John Madden Books in Order
John Madden by Rennie Airth contains 6 books, published between 1999 and 2020. The first book is River of Darkness (1999) and the newest is The Decent Inn of Death (2020). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 6
- Published
- 1999–2020
- Pages on record
- 1,940 in 5 of 6 books
- Reading time
- 32–49 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 1,940 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 5 of 6 titles with a page count on record.
John Madden is a Metropolitan Police detective in Rennie Airth's historical mysteries, set against serial murder, police work and the Second World War. Six books span two decades: River of Darkness (1999), The Blood-Dimmed Tide (2004), The Dead of Winter (2009), The Reckoning (2014), The Death of Kings (2017) and The Decent Inn of Death (2020). Roughly four years separate one from the next, at a median of 368 pages.
How many John Madden books are there?
John Madden has 6 books, released between 1999 and 2020.
John Madden Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 6 John Madden 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.
- 1River of Darkness1999 · 448 pages · confirmed 2/419994482/4
- 2The Blood-Dimmed Tide2004 · 352 pages · confirmed 2/420043522/4
- 3The Dead of Winter2009 · 416 pages · confirmed 2/420094162/4
- 4The Reckoning2014 · confirmed 2/42014–2/4
- 5The Death of Kings2017 · 356 pages · confirmed 2/420173562/4
- 6The Decent Inn of Death2020 · 368 pages · confirmed 2/420203682/4
Is there a chronological order for John Madden?
No separate chronological order is on record for John Madden, 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 John Madden books in order?
You should read the John Madden books in publication order, the order of the numbered table above. The catalogue does not record whether each John Madden book also stands alone.
Where to start with John Madden
Start with River of Darkness (1999), the earliest published title.
What is the newest John Madden book?
The Decent Inn of Death (2020) is the newest John Madden book released so far.
Is there a new John Madden book coming?
No next John Madden 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 Madden at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest John Madden title on record dates from 2020, 6 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- John Madden books have appeared about one every 4 years on average.
- Length
- 1,940 pages across the 5 of 6 books with a recorded length, a median of 368 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most John Madden books, 2 of 6, were published in the 2010s.
What the John Madden books are about
All 6 John Madden 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 2 of 6. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Mystery & detective 2 of 6 books
- Investigation 2 of 6 books
- Murder 2 of 6 books
- Mystery & detective, historical 2 of 6 books
- Serial murders 2 of 6 books
More books by Rennie Airth
The author page linked below lists every book in publication order.
- Rennie Airth books in order 9 books