Reading order · 18 books · 2001 to 2025 · Set in Galway
Jack Taylor Books in Order
Jack Taylor was thrown out of the Garda Síochána and now drifts around Galway as an unofficial private investigator, the people’s detective for those the police will not help. He fights drink and drugs, reads crime novels, and loses friends with nearly every case. Dark, poetic and blackly funny.
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Series facts
- Books
- 18
- Published
- 2001 to 2025
- First book
- The Guards
- Latest
- Galway’s Edge (2025)
- Setting
- Set in Galway
The reading order
Every Jack Taylor book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
18 books · Set in Galway
- 1The Guards2001With Jack TaylorJack Taylor, thrown out of the Gardaí and drinking hard in Galway, is asked by a woman to look into her teenage daughter’s death, which the police have called suicide.Buy on Amazon
- 2The Killing of the Tinkers2002With Jack TaylorYoung men from the travelling community are being murdered in Galway, and a traveller leader asks Jack Taylor to find out who is killing them.Buy on Amazon
- 3The Magdalen Martyrs2003With Jack TaylorJack Taylor is asked to find a woman who once worked in one of the Magdalene laundries, where young women were held and worked by nuns.Buy on Amazon
- 4The Dramatist2004With Jack TaylorJack Taylor, newly sober, investigates the death of a student found with a book by J.Buy on Amazon
- 5Priest2006With Jack TaylorA priest is found beheaded in a confessional in Galway, and Jack Taylor is asked to investigate, though he has his own reasons to dislike the church.Buy on Amazon
- 6Cross2007With Jack TaylorA young man is found crucified in Galway, and Jack Taylor is drawn into the case as he tries to leave the city.Buy on Amazon
- 7Sanctuary2008With Jack TaylorA letter arrives listing future victims, and as police officers and others begin to die, Jack Taylor realises the killer may be closer than he thought.Buy on Amazon
- 8The Devil2010With Jack TaylorA strange encounter with a man in an airport bar seems minor, until a student is murdered and Jack begins to suspect he has met the devil.Buy on Amazon
- 9Headstone2011With Jack TaylorAn elderly priest is badly beaten and a vulnerable boy is attacked, drawing Jack into a battle with a gang of pure malice.Buy on Amazon
- 10Purgatory2013With Jack TaylorA vigilante begins killing Galway’s predators and sends messages to Jack, who is drawn into the case although he knows he should stay away.Buy on Amazon
- 11Green Hell2015With Jack TaylorJack sets out to punish a respected Galway professor with a hidden violent streak, and meets a dangerous young woman named Emerald.Buy on Amazon
- 12The Emerald Lie2016With Jack TaylorJack is caught between a quest for revenge and a serial killer obsessed with bad grammar, while Emerald returns.Buy on Amazon
- 13The Ghosts of Galway2017With Jack TaylorJack takes an off-the-books job to find a notorious heretical book hidden in Galway.Buy on Amazon
- 14In the Galway Silence2018With Jack TaylorA wealthy Frenchman hires Jack to investigate the deaths of his twin sons, and the case becomes painfully personal.Buy on Amazon
- 15Galway Girl2019With Jack TaylorJack is asked to investigate the murders of Galway police officers, and the trail leads to a vicious trio of young killers.Buy on Amazon
- 16A Galway Epiphany2020With Jack TaylorRecovering from an accident, Jack finds Galway gripped by talk of a miracle, and sets out to find two mysterious children.Buy on Amazon
- 17Galway Confidential2024With Jack TaylorJack wakes from a coma into a changed Galway, and when nuns begin to be attacked, he is drawn back to work.Buy on Amazon
- 18Galway’s Edge2025With Jack TaylorA vigilante group claims to rid Galway of those the law cannot touch, and when its members start dying, Jack is sent in.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read the books in order, starting with The Guards. Jack’s losses and relationships carry over and each book builds on the last.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Jack Taylor | Ridge | Father Malachy | Stewart | Cody |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 The Guards | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ||
| 2 The Killing of the Tinkers | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ||
| 3 The Magdalen Martyrs | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ||
| 4 The Dramatist | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 5 Priest | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | MMajor |
| 6 Cross | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | MMajor |
| 7 Sanctuary | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 8 The Devil | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 9 Headstone | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 10 Purgatory | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 11 Green Hell | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 12 The Emerald Lie | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 13 The Ghosts of Galway | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 14 In the Galway Silence | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 15 Galway Girl | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 16 A Galway Epiphany | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 17 Galway Confidential | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | |
| 18 Galway’s Edge | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor |
Characters in the Jack Taylor books
6 characters from Ken Bruen’s chart, with the number of Jack Taylor books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Jack TaylorFormer Garda turned unlicensed private investigator | 18 | The Guards 2001 |
| RidgeGarda officer and Jack’s uneasy ally | 18 | The Guards 2001 |
| Father MalachyChain-smoking priest and old friend of Jack’s mother | 18 | The Guards 2001 |
| StewartFormer drug dealer turned Jack’s friend | 15 | The Dramatist 2004 |
| CodyYoung man who idolises Jack | 2 | Priest 2006 |
| Ann HendersonWoman who hires Jack | 1 | The Guards 2001 |