Harry Palmer Books in Order
Harry Palmer by Len Deighton contains 8 books, published between 1962 and 1976. The first book is The IPCRESS File (1962) and the newest is Twinkle, Twinkle Little Spy / Catch a Falling Spy (1976). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 8
- Published
- 1962–1976
- Pages on record
- 1,264 in 5 of 8 books
- Reading time
- 21–32 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 1,264 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 5 of 8 titles with a page count on record.
Harry Palmer is Len Deighton's espionage series, eight books published between 1962 and 1976. The IPCRESS File (1962) opens it, followed by Horse Under Water (1962), Funeral in Berlin (1964), Billion-Dollar Brain (1966) and An Expensive Place to Die (1967). Subject headings cover espionage, crime, London and Portugal. The last entry is Twinkle, Twinkle Little Spy, also published as Catch a Falling Spy (1976).
How many Harry Palmer books are there?
Harry Palmer has 8 books, released between 1962 and 1976.
Harry Palmer Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 8 Harry Palmer 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.
- 1The IPCRESS File1962 · 230 pages · confirmed 2/419622302/4
- 2Horse Under Water1962 · 242 pages · confirmed 2/419622422/4
- 3Funeral in Berlin1964 · 270 pages · confirmed 2/419642702/4
- 4Billion-Dollar Brain1966 · 282 pages · confirmed 2/419662822/4
- 5An Expensive Place to Die1967 · confirmed 2/41967–2/4
- 6Spy Story1974 · confirmed 2/41974–2/4
- 7Twinkle, Twinkle Little Spy / Catch a Falling Spy1976 · 240 pages · confirmed 2/419762402/4
- 8Only When I Larf1967 · confirmed 2/41967–2/4
Is there a chronological order for Harry Palmer?
No separate chronological order is on record for Harry Palmer, because none of the book listings this catalogue draws on publishes one; the publication order above is the only order given.
Do you have to read Harry Palmer books in order?
You should read the Harry Palmer books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each Harry Palmer book also stands alone.
Where to start with Harry Palmer
Start with The IPCRESS File (1962), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Harry Palmer book?
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Spy / Catch a Falling Spy (1976) is the newest Harry Palmer book released so far.
Is there a new Harry Palmer book coming?
No next Harry Palmer book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Harry Palmer at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Harry Palmer title on record dates from 1976, 50 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Harry Palmer books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 1,264 pages across the 5 of 8 books with a recorded length, a median of 242 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Harry Palmer books, 6 of 8, were published in the 1960s.
What the Harry Palmer books are about
7 of the 8 Harry Palmer books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: mystery & detective is tagged on 6 of 7. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Mystery & detective 6 of 7 books
- Fiction in English 5 of 7 books
- Thrillers 5 of 7 books
- Espionage 3 of 7 books
- Action & adventure 2 of 7 books
More books by Len Deighton
The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.
- Len Deighton books in order 40 books
Other series by Len Deighton
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Bernard Samson books in order 10 books