave collected a further seventeen books. I never get bored re- reading these books. In a world that has become increasingly stereotyped it is refreshing to read stories about a group of non conformists.
I would very much like to apply for a job as Arthur Bryant’s secretary/assistant/odd-job caretaker. It’s a very unlikely position to aspire to, so I will satisfy myself by reading and rereading the series and continuing my inoffensive nerdy ways (I admit it- I enjoy research).
Marvelous books! Get my imagination well fired up. Thank you, Mr. Fowler, and please, continue!
I am a brand new inductee to the series of Bryant and May, but after being offered Oranges and Lemons, and realizing it is one of many in a series, I want to start, first, at the beginning. Am I correct in thinking this way? I am not a huge book reader any more, but love listening in my car on long drives to recorded books, especially murder mysteries, which have always been, and shall remain so, my favorites! I was able to listen to a short extract of the above book and loved the narrator. I look forward to your advice – thank you.
Thanks very much, DeadGood, for summing up my series so succinctly – and all in the right order! The total comes to 19 books with a 20th anniversary novel coming in July.
I greatly enjoy Mr. Fowler’s Bryant and May series and I always get the books. I have visited London a number of times and find his streets and pubs fascinating. I also found his books deserve re-reading because there is so much historical information that one misses on the first time through. Am awaiting the next book in the series.
Have just read all the Bryant & May books in order…since January!!!Brilliant books,but now what will I do without them….hopefully there will be lots more…..
I was afraid I was going to go through withdrawal…thinking that The Burning Man was the latest or last in the series. So relieved to learn that there are More!
Brilliant writing, witty and erudite. Love these books.
Just finished the first book in this series and am delighted to learn there are so many more to enjoy. The humor reminds me of the Twitten books written by Lynn Truss. Simply excellent!
Christopher Fowler’s detectives did the impossible and overtook Holmes and Watson in my affections. Like the people above, I’ve ended up reading them all. There are very few British novelists writing mixed genre well – I just finished a brilliant book by Des Burkinshaw (Dead & Talking) which reminded me of Fowler’s work, but, yes, later Reg Hill and the Vinyl Detective too. What do they all have in common? Great characters, genuine darkness, but warmth and humour too. I recommend starting Bryant & May at The Water Room and read Full Dark House later once you’be got to know the characters. They are also unique in that the actor who reads the audiobooks completely nails the characters. They are a delight themselves and I got in the habit of reading the book, giving it a week, and then listening to the audiobook. Fowler creates a world you desperately want to be in.
As a Kiwi and a lover of English history and a good murder mystery, I discovered Bryant & May on belated OE to London (a 5 year stint). Living in West Hampstead and based in the City I walked these roads, drank in the pubs and read all the wall plaques …….
Great reads, and now back home they remind me of the London I loved to meander through, and always worth the re-read.
Thanks Christopher, keep them coming
I connected with this author by reading psychoville many, many moons ago and fell in love! I have read everything since then and B&M are 2 truly fascinating creations-i have shed a tear or 2 over them.
Wonderful books that i discovered by accident when i bought the first one in a charity shop. ( Mr Fowler’s bank balance will be relieved to hear that all the subsequent books were purchased at full price.) Warm and believable characters, with devious plots and lovely humour. Why, oh why, haven’t the TV execs picked up on these books and turned them into a series? I see Charles Dance and Bradley Walsh as out two heroes in later life.
I began reading these books and loved them so I started over again and read them in order. I hope there will be more. The history of London intertwined with the stories and the wonderfully real characters never disappoint. Thank you, Mr. Fowler.
I discovered B&M via a superb audio book of “Full Dark House”. I’ve devoured all as they appeared, plus audio when available. Mr Fowler is the most distinctive “voice” in modern crime fiction, after the late lamented Reg Hill. The same fine writing/characterisation/humour and sheer verve in plotting, shown in RH’s later books. The same density is there in CF’s books too. He has also written great “spooky” stand-alones too, indeed, 77 staircase is a “director’s cut” (CF’s phrase) of, I think, “Spanky” – I might have got that wrong! Also his autobiographies are terrific too. An absolute must read author. Thanks, Christopher.