Gil Cunningham Books in Order
Part ofPat McIntosh Books in OrderSee the Gil Cunningham series by Pat McIntosh in order, with brief summaries, series background, and simple advice on the best place to start reading.
Last updated: July 11, 2026
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Gil Cunningham books in publication order
11 books
The Harper's Quine
by Pat McIntosh
2004
After the May Day dancing at Glasgow Cross, Gil Cunningham finds the body of a young woman in the unfinished cathedral works. With help from master mason Pierre and his daughter Alys, he digs into abuse, privilege, and murder in the heart of the city.
The Nicholas Feast
by Pat McIntosh
2005
At Glasgow University's Nicholas Feast, a student actor is found murdered in the coalhouse after a night of plays and celebration. Gil, with Alys and Maistre Pierre, picks through blackmail, espionage, and missing papers to find the killer.
The Merchant's Mark
by Pat McIntosh
2006
A barrel that should contain books arrives instead with treasure and a severed head, and merchant Augie Morison is arrested for murder. Gil follows the trail from Glasgow toward the king's court, trying to name the dead man and clear his friend.
St Mungo's Robin
by Pat McIntosh
2007
The warden of St Serf's turns up dead in the almshouse garden, though some insist he was seen alive the next morning. As wedding plans close in, Gil follows the case through scheming residents, ghost stories, and the streets around the cathedral.
The Rough Collier
by Pat McIntosh
2008
A body dug from a peat bog near Gil's mother's estate sparks witchcraft accusations against women linked to the local coalmine. Gil and newly married Alys must identify the dead man and expose the buried grudges behind a cluster of murders.
The Stolen Voice
by Pat McIntosh
2009
A boy who vanished decades earlier seems to return to Perthshire without aging a day, then survives a string of near-fatal accidents. Gil and Alys investigate missing singers, family secrets, and political danger in one of the series' strangest cases.
A Pig of Cold Poison
by Pat McIntosh
2010
During a festive play, a young man is poisoned with a friend's flask, and the obvious suspect refuses to defend himself. Gil digs into rivalries among Glasgow apothecaries as more poisonings turn one death into a wider conspiracy.
The Counterfeit Madam
by Pat McIntosh
2011
While Gil tracks counterfeit coins flooding Glasgow, a forceful land deal pulls him and Alys into a brothel, a murder, and rumors of the Devil. The case links forged money to family scheming and dangerous local secrets.
The Fourth Crow
by Pat McIntosh
2012
A young woman left overnight at St Mungo's Cross to be cured of madness is found beaten and strangled at dawn. Gil must identify her, untangle cathedral thefts, and work out which shadowy witness knows what really happened.
The King's Corrodian
by Pat McIntosh
2013
A disliked pensioner vanishes from a locked room in the Dominicans' house at Perth, and talk of the Devil spreads fast. Gil's investigation uncovers blackmail, old crimes, and two fresh bodies before he and Alys can sort truth from panic.
The Lanimer Bride
by Pat McIntosh
2016
Heavily pregnant Audrey Madur disappears in Lanark, and her husband seems oddly unwilling to look for her. Gil and Alys search through local feuds, adultery, and buried resentments, only to find the case widening when another woman goes missing.
Gil Cunningham books in chronological order
The Harper's Quine
by Pat McIntosh
2004Gil Cunningham, Book 1
The Nicholas Feast
by Pat McIntosh
2005Gil Cunningham, Book 2
The Merchant's Mark
by Pat McIntosh
2006Gil Cunningham, Book 3
St Mungo's Robin
by Pat McIntosh
2007Gil Cunningham, Book 4
The Rough Collier
by Pat McIntosh
2008Gil Cunningham, Book 5
The Stolen Voice
by Pat McIntosh
2009Gil Cunningham, Book 6
A Pig of Cold Poison
by Pat McIntosh
2010Gil Cunningham, Book 7
The Counterfeit Madam
by Pat McIntosh
2011Gil Cunningham, Book 8
The Fourth Crow
by Pat McIntosh
2012Gil Cunningham, Book 9
The King's Corrodian
by Pat McIntosh
2013Gil Cunningham, Book 10
The Lanimer Bride
by Pat McIntosh
2016Gil Cunningham, Book 11
Series background & context
The Gil Cunningham books are late 15th-century Scottish historical mysteries built around a young Glasgow lawyer and notary who keeps being drawn into deaths, disappearances, and ugly family disputes. The series opens with The Harper's Quine, where Gil is asked to look into the murder of a woman found at Glasgow Cathedral, and from there the books widen into cases involving students, merchants, miners, churchmen, craftsmen, and noble households.
Gil is clever, decent, and curious, but he is never a superhero.
A big part of the appeal is the setting. Glasgow is not just a backdrop here. It feels like a working medieval town, full of cathedral precincts, building yards, university rooms, river traffic, workshops, law courts, and crowded streets. Even when the action moves beyond the city to places like Lanark, Stirling, Perth, or the countryside, the books stay grounded in the practical details of property, trade, local custom, and church authority. The result is a series that feels lived in rather than staged.
Alys becomes just as important as Gil. She first appears as the sharp-eyed daughter of the French master mason Maistre Pierre, and as the books go on she becomes Gil's partner in every sense. She notices different things, asks better questions in some situations, and often gets to the human truth of a case faster than he does. Around them is a strong supporting cast of relatives, clerics, servants, tradesmen, and old friends, which gives the series continuity without getting in the way of each mystery.
That balance is a big part of the charm.
Each novel has its own hook, a severed head in a barrel, a vanished man who seems to return unchanged, a poisoning during a festive performance, counterfeit coins in Glasgow, a woman found dead at St Mungo's Cross. But the books are rarely only about the corpse. McIntosh is just as interested in inheritance, marriage bargains, land use, class pressure, blackmail, and the way private sins turn into public trouble. The tone is thoughtful rather than flashy, with steady clue-by-clue investigation and plenty of period texture.
If you like historical mysteries that care about how people actually lived, worked, argued, and survived, this series has a lot to offer. Reading in order is rewarding because Gil and Alys's relationship grows across the books, but each case is strong enough to stand on its own.
Edited by
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