Most Recommended Books

Track reading, wishlists & new-book alerts

Get
Skip to content
Share:

See the Narbondo books by James P. Blaylock in order, with summaries, series background, and guidance on where Langdon St. Ives begins.

Last updated: July 14, 2026

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).

Narbondo books in publication order

Sort:

13 books

1

The Digging Leviathan

by James P Blaylock

1984

Giles Peach has gills, webbed fingers, and a plan to build a machine that burrows to the center of the earth. His unlikely invention draws dreamers and schemers into an absurd, dangerous journey below Southern California.

2

Homunculus

by James P Blaylock

1986

A mysterious airship circles late nineteenth-century London, carrying a secret everyone wants. Scientist Langdon St. Ives must keep its alien homunculus from the grasp of Dr. Ignacio Narbondo and a crowd of equally dangerous rivals.

3

Lord Kelvin's Machine

by James P Blaylock

1992

A remarkable machine may hold the secret of time. Dr. Narbondo wants it for power, while Langdon St. Ives needs it to save his dying wife, setting off a desperate Victorian race with deeply personal stakes.

4

The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives

by James P Blaylock

2008

An omnibus of Langdon St. Ives tales, including *Homunculus* and *Lord Kelvin's Machine*. The Victorian scientist confronts revivified corpses, deadly sea machinery, mysterious airships, and the relentless schemes of Dr. Ignacio Narbondo.

5

The Ebb Tide

by James P Blaylock

2009

A meteor, a stolen map, and a hidden shipyard beneath the Thames lead Langdon St. Ives and Jack Owlesby to Morecambe Bay. Beneath its dangerous sands waits a dark ocean, human bones, and a murderous Victorian conspiracy.

6

The Affair of the Chalk Cliffs

by James P Blaylock

2011

A violent madness spreads through London's Explorers Club and a village near the English Channel as Alice St. Ives disappears. Langdon must trace the threat through fogbound chalk cliffs, while Narbondo's men close in.

7

Zeuglodon

by James P Blaylock

2012

Katherine Perkins and her cousins discover a map, a skeletal hand, and a sleeping inventor whose dream has opened a passage into the hollow earth. To escape kidnappers, they must return him home without trapping themselves in his savage dream world.

8

The Aylesford Skull

by James P Blaylock

2013

In 1883, pirates seize a steam launch and a grave is robbed near Aylesford. When Dr. Ignacio Narbondo kidnaps Langdon St. Ives's young son, the professor and his loyal assistant race through London to find him.

9

The Adventure of the Ring of Stones

by James P Blaylock

2014

A murdered lighthouse keeper's log sends Langdon St. Ives aboard a steam yacht bound for an uncharted volcanic island. Pirates, hidden treasure, and an ancient god turn the expedition into a threat that could reach all the way to London.

10

Beneath London

by James P Blaylock

2015

The collapse of the Victoria Embankment reveals an unknown realm beneath London. As Langdon St. Ives investigates murders, a kidnapped psychic girl, and a secret hospital, a wealthy killer works to protect the underworld's horrifying secrets.

11

The Further Adventures of Langdon St. Ives

by James P Blaylock

2016

This collection brings together five Victorian adventures starring scientist Langdon St. Ives. From underground mysteries to dangerous inventions and Narbondo's schemes, the stories send St. Ives and his allies into strange corners of London and beyond.

12

River's Edge

by James P Blaylock

2017

A girl's body and poisoned wildlife wash up along the River Medway, pointing toward secrets at a wealthy paper mill. Langdon St. Ives and Alice follow the clues into murder, ritual sacrifice, and a conspiracy that puts Alice in danger.

13

The Gobblin' Society

by James P Blaylock

2020

When Alice St. Ives inherits an eccentric seaside house, her family finds a cousin running a secretive eating club nearby. Langdon, Alice, and Finn uncover smuggling, mesmerism, and a gruesome danger beneath the coast.

Narbondo books in chronological order

  1. Book cover for "The Digging Leviathan"

    The Digging Leviathan

    by James P Blaylock

    1984Narbondo, Book 1
  2. Book cover for "The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives"

    The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives

    by James P Blaylock

    2008Narbondo, Book 4
  3. Book cover for "The Ebb Tide"

    The Ebb Tide

    by James P Blaylock

    2009Narbondo, Book 5
  4. Book cover for "The Affair of the Chalk Cliffs"

    The Affair of the Chalk Cliffs

    by James P Blaylock

    2011Narbondo, Book 6
  5. Book cover for "Zeuglodon"

    Zeuglodon

    by James P Blaylock

    2012Narbondo, Book 7
  6. Book cover for "The Aylesford Skull"

    The Aylesford Skull

    by James P Blaylock

    2013Narbondo, Book 8
  7. Book cover for "The Adventure of the Ring of Stones"

    The Adventure of the Ring of Stones

    by James P Blaylock

    2014Narbondo, Book 9
  8. Book cover for "Beneath London"

    Beneath London

    by James P Blaylock

    2015Narbondo, Book 10
  9. Book cover for "The Further Adventures of Langdon St. Ives"

    The Further Adventures of Langdon St. Ives

    by James P Blaylock

    2016Narbondo, Book 11
  10. Book cover for "River's Edge"

    River's Edge

    by James P Blaylock

    2017Narbondo, Book 12
  11. Book cover for "The Gobblin' Society"

    The Gobblin' Society

    by James P Blaylock

    2020Narbondo, Book 13

Series background & context

The Narbondo series gathers James P. Blaylock's strangest science-driven adventures, from eccentric Southern California fantasies to gaslit Victorian mysteries. Its central figures are Professor Langdon St. Ives, an explorer and man of science, and Dr. Ignacio Narbondo, his persistent and deeply dangerous enemy. The books share ideas, names, and inventions, but they move between different places and periods.

The series starts with The Digging Leviathan, set in a sunlit but decidedly unusual California. Giles Peach, a young inventor with gills and webbed fingers, dreams of building a machine that can burrow to the center of the earth. That story's mix of amateur science, hidden worlds, and unsettling possibilities returns in Zeuglodon, which follows younger explorers into a hollow-earth landscape created by an inventor's dream.

Then the focus shifts to Victorian England.

In the Langdon St. Ives books, London is a crowded city of fog, steam, riverways, clubs, and secret doors. St. Ives is capable and curious, but he is not a lone, grim hero. He has a family, loyal friends, and associates who are often pulled into danger because they cannot leave a mystery alone. His foe Narbondo is a brilliant, cruel doctor whose schemes involve impossible machines, ancient knowledge, strange biological experiments, and a willingness to ruin anyone in his way.

Homunculus and Lord Kelvin's Machine are the best place to see the series' core shape. They pair looming threats with peculiar inventions, including an airship carrying a disturbing living secret and a device that may control time. Later books such as The Ebb Tide, The Affair of the Chalk Cliffs, The Aylesford Skull, The Adventure of the Ring of Stones, Beneath London, River's Edge, and The Gobblin' Society send St. Ives from dangerous coastlines to buried parts of London and isolated country houses.

Expect clues, conspiracies, smugglers, kidnappings, pirate crews, secret societies, and scientific ideas that have gone very wrong. The stories can be dark, especially when Narbondo is close, but they also make room for dry humor, domestic moments, hearty meals interrupted by disaster, and the pleasure of watching clever people piece together a bizarre puzzle.

The books are connected, but each adventure has its own main problem.

Readers who want the full St. Ives arc should begin with Homunculus, then continue to Lord Kelvin's Machine. The earlier California-set The Digging Leviathan can be read first for a wider view of Blaylock's shared world, while the later novellas work especially well once readers know St. Ives, his family, and his long history with Narbondo.

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.

Comments

Did we miss something? Have feedback?

Help us improve this page by sharing your thoughts

We only use your email to notify you about replies.

All comments are moderated.

Discover and track your reading on the go

Track your reading, manage wishlists, and get notified when new books are added.