Order of Book Series
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Ciaphas Cain Books in Order

Ciaphas Cain by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart contains 26 books, published between 2003 and 2023. The first book is For the Emperor (2003) and the newest is Ciaphas Cain - The Anthology (2023). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
26
Published
2003–2023
Pages on record
3,403 in 8 of 26 books
See all 26 books in order Printable Ciaphas Cain checklist

Ciaphas Cain is a science fiction series set in Warhammer 40,000, the far-future wargame universe Games Workshop launched in 1987 and has expanded through background fiction, most of it published since 1997 by the Black Library imprint. Sandy Mitchell, the pen name of Alex Stewart, writes the books, which follow the character Ciaphas Cain through space warfare on other worlds and carry humour among their listed subjects. For the Emperor (2003) opens a run of 26 titles that reached Ciaphas Cain - The Anthology in 2023, with nothing new recorded since.

How many Ciaphas Cain books are there?

Ciaphas Cain has 26 books, released between 2003 and 2023.

Ciaphas Cain Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 26 Ciaphas Cain 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 For the Emperor by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 1 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2003)
  2. Cover of Caves of Ice by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 2 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2004)
  3. Cover of The Traitor's Hand by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 3 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2005)
  4. Cover of Death or Glory by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 4 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2006)
  5. Cover of Hero of the Imperium by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 5 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2007)
  6. Cover of Duty Calls by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 9 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2007)
  7. Cover of Cain's Last Stand by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 10 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2008)
  8. Cover of The Emperor's Finest by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 11 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2010)
  9. Cover of Defender of the Imperium by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 12 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2010)
  10. Cover of Dead in the Water by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 14 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2011)
  11. Cover of The Last Ditch by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 17 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2012)
  12. Cover of The Greater Good by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 19 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2013)
  13. Cover of Choose Your Enemies by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart, book 22 of the Ciaphas Cain series (2019)
  1. 1
    For the Emperor2003 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Caves of Ice2004 · 256 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2004256
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    The Traitor's Hand2005 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2005416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Death or Glory2006 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2006416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Hero of the Imperium2007 · 768 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2007768
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Fight or Flight2007 · confirmed 1/4
    2007–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 9
    Duty Calls2007 · 416 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2007416
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 10
    Cain's Last Stand2008 · confirmed 1/4
    2008–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 11
    The Emperor's Finest2010 · 315 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2010315
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 12
    Defender of the Imperium2010 · confirmed 1/4
    2010–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 13
    Traitor's Gambit2010 · confirmed 1/4
    2010–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 14
    Dead in the Water2011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 15
    Sector Thirteen2011 · confirmed 1/4
    2011–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 16
    The Smallest Detail2012 · confirmed 1/4
    2012–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 17
    The Last Ditch2012 · confirmed 1/4
    2012–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 18
    A Mug of Recaff2012 · confirmed 1/4
    2012–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 19
    The Greater Good2013 · confirmed 1/4
    2013–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 20
    Hidden Depths2014 · confirmed 1/4
    2014–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 21
    Saviour of the Imperium2018 · confirmed 1/4
    2018–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 22
    Choose Your Enemies2019 · 400 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2019400
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 23
    Old Soldiers Never Die2020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  22. 24
    Last Night at the Resplendent2020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  23. 25
    The Bigger They Are2021 · confirmed 1/4
    2021–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  24. 26
    The Only Good Ork2022 · confirmed 1/4
    2022–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  25. 27
    Vainglorious2023 · confirmed 1/4
    2023–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  26. 28
    Ciaphas Cain - The Anthology2023 · confirmed 1/4
    2023–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Ciaphas Cain Books in Chronological Order

By publication date, the Ciaphas Cain books run from For the Emperor (2003) to Ciaphas Cain - The Anthology (2023), the sequence in the table above. No separate story order is recorded for Ciaphas Cain in the book listings this catalogue merges, so publication order is the only order on record.

Do you have to read Ciaphas Cain books in order?

You should read the Ciaphas Cain books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Ciaphas Cain book also stands alone.

Where to start with Ciaphas Cain

Start with For the Emperor (2003), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Ciaphas Cain book?

Ciaphas Cain - The Anthology (2023) is the newest Ciaphas Cain book released so far.

Is there a new Ciaphas Cain book coming?

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

Ciaphas Cain at a glance

Paused
No new Ciaphas Cain title has appeared for 3 years. The last was published in 2023.
Release pace
Ciaphas Cain books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
3,403 pages across the 8 of 26 books with a recorded length, a median of 416 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Ciaphas Cain books, 12 of 26, were published in the 2010s.

What the Ciaphas Cain books are about

8 of the 26 Ciaphas Cain books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: life on other planets is tagged on 3 of 8. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.

More books by Sandy Mitchell / Alex Stewart

The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.