Caroline Mitchell Books in Order (Updated February 24, 2026)

Caroline Mitchell is a British crime and psychological-thriller author (and former police detective) who writes in distinct “lanes”: multiple detective series, plus a separate set of standalone psychological thrillers.

Order matters inside each series, because the lead’s personal stakes and team relationships carry forward. Between series, you can jump around safely.

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Start by choosing your lane

If you want a long, bingeable detective arc (dark family backstory):
Read DI Amy Winter from book 1.

If you want a short, older-school detective run (3 books):
Read Detective Jennifer Knight in order.

If you want gritty, underworld-adjacent policing (3 books):
Read Detective Ruby Preston in order.

If you want eerie small-town suspense with a “creepy edge” (3 books):
Read the Slayton books in order.

If you want one book and done (no series commitment):
Pick any standalone that matches your preferred vibe.

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The series, clearly separated

DI Amy Winter series (read in order)

(You’ll also see the character labeled “DC Amy Winter” on some lists; it’s the same lead and the same sequence.)

1. Truth and Lies (2018): A serial killer opens a private channel to DI Amy Winter, forcing Amy to trade professional distance for personal survival as the case turns into a game.
2. The Secret Child (2019): A missing-child thread widens into something older and uglier, pushing Amy to question what “protecting the vulnerable” really costs.
3. Left for Dead (2020): A dating-world hunting pattern drags Amy into a high-urgency chase, where the killer’s staging turns every discovery into a public message.
4. Flesh and Blood (2021): A case tied to Amy’s past squeezes her from both sides, investigation and identity, until the boundary between them starts to fail.
5. In Cold Blood (2022): Amy becomes the target in a hunt that flips the power balance, turning her hard-won instincts into the only thing keeping her alive.

Best entry point: Truth and Lies (2018), this is the one that sets the rules of Amy’s ongoing personal story.

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Detective Jennifer Knight series (read in order)

1. Don’t Turn Around (2015): A woman is pulled into a violent pattern that refuses to stay contained, introducing Jennifer Knight in a case where momentum matters more than comfort.
2. Time to Die (2015): A killer who seems to “predict” outcomes tightens the pressure, forcing Jennifer to work fast before fear does the killer’s job for them.
3. The Silent Twin (2016): A locked-in dread story with a child-at-the-center hook, where Jennifer’s persistence becomes the only reliable light in a very dark corridor.

Why order helps: the cases stand alone, but Jennifer’s professional context and confidence build book to book.

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Detective Ruby Preston series (read in order)

1. Love You to Death (2016): Ruby Preston walks a dangerous line between justice and the criminal world, and the case tests whether her relationships are assets, or leverage used against her.
2. Sleep Tight (2017): A serial pattern forces Ruby to read the darkest motives in plain sight, while the series doubles down on loyalty as a liability.
3. Murder Game (2017): A copycat-style escalation drags a past horror back into the present, daring Ruby to prove that history isn’t destiny.

Why order helps: Ruby’s personal entanglements are part of the series engine, not background decoration.

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Slayton series (read in order)

1. The Midnight Man (2021): A sinister local ritual and a buried tragedy pull Detective Sarah Noble into a case where childhood fear becomes adult evidence.
2. The Night Whispers (2022): Slayton’s atmosphere turns predatory again, and Sarah has to separate rumor from intent before panic becomes a tool.
3. The Bone House (2023): A disturbing discovery cracks the town’s surface, pushing the series toward its most outward, high-stakes unravelling.

Why order helps: each book is a complete case, but Slayton’s long memory is the real through-line.

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Detective Elea Baker series (new lane)

1. The Ice Angels (2026): A decade-old child abduction collides with new disappearances, dragging Elea Baker back into the one mystery she can’t treat like “just a case.”

Status: this is the start of a newer series line; read it whenever you like.

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Standalone psychological thrillers (read in any order)

1. Witness (2016): A woman who escaped an abusive relationship is forced into silence again, as a threat turns her past testimony into present-day control.
2. Silent Victim (2018): A seemingly safe life fractures under pressure, and the story turns on what the protagonist can prove versus what others will believe.
3. The Perfect Mother (2020): Parenthood becomes the most intimate pressure point, where trust is tested in tiny decisions that suddenly feel life-or-death.
4. The Village (2022): A disappearance and a community’s collective refusal to speak turn “moving somewhere quiet” into the opposite of safety.
5. The Islanders (2023): Retreat to a remote island promises healing, but isolation makes secrets louder and escape routes thinner.
6. The Survivors (2024): Survival isn’t the end of the story, it’s the start of a new threat, where what happened before won’t stay finished.

How to pick one quickly: choose by setting, The Village (community claustrophobia) or The Islanders (geographic isolation) are the cleanest “grab and go” entries.

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Recommended reading routes

Route A: The clean binge (one series, no detours)

Read DI Amy Winter straight through:
Truth and Lies → The Secret Child → Left for Dead → Flesh and Blood → In Cold Blood

Route B: Try her range in four books

1. Truth and Lies (2018): Introduces her long-form detective pacing.
2. The Midnight Man (2021): Shows the darker, creepier edge.
3. The Village (2022): Standalone, pure atmosphere and suspicion.
4. The Ice Angels (2026): New lead, modern launch point.

Route C: Standalones only (no series commitment)

Pick any standalone above, there’s no continuity to spoil.

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FAQs

Do the series connect to each other?
They’re best treated as separate continuities. Characters don’t require cross-reading to understand.

Why do I see “DC Amy Winter” and “DI Amy Winter”?
Retailers and listings sometimes label her rank differently, but the book sequence stays the same.

Are box sets or bundles part of the reading order?
They’re usually just collections of the same novels. Use the title list above to avoid duplicates.

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Bottom line

If you want the safest, most satisfying “in order” experience, start with Truth and Lies (2018) and stay with DI Amy Winter to the end of that arc. If you’d rather sample first, choose a standalone by setting, village, island, or domestic pressure cooker, and go from there.