Order of Ruth Rendell Books
Ruth Rendell (1930-2015) was an English author of crime fiction, psychological thrillers and mystery novels. She is credited alongside P.D. James for developing the whodunit subgenre into more of a whydunit. She is best known for her Inspector Wexford series. She also writes under the pen name Barbara Vine.
Ruth Rendell made her literary debut in From Doon With Death in 1964, which began her Inspector Wexford series. Below is a list of Ruth Rendell’s books in order of when they were originally released (and in chronological order):
Publication Order of Inspector Wexford Books
|
From Doon With Death |
(1964) |
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Sins of the Fathers / A New Lease of Death |
(1967) |
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|
Wolf to the Slaughter |
(1967) |
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|
The Best Man to Die |
(1969) |
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A Guilty Thing Surprised |
(1970) |
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No More Dying Then |
(1971) |
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Murder Being Once Done |
(1972) |
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|
Some Lie and Some Die |
(1973) |
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Shake Hands Forever |
(1975) |
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|
A Sleeping Life |
(1978) |
|
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Death Notes / Put On By Cunning |
(1981) |
|
|
Speaker of Mandarin |
(1983) |
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An Unkindness of Ravens |
(1985) |
|
|
The Veiled One |
(1988) |
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Kissing the Gunner’s Daughter |
(1992) |
|
|
Ginger and the Kingsmarkham |
(1992) |
|
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Simisola |
(1994) |
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Road Rage |
(1997) |
|
|
Harm Done |
(1999) |
|
|
The Babes in the Wood |
(2002) |
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|
End in Tears |
(2005) |
|
|
Not in the Flesh |
(2007) |
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The Monster in the Box |
(2009) |
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The Vault |
(2011) |
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|
No Man’s Nightingale |
(2013) |
Publication Order of Inspector Wexford Collections Books
|
Means of Evil |
(1979) |
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
|
To Fear a Painted Devil |
(1965) |
|
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Vanity Dies Hard |
(1966) |
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The Secret House Of Death |
(1968) |
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One Across, Two Down |
(1971) |
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The Face of Trespass |
(1974) |
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A Demon in My View |
(1976) |
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A Judgement in Stone |
(1977) |
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Make Death Love Me |
(1979) |
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The Lake of Darkness |
(1980) |
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Master of the Moor |
(1982) |
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The Killing Doll |
(1984) |
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The Tree of Hands |
(1984) |
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Live Flesh |
(1986) |
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A Dark-Adapted Eye |
(1986) |
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Talking to Strange Men |
(1987) |
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A Fatal Inversion |
(1987) |
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The House of Stairs |
(1988) |
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The Bridesmaid |
(1989) |
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Going Wrong |
(1990) |
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Gallowglass |
(1990) |
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King Solomon’s Carpet |
(1991) |
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The Crocodile Bird |
(1993) |
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Asta’s Book / Anna’s Book |
(1993) |
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No Night Is Too Long |
(1994) |
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In the Time of His Prosperity |
(1995) |
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The Brimstone Wedding |
(1995) |
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The Keys to the Street |
(1996) |
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A Sight for Sore Eyes |
(1998) |
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The Chimney Sweeper’s Boy |
(1998) |
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Grasshopper |
(2000) |
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Adam and Eve and Pinch Me |
(2001) |
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The Blood Doctor |
(2002) |
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The Rottweiler |
(2003) |
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13 Steps Down |
(2004) |
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Minotaur |
(2005) |
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The Water’s Lovely |
(2006) |
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Portobello |
(2008) |
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Birthday Present |
(2008) |
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Tigerlily’s Orchids |
(2010) |
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The Saint Zita Society |
(2012) |
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The Child’s Child |
(2012) |
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The Girl Next Door |
(2014) |
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Dark Corners |
(2015) |
Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas
|
The Convolvulus Clock |
(1985) |
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Heartstones |
(1987) |
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Long Live The Queen |
(1991) |
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Thornapple |
(2000) |
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The Thief |
(2005) |
Publication Order of Short Story Collections
|
The Fallen Curtain |
(1976) |
|
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The Fever Tree |
(1982) |
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The New Girlfriend |
(1985) |
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Collected Short Stories |
(1989) |
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The Copper Peacock and Other Stories |
(1991) |
|
|
Blood Lines |
(1995) |
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Piranha to Scurfy |
(2000) |
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|
Ruth Rendell: Short Stories |
(2006) |
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|
Collected Stories Vol 1 |
(2006) |
|
|
A Spot of Folly |
(2017) |
Publication Order of Children’s Books
|
Archie and Archie |
(2013) |
Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books
|
Ruth Rendell’s Suffolk |
(1992) |
|
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The Reason Why |
(1995) |
Publication Order of Anthologies
|
Simply The Best Mysteries, Edgar Award Winners And Front Runners |
(1970) |
|
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The 23rd Pan Book of Horror Stories |
(1982) |
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The Web She Weaves |
(1983) |
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Murder in the Dark |
(1983) |
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Ready or Not: Here Come Fourteen Frightening Stories! |
(1987) |
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English Country House Murders |
(1988) |
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The Picador Book of the New Gothic |
(1991) |
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Mystery Cats |
(1991) |
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1st Culprit |
(1992) |
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The Man Who… |
(1992) |
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Women of Mystery |
(1992) |
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The Year’s 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories 1992 |
(1993) |
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Fifty Best Mysteries |
(1993) |
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3rd Culprit |
(1994) |
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Women of Mystery II |
(1994) |
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Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: November 1994 |
(1994) |
|
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The Year’s 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories 1993 |
(1994) |
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Murder Intercontinental |
(1996) |
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Murder by the Book |
(1996) |
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Win, Lose or Die |
(1996) |
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Women of Mystery III |
(1998) |
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Crime After Crime |
(1999) |
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Crime Never Pays |
(2001) |
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The World’s Finest Mystery and Crime Stories 3 |
(2002) |
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Murder On The Railways |
(2003) |
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Feline Felonies |
(2006) |
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Unforgettable Ghost Stories by Women Writers |
(2008) |
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Great Modern Stories |
(2009) |
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Midsummer Nights |
(2009) |
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Short Stories: The Thoroughly Modern Collection |
(2009) |
|
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Murder in Midsummer: Classic Mysteries for the Holidays |
(2019) |
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Murder Takes a Holiday: Classic Crime Stories for Summer |
(2021) |
Notes: A New Lease of Death was also published as The Sins of the Fathers. Put on by Cunning was also published as Death Notes. Asta’s Book was also published as Anna’s Book.
A Dark Adapted Eye, A Fatal Inversion, The House of Stairs, Gallowglass, King Solomon’s Carpet, Asta’s Book, No Night is Too Long, The Brimstone Wedding, The Chimney Sweeper’s Boy, Grasshopper, The Blood Doctor, The Minotaur, The Birthday Present and The Child’s Child were published under the nom de plume of Barbara Vine.