Butlers Books in Order

The Butlers series follows one of Kimberley Chambers' most notorious creations: the Butler crime family, ruled by formidable matriarch Queenie Butler. Based in the East End, the Butlers run clubs, doors and protection rackets, and their reach stretches from backstreet boozers to flashier Essex addresses. Queenie's sons—volatile Vinny, loyal Roy and more easy‑going Michael—grow up believing that family loyalty justifies almost any act of violence. Across The Trap, Payback, The Wronged, Tainted Love and Backstabber, their empire rises, fractures and is repeatedly tested from within and without.

In The Trap, the brothers are at the height of their power. Vinny and Roy handle the dirty work while Queenie looks on with fierce pride. When Vinny crosses a dangerous rival, one savage night changes everything and sets him on a path of retribution that will haunt the whole family. The sequel Payback shows how past sins refuse to stay buried: the truth about a relative's suspicious death splits the Butlers, and the kidnapping of Vinny's little girl Molly forces every character to decide what 'family first' really means.

The Wronged shifts the focus to the women around the Butlers. Jo, worn out by loving violent, charismatic Vinny, has stood at too many graves. Nancy, married to supposedly softer brother Michael, watches with dread as he grows more like the men he once tried to avoid. Their children are beginning to make choices of their own, whether that means stepping into the business or trying to walk away. Chambers uses their stories to explore grief, guilt and loyalty from a more domestic angle, without ever leaving the shadow of gangland.

In Tainted Love, fractures become gaping chasms. Business no longer stops at the front door: women and children are now targets, and the next generation—Little Vinny, Dan, Lee, Ava and others—find themselves pulled into conflicts they barely understand. Old alliances crumble as betrayal creeps in, and the Butlers learn that the fiercest wounds are often inflicted by those wearing the same surname.

The final novel, Backstabber, ties the Butler saga directly to the world of the Mitchells when Vinny goes into business with veteran villain Eddie Mitchell. The partnership looks untouchable until gruesome threats and dead animals start arriving. Someone is determined to make both families pay, and nobody can be sure whether the danger comes from travellers, long‑standing rivals or a traitor at the heart of the clan. Taken together, the Butlers books offer a sprawling, violent and darkly funny portrait of East End organised crime, full of cliffhangers and characters readers either love or love to hate.