Rivers of London Books in Order
Part ofBen Aaronovitch Books in OrderThe Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch, following PC Peter Grant as he polices the magical underworld of the capital.
Last updated: December 14, 2025
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Publication Order
17 books
Stone and Sky
by Ben Aaronovitch
2025
Peter Grant and the extended Folly family take a working holiday to Scotland. What starts as a trip to Aberdeen turns into a hunt for a mysterious big cat and a confrontation with local magic.
The Masquerades of Spring
by Ben Aaronovitch
2024
A novella set in 1920s New York. British wizard Augustus Berrycloth-Young is enjoying the Jazz Age until Thomas Nightingale arrives, dragging him into a case involving enchanted saxophones and mobsters.
Winter's Gifts
by Ben Aaronovitch
2023
A novella featuring FBI Agent Kimberley Reynolds. She travels to frozen Wisconsin to investigate a mysterious disappearance and uncovers a historical horror connected to a doomed 19th-century expedition.
Amongst Our Weapons
by Ben Aaronovitch
2022
A murder in the London Silver Vaults leads Peter to a ring imbued with dangerous magic. The case involves a lost order of knights, the Spanish Inquisition, and an angel that threatens to destroy the Folly.
What Abigail Did That Summer
by Ben Aaronovitch
2021
While Peter was out of town in *Foxglove Summer*, his cousin Abigail Kamara had her own adventure. With the help of talking foxes, she investigates teenagers mysteriously disappearing around Hampstead Heath.
Tales from the Folly
by Ben Aaronovitch
2020
A collection of short stories set in the Rivers of London universe. It includes glimpses into Nightingale’s past, Abigail’s adventures, and other magical oddities across the city.
The October Man
by Ben Aaronovitch
2019
A novella set in Germany. Tobias Winter, an investigator for the German equivalent of the Folly, travels to the vineyards of the Mosel river to solve a mystery involving rotten grapes and a local river goddess.
False Value
by Ben Aaronovitch
2019
Peter goes undercover at a secretive tech startup founded by an American billionaire. He has to balance corporate espionage with magic as he uncovers a plot involving Ada Lovelace’s analytical engine and "enchanted" code.
Lies Sleeping
by Ben Aaronovitch
2018
The Faceless Man is unmasked and on the run. Peter Grant and the Folly launch a major operation to bring him down, but the villain has one final, catastrophic plan that draws on the oldest legends of London.
The Furthest Station
by Ben Aaronovitch
2017
A novella. Commuters on the Metropolitan Line are reporting terrifying ghostly encounters. Peter and his cousin Abigail investigate the end of the line, hunting a spectre that is traumatizing passengers during rush hour.
A Rare Book of Cunning Device
by Ben Aaronovitch
2017
A short audio-drama story. Peter Grant is called to the British Library to deal with a poltergeist that is throwing books around the reading room.
The Hanging Tree
by Ben Aaronovitch
2016
A magical death at an exclusive party pulls Peter into the world of the super-rich. With the daughter of the river goddess Lady Ty involved, Peter must navigate drug cartels and high-society magic to find the Faceless Man.
Foxglove Summer
by Ben Aaronovitch
2014
Peter leaves London for the countryside of Herefordshire to investigate the disappearance of two young girls. He finds a rural community hiding ancient secrets, local wizards, and something dangerous living in the woods.
Broken Homes
by Ben Aaronovitch
2013
A stolen grimoire and a suspicious suicide lead Peter to the Skygarden estate in South London. As he hunts for the Faceless Man, he realizes the tower block was built for a magical purpose that threatens the whole city.
Whispers Under Ground
by Ben Aaronovitch
2012
When an American art student is stabbed with a piece of magical pottery, Peter Grant must descend into the London Underground. The investigation reveals a hidden community living in the tunnels and a grudge buried deep beneath the city.
Rivers of London / Midnight Riot
by Ben Aaronovitch
2011
Probationary Constable Peter Grant discovers a world of magic when he interviews a ghost in Covent Garden. He is soon recruited by the Folly to help resolve a dispute between the gods of the River Thames and stop a spirit possessing Londoners.
Moon Over Soho
by Ben Aaronovitch
2011
Peter Grant investigates a series of suspicious deaths among London's jazz musicians. The trail leads him into the club scene of Soho, where he finds a dark magical signature draining the life from talented performers.
Series background & context
Imagine being a probationary constable in the Metropolitan Police, staring down a future of filing paperwork in the Case Progression Unit. That was Peter Grant’s reality until a cold night in Covent Garden, when he took a witness statement from a bystander who turned out to be a ghost. That decision didn't get him fired. Instead, it got him recruited into the Folly.
This is the foundation of Rivers of London (published as Midnight Riot in the US), a series that creates a seamless, often hilarious mash-up of a gritty police procedural and urban fantasy.
Peter’s new assignment takes him off the beat and into the care of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale. Nightingale is the last registered wizard in England, a man who lives in a cavernous headquarters, drives a vintage Jaguar, and dresses like he stepped out of the 1940s. While Nightingale represents the mysterious, old-school magical establishment, Peter is thoroughly modern. He is mixed-race, obsessed with architecture, and approaches every impossible event with the logic of a scientist.
Magic in this universe is not a cheat code.
It is treated as a branch of physics that science hasn't quite caught up with yet. Casting a spell requires complex mental arithmetic and burns calories so fast that practitioners have to constantly snack to keep their energy up. If you get the math wrong, your brain could suffer a catastrophic aneurysm. This grounded approach makes the stakes feel incredibly real; it’s hard work, and it hurts.
The series title refers to the local divinities that Peter has to manage. The Thames and its tributaries are personified by gods and goddesses who behave more like a dysfunctional family than holy beings. There is a tense, ongoing standoff between the aristocratic, upstream Father Thames and the vibrant, matriarchal Mama Thames who controls the tidal waters. Peter often acts as a glorified liaison officer, trying to keep the peace between river spirits who care more about territory and parties than human laws.
While the overarching plot involves hunting a dangerous, shadowy figure known as the Faceless Man, the books are defined by their atmosphere.
Aaronovitch writes with a dry, uniquely British wit and an obsessive eye for detail. The stories celebrate the real, messy geography of London, from its brutalist concrete estates to its hidden historical rivers. It is a world where police paperwork is just as important as spellcasting, and where the city itself is the most important character of all.
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