Order of Book Series
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Peter Ackroyd Books in Order

Peter Ackroyd has written 70 books, published between 1973 and 2025. The first book is London Lickpenny (1973) and the newest is Forgotten London (2025). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
70
Published
1973–2025
Pages on record
16,071 in 57 of 70 books
Reading time
268–402 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 16,071 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 57 of 70 titles with a page count on record.

See all 70 books in order Printable Peter Ackroyd checklist
Photo of Peter Ackroyd, author

Peter Ackroyd is an English novelist, biographer and critic, born in 1949, whose standing subject is the history and culture of London. Seventy books are catalogued from London Lickpenny (1973) to Forgotten London (2025). Biography fills much of the list, in Chaucer (1980), Ezra Pound and His World (1980), T.S. Eliot (1984) and later lives of William Blake, Charles Dickens, Charlie Chaplin and Sir Thomas More; the novels include The Great Fire of London (1982), The Last Testament of Oscar Wilde (1983) and Hawksmoor (1985). Ackroyd's Brief Lives, Voyages Through Time, a History of England and Shakespeare: the Biography are the series. The Somerset Maugham Award and two Whitbread Awards followed.

How many Peter Ackroyd books are there?

Peter Ackroyd has 70 books, released between 1973 and 2025. They include 4 series and 47 titles listed outside any series.

Peter Ackroyd Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 70 Peter Ackroyd 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 London Lickpenny by Peter Ackroyd (1973)
  2. Cover of Notes for a New Culture by Peter Ackroyd (1976)
  3. Cover of Dressing Up by Peter Ackroyd (1979)
  4. Cover of Chaucer by Peter Ackroyd, book 1 of the Ackroyd's Brief Lives series (1980)
  5. Cover of Ezra Pound and His World by Peter Ackroyd (1980)
  6. Cover of Hawksmoor by Peter Ackroyd (1985)
  7. Cover of Chatterton by Peter Ackroyd (1987)
  8. Cover of Dickens' London by Peter Ackroyd (1987)
  9. Cover of First Light by Peter Ackroyd (1989)
  10. Cover of The Life of Thomas More by Peter Ackroyd (1991)
  11. Cover of The House of Doctor Dee by Peter Ackroyd (1993)
  12. Cover of Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem / The Trial of Elizabeth Cree / The Limehouse by Peter Ackroyd (1994)
  13. Cover of Blake by Peter Ackroyd (1995)
  14. Cover of The Plato Papers by Peter Ackroyd (1999)
  15. Cover of London: The Biography by Peter Ackroyd (2000)
  16. Cover of The Collection by Peter Ackroyd (2001)
  17. Cover of J.M.W. Turner by Peter Ackroyd, book 2 of the Ackroyd's Brief Lives series (2002)
  18. Cover of Dickens: Public Life and Private Passion by Peter Ackroyd (2002)
  19. Cover of Albion: The Origins of the English Imagination by Peter Ackroyd (2002)
  20. Cover of The Beginning by Peter Ackroyd, book 1 of the Voyages Through Time series (2003)
  21. Cover of Illustrated London by Peter Ackroyd (2003)
  22. Cover of Kingdom of the Dead by Peter Ackroyd, book 2 of the Voyages Through Time series (2004)
  23. Cover of Escape from Earth by Peter Ackroyd, book 3 of the Voyages Through Time series (2004)
  24. Cover of Cities of Blood by Peter Ackroyd, book 4 of the Voyages Through Time series (2004)
  1. 1
    London Lickpenny1973 · 35 pages · confirmed 1/4
    197335
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Notes for a New Culture1976 · 152 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1976152
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Country Life1978 · confirmed 1/4
    1978–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Dressing Up1979 · 160 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1979160
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    ChaucerAckroyd's Brief Lives #11980 · 188 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1980188
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Ezra Pound and His World1980 · 127 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1980127
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    The Great Fire of London1982 · 169 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1982169
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The Last Testament of Oscar Wilde1983 · 185 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1983185
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    T.S. Eliot1984 · 400 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1984400
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Hawksmoor1985 · 217 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1985217
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    The Diversions Of Purley And Other Poems1987 · 74 pages · confirmed 1/4
    198774
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Chatterton1987 · 234 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1987234
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    Dickens' London1987 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1987192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    First Light1989 · 336 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1989336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Introduction to Dickens1991 · 176 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1991176
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    The Life of Thomas More1991 · 480 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1991480
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    English Music1992 · confirmed 1/4
    1992–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    The House of Doctor Dee1993 · 276 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1993276
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem / The Trial of Elizabeth Cree / The Limehouse1994 · 281 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1994281
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Blake1995 · 400 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1995400
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Milton in America1996 · confirmed 1/4
    1996–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 22
    The Plato Papers1999 · 192 pages · confirmed 1/4
    1999192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 23
    London: The Biography2000 · 848 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2000848
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 24
    The Collection2001 · 448 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2001448
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 25
    J.M.W. TurnerAckroyd's Brief Lives #22002 · 173 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2002173
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 26
    Dickens: Public Life and Private Passion2002 · 216 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2002216
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  27. 27
    Albion: The Origins of the English Imagination2002 · 560 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2002560
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  28. 28
    The BeginningVoyages Through Time #12003 · 143 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003143
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  29. 29
    The Clerkenwell Tales2003 · 213 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003213
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  30. 30
    Illustrated London2003 · 320 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003320
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Peter Ackroyd 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.

Ackroyd's Brief Lives in order

7 books
  1. 1. Chaucer
  2. 2. J.M.W. Turner
  3. 3. Newton
  4. 4. Poe
  5. 5. Wilkie Collins
  6. 6. Charlie Chaplin
  7. 7. Alfred Hitchcock

Voyages Through Time in order

6 books
  1. 1. The Beginning
  2. 2. Kingdom of the Dead
  3. 3. Escape from Earth
  4. 4. Cities of Blood
  5. 5. Ancient Rome
  6. 6. Ancient Greece

History of England in order

6 books
  1. 1. Foundation
  2. 2. Tudors
  3. 3. Rebellion / Civil War
  4. 4. Revolution
  5. 5. Dominion
  6. 6. Innovation

Shakespeare: the Biography in order

4 books
  1. 1. Aspiring Spirit
  2. 2. The Upstart Crow
  3. 3. A Muse of Fire
  4. 4. The Onlie Begetter

Standalone books

47 books

47 Peter Ackroyd titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Peter Ackroyd books in order?

You only need to read Peter Ackroyd books in order within each series: the books listed here span 4 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with Peter Ackroyd

Start with London Lickpenny (1973), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Peter Ackroyd book?

Forgotten London (2025) is the newest Peter Ackroyd book released so far.

Is there a new Peter Ackroyd book coming?

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

Awards Peter Ackroyd has won

Wikidata records 3 awards and 1 nomination for Peter Ackroyd. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • James Tait Black Memorial Prize1998Won
  • Somerset Maugham Award1984Won
  • Heinemann Award1984Won
  • Booker Prize1987Shortlistedfor Chatterton

Peter Ackroyd at a glance

Still publishing
Peter Ackroyd published a book as recently as 2025.
Release pace
Peter Ackroyd books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
16,071 pages across the 57 of 70 books with a recorded length, a median of 234 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Peter Ackroyd books, 27 of 70, were published in the 2000s.

What the Peter Ackroyd books are about

57 of the 70 Peter Ackroyd books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: history is tagged on 17 of 57. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

  • History 17 of 57 books
  • Biography 14 of 57 books
  • London (England) 6 of 57 books
  • Social life and customs 6 of 57 books
  • Civilization 5 of 57 books
  • Historical fiction 5 of 57 books
  • Juvenile literature 5 of 57 books
  • Novelists 4 of 57 books
  • London (england), history 4 of 57 books
  • Criticism and interpretation 3 of 57 books
  • English Poets 3 of 57 books
  • In literature 3 of 57 books