John Bude Books in Order

28 books are credited to John Bude, published between 1935 and 2026; 3 of them appeared after John Bude's death in 1957. The first book is The Lake District Murder (1935) and the newest is Murder in Montparnasse (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
28
Published
1935–2026
Pages on record
2,110 in 7 of 28 books

John Bude was the pseudonym under which Ernest Carpenter Elmore (4 November 1901 – 8 November 1957), an English theatre producer and director, wrote crime novels; Elmore also wrote fantasy. The Cornish Coast Murder and The Lake District Murder, both from 1935, open a catalogue of 28 books, followed by The Sussex Downs Murder (1936), The Cheltenham Square Murder (1937), Loss of a Head (1938) and Death On Paper (1940). Superintendent Green and Inspector Sherwood are the series, and Superintendent William Meredith is a named character. Golden Age mystery and police procedurals appear among the subjects, and the listing links British Library Crime Classics.

Source: Wikidata

How many John Bude books are there?

John Bude has 28 books, released between 1935 and 2026. 3 of them were published after John Bude's death in 1957. They include 2 series and 1 title listed outside any series.

John Bude Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 28 John Bude 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 November 2026.

  1. 1
    The Lake District MurderBritish Library Crime Classics #261935 · 286 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1935286
  2. 2
    The Cornish Coast MurderBritish Library Crime Classics #281935 · 256 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1935256
  3. 3
    The Sussex Downs MurderBritish Library Crime Classics #311936 · 232 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1936232
  4. 4
    The Cheltenham Square MurderBritish Library Crime Classics #391937 · 246 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1937246
  5. 5
    Loss of a HeadSuperintendent Green #11938 · confirmed 1/4
    1938–
  6. 6
    Hand on the Alibi of DetectionSuperintendent Green #21939 · confirmed 1/4
    1939–
  7. 7
    Death On PaperSuperintendent William Meredith #41940 · confirmed 1/4
    1940–
  8. 8
    Trouble A-BrewingSuperintendent William Meredith #51940 · confirmed 1/4
    1940–
  9. 9
    Slow VengeanceSuperintendent William Meredith #61941 · confirmed 1/4
    1941–
  10. 10
    Death Knows No CalendarSuperintendent William Meredith #71942 · 560 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1942560
  11. 11
    Death Deals A DoubleSuperintendent William Meredith #81943 · confirmed 1/4
    1943–
  12. 12
    Death in an AmbushSuperintendent William Meredith #101945 · confirmed 1/4
    1945–
  13. 13
    Death Makes a ProphetBritish Library Crime Classics #581947 · 288 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1947288
  14. 14
    Dangerous SunlightSuperintendent William Meredith #121948 · confirmed 1/4
    1948–
  15. 15
    A Glut of Red HerringsSuperintendent William Meredith #131949 · confirmed 1/4
    1949–
  16. 16
    Death Steals the ShowSuperintendent William Meredith #141950 · confirmed 1/4
    1950–
  17. 17
    The Constable & the LadySuperintendent William Meredith #151951 · confirmed 1/4
    1951–
  18. 18
    When the Case Was OpenedSuperintendent William Meredith #171952 · confirmed 1/4
    1952–
  19. 19
    Death on the RivieraBritish Library Crime Classics #661952 · 242 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1952242
  20. 20
    Twice DeadSuperintendent William Meredith #181953 · confirmed 1/4
    1953–
  21. 21
    So Much in the DarkSuperintendent William Meredith #191954 · confirmed 1/4
    1954–
  22. 22
    Two Ends to the TownSuperintendent William Meredith #201955 · confirmed 1/4
    1955–
  23. 23
    A Shift of GuiltSuperintendent William Meredith #211956 · confirmed 1/4
    1956–
  24. 24
    A Telegram from Le TouquetSuperintendent William Meredith #221956 · confirmed 1/4
    1956–
  25. 25
    Another Man's ShadowSuperintendent William Meredith #231957 · confirmed 1/4
    1957–
  26. 26
    The Night the Fog Came DownInspector Sherwood #11958 · confirmed 1/4
    1958–
  27. 27
    A Twist Of The RopeInspector Sherwood #21958 · confirmed 1/4
    1958–
  28. 28
    Murder in Montparnasse2026 · confirmed 1/4
    2026–

John Bude 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.

Superintendent William Meredith in order

17 books
  1. 4. Death On Paper
  2. 5. Trouble A-Brewing
  3. 6. Slow Vengeance
  4. 7. Death Knows No Calendar
  5. 8. Death Deals A Double
  6. 10. Death in an Ambush
  7. 12. Dangerous Sunlight
  8. 13. A Glut of Red Herrings
  9. 14. Death Steals the Show
  10. 15. The Constable & the Lady
  11. 17. When the Case Was Opened
  12. 18. Twice Dead
  13. and 5 more in the table above

British Library Crime Classics in order

6 books
  1. 26. The Lake District Murder
  2. 28. The Cornish Coast Murder
  3. 31. The Sussex Downs Murder
  4. 39. The Cheltenham Square Murder
  5. 58. Death Makes a Prophet
  6. 66. Death on the Riviera

Superintendent Green in order

2 books
  1. 1. Loss of a Head
  2. 2. Hand on the Alibi of Detection

Inspector Sherwood in order

2 books
  1. 1. The Night the Fog Came Down
  2. 2. A Twist Of The Rope

Standalone books

1 book

1 John Bude title here is not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read John Bude books in order?

You only need to read John Bude books in order within each series: the books listed here span 2 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with John Bude

Start with The Lake District Murder (1935), the earliest published title.

What is the newest John Bude book?

Murder in Montparnasse (2026) is the newest John Bude book released so far.

Is there a new John Bude book coming?

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

John Bude at a glance

Died
John Bude died in 1957, according to Wikidata.
After death
Books credited to John Bude are still being published after John Bude's death in 1957; the newest appeared in 2026.
Release pace
John Bude books have appeared about one every 3 years on average.
Length
2,110 pages across the 7 of 28 books with a recorded length, a median of 256 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most John Bude books, 12 of 28, were published in the 1950s.

When John Bude books were published

Publication distribution by decade, showing when John Bude titles appeared. 1950s was the most productive decade with 12 titles.

1930s
6
1940s
9
1950s
12
2020s
1

28 books total across 4 decades. Decade reflects the year each title was first catalogued.

What the John Bude books are about

7 of the 28 John Bude books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: investigation is tagged on 5 of 7. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.