Reading order · 13 books · 1975 to 1999 · Set in Oxford
Inspector Morse Books in Order
Detective Chief Inspector Morse of the Thames Valley Police is a lover of crosswords, Wagner, classical literature and real ale, a lonely bachelor with a brilliant, wayward mind. He solves Oxford murders with the patient, practical Sergeant Lewis. The books inspired the television series Inspector Morse, Lewis and Endeavour.
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Series facts
- Books
- 13
- Published
- 1975 to 1999
- First book
- Last Bus to Woodstock
- Latest
- The Remorseful Day (1999)
- Setting
- Set in Oxford
The reading order
Every Inspector Morse book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
13 books · Set in Oxford
- 1Last Bus to Woodstock1975With Inspector MorseA young woman is found dead in the car park of a pub in Woodstock, after hitch-hiking from Oxford with another girl, and Chief Inspector Morse has to find the companion and the driver who picked them up.Buy on Amazon
- 2Last Seen Wearing1976With Inspector MorseSchoolgirl Valerie Taylor disappeared two years ago, and when a letter arrives from her saying she is alive, Morse is convinced she is dead.Buy on Amazon
- 3The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn1977With Inspector MorseNicholas Quinn, a deaf member of an Oxford examinations board, is found poisoned in his home, and Morse finds the board’s members have plenty to hide.Buy on Amazon
- 4Service of All the Dead1979With Inspector MorseA churchwarden is stabbed during a service at an Oxford church, and the vicar is found dead months later.Buy on Amazon
- 5The Dead of Jericho1981With Inspector MorseMorse met Anne Scott at a party and liked her.Buy on Amazon
- 6The Riddle of the Third Mile1983With Inspector MorseA body with no head, hands or legs is found in an Oxford canal, and Morse suspects it is an Oxford don who has gone missing.Buy on Amazon
- 7The Secret of Annexe 31986With Inspector MorseOn New Year’s Eve, a man is found dead in the annexe of an Oxford hotel after a fancy-dress party, and Morse and Lewis look into the guests.Buy on Amazon
- 8The Wench Is Dead1989With Inspector MorseMorse, in hospital with a bleeding ulcer, reads an old account of the murder of Joanna Franks on the Oxford Canal in 1859, and becomes convinced the wrong men were hanged.Buy on Amazon
- 9The Jewel That Was Ours1991With Inspector MorseAn American tourist party comes to Oxford to see a priceless jewel, the Wolvercote Tongue, which is to be given to a museum.Buy on Amazon
- 10The Way Through the Woods1992With Inspector MorseA year after a Swedish student disappeared in Oxfordshire, a newspaper prints an anonymous poem that seems to point to her body, and Morse, on holiday, is drawn in.Buy on Amazon
- 11The Daughters of Cain1994With Inspector MorseAn Oxford academic is found stabbed in his flat, and Morse’s investigation leads to three women with reasons to hate him.Buy on Amazon
- 12Death Is Now My Neighbour1996With Inspector MorseA woman is shot through her kitchen window in an Oxford suburb, and the case becomes tangled with the election of a new Master at an Oxford college.Buy on Amazon
- 13The Remorseful Day1999With Inspector MorseA year after a nurse was murdered in her home, the case is still unsolved, and Morse refuses to look at it, which makes Lewis wonder why.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Each book stands alone, but read in order to follow Morse’s relationship with Lewis, ending with The Remorseful Day.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Inspector Morse | Sergeant Lewis | Chief Superintendent Strange | Max | Laura Hobson |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Last Bus to Woodstock | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 2 Last Seen Wearing | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 3 The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 4 Service of All the Dead | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 5 The Dead of Jericho | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 6 The Riddle of the Third Mile | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 7 The Secret of Annexe 3 | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 8 The Wench Is Dead | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 9 The Jewel That Was Ours | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 10 The Way Through the Woods | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 11 The Daughters of Cain | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor |
| 12 Death Is Now My Neighbour | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 13 The Remorseful Day | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor |
Characters in the Inspector Morse books
5 characters from Colin Dexter’s chart, with the number of Inspector Morse books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Inspector MorseChief Inspector, Thames Valley Police | 13 | Last Bus to Woodstock 1975 |
| Sergeant LewisMorse’s loyal sergeant | 13 | Last Bus to Woodstock 1975 |
| Chief Superintendent StrangeMorse’s superior | 13 | Last Bus to Woodstock 1975 |
| MaxPolice pathologist | 11 | Last Bus to Woodstock 1975 |
| Laura HobsonPolice pathologist | 3 | The Daughters of Cain 1994 |