Joy Ellis Books in Order – Updated February 22, 2026

Joy Ellis is a UK crime author best known for multiple Lincolnshire-linked police series. The key is not “chronology” (most books follow real-time publication anyway), but continuity: each series has its own team, its own emotional baggage, and its own spoiler line.

If you keep the series separated, you can read almost everything safely.

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Start by choosing your “lead investigator”

Want the long, landscape-driven Fenland flagship? Start DI Nikki Galena.
Want a tighter duo-dynamic with Jackman & Evans? Start Jackman & Evans.
Want a later-career series with a different tone and pace? Start DCI Matt Ballard.
Want lighter “mystery-with-a-hook” vibes (still crime-led)? Start Ellie McEwan.

Safest default start: Crime on the Fens (DI Nikki Galena #1).

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Series A: DI Nikki Galena – Publication order (recommended)

This is the core Fenland sequence. Read in order if you care about Nikki’s working life, her team, and recurring personal consequences.

1. Crime on the Fens (2010): Nikki Galena’s first case in the Lincolnshire Fens, establishing the setting’s isolation-and-secrets tone.
2. Shadow Over the Fens (2011): A second Fenland case that deepens Nikki’s professional world and the series’ recurring atmosphere.
3. Hunted on the Fens (2016): The series returns with a sharper procedural pace and higher personal stakes.
4. Killer on the Fens (2016): A predator-focused investigation that leans into misdirection and pressure on the team.
5. Stalker on the Fens (2016): A fear-forward case where obsession and proximity become the engine of suspense.
6. Captive on the Fens (2017): Confinement and control themes drive a case that tests decision-making under time pressure.
7. Buried on the Fens (2017): A past-hidden-for-a-reason storyline with consequences that ripple through the investigation.
8. Thieves on the Fens (2017): A crime web that widens beyond a single incident, pulling multiple motives into view.
9. Fire on the Fens (2018): Escalation and urgency, with danger that spreads faster than answers.
10. Darkness on the Fens (2019): A bleak, high-tension installment where the landscape mirrors the threat.
11. Hidden on the Fens (2020): A secrets-in-plain-sight case that turns familiar places into evidence.
12. Secrets on the Fens (2021): Trust fractures as long-kept truths come due.
13. Fear on the Fens (2021): A case built around intimidation and vulnerability, tightening the series’ psychological edge.
14. Graves on the Fens (2022): Missing-women history returns to the surface, forcing the team to confront what was left unresolved.
15. Echoes on the Fens (2024): Aftershocks, old harm reverberates into a new investigation where patterns matter more than alibis.

Title note: The first two are also commonly listed under alternate titles (“Mask Wars” and “Shadowbreaker”). They are the same books, not extras.

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Series B: Jackman & Evans – Publication order (recommended)

This series rewards order because the partnership and the unit’s history accumulate. The mysteries stand alone; the team’s story does not.

1. The Murderer’s Son (2016): A case rooted in legacy and suspicion, introducing DI Jackman and DS Evans as a working pair.
2. Their Lost Daughters (2017): Missing-person urgency with a focus on families, secrets, and what communities excuse.
3. The Fourth Friend (2017): A friendship-group pressure cooker where the past won’t stay “finished.”
4. The Guilty Ones (2018): A moral-judgment thriller that forces the team to separate evidence from reputation.
5. The Stolen Boys (2018): A child-centered investigation where time is the enemy and certainty is rare.
6. The Patient Man (2020): A tense, character-driven case that pushes the series into darker psychological territory.
7. They Disappeared (2020): Vanishings and misleading traces, with the investigation built around what isn’t there.
8. The Night Thief (2021): A stealth-and-predation case that keeps the team reacting to a moving target.
9. Solace House (2022): A refuge that isn’t safe, with danger hiding inside an apparently protective setting.
10. The River’s Edge (2023): A Fenland-laced pursuit where old enemies and new crimes collide.
11. Black Notice (2025): A high-alert installment where public warning signs and private motives refuse to line up.

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Series C: DCI Matt Ballard – Publication order (recommended)

A distinct strand with its own lead and tone. Order helps, but it’s less continuity-heavy than Nikki or Jackman.

1. Beware the Past (2017): Ballard’s first case, setting up a career shaped by what earlier choices left behind.
2. Five Bloody Hearts (2019): A pattern-led investigation where relationships and motives interlock like a trap.
3. The Dying Light (2020): A case that leans into atmosphere and dread, answers arrive late, and not gently.
4. Marshlight (2021): Fenland terrain becomes a tactical problem as much as a backdrop.
5. Trick of the Night (2022): A deception-driven case where the obvious explanation is usually bait.
6. The Bag of Secrets (2023): A discovery-led mystery that pulls buried stories into present-day consequences.

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Series D: Ellie McEwan Mysteries – Publication order (recommended)

This is the most “concept-hook” line: the cases are serious, but the series identity is built around Ellie’s unusual perspective.

1. An Aura of Mystery (2024): After a life-changing accident, Ellie discovers she can perceive auras, and that strange ability draws her into a hunt for a violent offender.
2. The Colour of Mystery (2024): Ellie’s gift becomes harder to ignore as new danger demands she interpret what she sees.
3. The House of Mystery (2026): The third Ellie installment, positioned as the next step in her role as an unconventional ally to the police.

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Standalones and other Joy Ellis novels (read anytime)

These do not sit inside the three police-series continuities above.

• Guide Star (2017): An injured police officer rebuilds her life while uncovering family history that refuses to stay buried.
• Guard Her With Your Life (2024): A father’s long-awaited reunion at an airport becomes a nightmare when the wrong child runs into his arms.
• One More to Die (2025): Detective Kate Carter is called to a “car accident” that doesn’t add up, and the details point to something staged and far more dangerous.

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A practical, spoiler-safe reading plan

If you want one clean run without juggling series:

1. Pick exactly one series and read it straight through in publication order.
2. Use standalones as palate cleansers between series books, never inside a series.
3. When you switch series, restart at that series’ Book 1 (don’t jump in midstream).

If you only want five Joy Ellis books as a sample:

1. Crime on the Fens
2. Darkness on the Fens
3. The Murderer’s Son
4. The Patient Man
5. Beware the Past

That set shows all three major engines (Nikki / Jackman & Evans / Ballard) without mixing continuity.

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Latest confirmed release status

• Most recently dated Ellie McEwan title: The House of Mystery (2026).
• Most recently dated Jackman & Evans title: Black Notice (2025).
• Most recently dated standalone: One More to Die (2025).
• Most recently dated Nikki Galena title: Echoes on the Fens (2024).

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FAQs

Do the Nikki Galena and Jackman & Evans books overlap?
They share a broader “Fenland crime” feel, but they’re best treated as separate continuities unless a specific crossover is clearly stated in the book’s own packaging.

Are the “aka” titles extra books?
No. They’re alternate market titles for the same story.

Can I read the Ellie McEwan books first?
Yes. It’s a separate series and a clean entry point if you want a different flavor than the police procedurals.

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Bottom line

If you want the surest, most satisfying route: start Crime on the Fens, then continue the DI Nikki Galena sequence in publication order. When you’re ready for a change, switch to Jackman & Evans, but start at Book 1 there as well.