Order of Book Series
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James Hadley Chase Books in Order

James Hadley Chase has written 96 books, published between 1939 and 1984. The first book is No Orchids for Miss Blandish / The Villain and the Virgin (1939) and the newest is Hit Them Where It Hurts (1984). Publication order is the reading order below.

James Hadley Chase also publishes as Ambrose Grant.

Books
96
Published
1939–1984
Pages on record
16,130 in 69 of 96 books
Reading time
269–403 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 16,130 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 69 of 96 titles with a page count on record.

See all 96 books in order Printable James Hadley Chase checklist

James Hadley Chase was the pen name of Rene Lodge Brabazon Raymond, an English crime writer who lived from 1906 to 1985. Ninety-six books are catalogued between No Orchids for Miss Blandish (1939) and Hit Them Where It Hurts (1984), and some early titles appeared as by Raymond Marshall. Recurring characters carry the series: Vic Malloy, Steve Harmas, Dave Fenner, Frank Terrell, Tom Lepski, Mark Girland, Helga Rolfe and Don Micklem. Fifty of the books have been filmed, the work was widely translated into Russian, and Chase was called the king of thriller writers in Europe. The median book runs 204 pages.

How many James Hadley Chase books are there?

James Hadley Chase has 96 books, released between 1939 and 1984. They include 8 series and 67 titles listed outside any series.

James Hadley Chase Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 96 James Hadley Chase books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.

  1. Cover of The Flesh of the Orchid by James Hadley Chase (1940)
  2. Cover of Lady -- Here's Your Wreath (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase (1940)
  3. Cover of The Doll's Bad News / Twelve C----- and a Woman by James Hadley Chase, book 2 of the Dave Fenner series (1941)
  4. Cover of Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief by James Hadley Chase (1941)
  5. Cover of You Never Know with Women by James Hadley Chase (1942)
  6. Cover of Just the Way It Is (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase (1944)
  7. Cover of Miss Shumway Waves a Wand by James Hadley Chase (1944)
  8. Cover of Make the Corpse Walk (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase (1946)
  9. Cover of The Paw in the Bottle (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase (1949)
  10. Cover of Lay Her Among Lilies / Too Dangerous to Be Free by James Hadley Chase, book 3 of the Vic Malloy series (1950)
  11. Cover of Strictly for Cash by James Hadley Chase (1951)
  12. Cover of The Fast Buck by James Hadley Chase (1952)
  13. Cover of Double Shuffle by James Hadley Chase, book 2 of the Steve Harmas series (1954)
  14. Cover of Safer Dead / Dead Ringer by James Hadley Chase (1954)
  15. Cover of Mission to Venice (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase (1954)
  16. Cover of Tiger by the Tail by James Hadley Chase (1954)
  17. Cover of This Way for a Shroud by James Hadley Chase (1954)
  18. Cover of Mission to Siena (As: Raymond Marshall) by James Hadley Chase, book 1 of the Don Micklem series (1955)
  19. Cover of There's Always a Price Tag by James Hadley Chase, book 3 of the Steve Harmas series (1956)
  20. Cover of The Guilty Are Afraid by James Hadley Chase (1957)
  21. Cover of The Whiff of Money by James Hadley Chase, book 1 of the Mark Girland series (1958)
  22. Cover of Hit and Run by James Hadley Chase (1958)
  23. Cover of Shock Treatment by James Hadley Chase, book 4 of the Steve Harmas series (1959)
  24. Cover of What's Better Than Money? by James Hadley Chase (1960)
  1. 1
    No Orchids for Miss Blandish / The Villain and the VirginDave Fenner #11939 · confirmed 2/4
    1939–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    The Flesh of the Orchid1940 · confirmed 2/4
    1940–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Lady -- Here's Your Wreath (As: Raymond Marshall)1940 · 244 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1940244
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    The Doll's Bad News / Twelve C----- and a WomanDave Fenner #21941 · 154 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1941154
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    The Dead Stay Dumb / Kiss My Fist!1941 · confirmed 2/4
    1941–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief1941 · confirmed 2/4
    1941–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Get a Load of This1942 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1942192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    You Never Know with Women1942 · confirmed 2/4
    1942–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Eve1942 · confirmed 2/4
    1942–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Just the Way It Is (As: Raymond Marshall)1944 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1944192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    Miss Shumway Waves a Wand1944 · 221 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1944221
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Make the Corpse Walk (As: Raymond Marshall)1946 · 252 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1946252
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    I'll Get You for This1946 · 223 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1946223
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Blonde's Requiem (As: Raymond Marshall)1946 · confirmed 2/4
    1946–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    More Deadly Than the Male1946 · 238 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1946238
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    No Business of Mine (As: Raymond Marshall)Steve Harmas #11947 · 1976 pages · confirmed 2/4
    19471976
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Trusted Like the Fox (As: Raymond Marshall)1948 · 224 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1948224
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    You're Lonely When You're DeadVic Malloy #11949 · 218 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1949218
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    The Paw in the Bottle (As: Raymond Marshall)1949 · 208 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1949208
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Figure It Out for Yourself / The Marijuana MobVic Malloy #21950 · 190 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1950190
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Lay Her Among Lilies / Too Dangerous to Be FreeVic Malloy #31950 · 222 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1950222
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    Why Pick On Me? (As: Raymond Marshall)1950 · 208 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1950208
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    In a Vain Shadow (As: Raymond Marshall)1951 · confirmed 2/4
    1951–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    But a Short Time to Live (As: Raymond Marshall)1951 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1951192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    Strictly for Cash1951 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1951192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    The Fast Buck1952 · 282 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1952282
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    The Wary Transgressor (As: Raymond Marshall)1952 · confirmed 2/4
    1952–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    I'll Bury My Dead1953 · 304 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1953304
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    The Things Men Do (As: Raymond Marshall)1953 · 222 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1953222
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    Double ShuffleSteve Harmas #21954 · 221 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1954221
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

James Hadley Chase books grouped by series

Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.

Steve Harmas in order

6 books
  1. 1. No Business of Mine (As: Raymond Marshall)
  2. 2. Double Shuffle
  3. 3. There's Always a Price Tag
  4. 4. Shock Treatment
  5. 5. Tell It to the Birds
  6. 6. An Ear to the Ground

Frank Terrell in order

5 books
  1. 1. The Soft Centre
  2. 2. The Way the Cookie Crumbles
  3. 3. Well Now, My Pretty ..
  4. 4. Believed Violent
  5. 5. There's a Hippie on the Highway

Tom Lepski in order

5 books
  1. 1. Like a Hole in the Head
  2. 2. Have a Change of Scene
  3. 3. Consider Yourself Dead
  4. 4. Try This One for Size
  5. 5. Hit Them Where It Hurts

Mark Girland in order

4 books
  1. 1. The Whiff of Money
  2. 2. This Is for Real
  3. 3. Have This One on Me
  4. 4. You Have Yourself a Deal

Vic Malloy in order

3 books
  1. 1. You're Lonely When You're Dead
  2. 2. Figure It Out for Yourself / The Marijuana Mob
  3. 3. Lay Her Among Lilies / Too Dangerous to Be Free

Helga Rolfe in order

3 books
  1. 1. Ace Up My Sleeve
  2. 2. The Joker in the Pack
  3. 3. I Hold the Four Aces

Dave Fenner in order

2 books
  1. 1. No Orchids for Miss Blandish / The Villain and the Virgin
  2. 2. The Doll's Bad News / Twelve C----- and a Woman

Don Micklem in order

1 book
  1. 1. Mission to Siena (As: Raymond Marshall)

Standalone books

67 books

67 James Hadley Chase titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read James Hadley Chase books in order?

You only need to read James Hadley Chase books in order within each series: the books listed here span 8 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with James Hadley Chase

Start with No Orchids for Miss Blandish / The Villain and the Virgin (1939), the earliest published title.

What is the newest James Hadley Chase book?

Hit Them Where It Hurts (1984) is the newest James Hadley Chase book released so far.

Is there a new James Hadley Chase book coming?

No next James Hadley Chase book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

James Hadley Chase at a glance

Died
James Hadley Chase died in 1985, according to Wikidata.
Last book
The newest book credited to James Hadley Chase on record dates from 1984.
Release pace
James Hadley Chase books have appeared more than one a year on average.
Length
16,130 pages across the 69 of 96 books with a recorded length, a median of 204 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most James Hadley Chase books, 29 of 96, were published in the 1950s.

What the James Hadley Chase books are about

73 of the 96 James Hadley Chase books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: fiction in english is tagged on 53 of 73. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.