Carolyn Hart Books in Order: Death on Demand, Henrie O and Bailey Ruth Mysteries From First Book to Last
Carolyn G. Hart wrote cozy mysteries with a classic feel: a mystery bookstore owner with a taste for crime fiction, a retired journalist who travels the world and a ghost who helps the living from beyond. Her books are warm, clever and easy to follow.
This guide lists the main Carolyn Hart series in order, with every title, and shows where to start.
Death on Demand Series in Order (27 Books, 1987 to 2017)
Annie Laurance Darling owns Death on Demand, a mystery bookstore on the island of Broward’s Rock, South Carolina, and keeps stumbling into murders that echo the classic crime novels she sells. Her husband, Max Darling, is her partner in the sleuthing. Read in this order:
Death on Demand (1987)
A visiting author dies during a gathering of crime writers at Annie’s bookstore, and Annie ends up suspected. She has to find the real killer to clear her name. It is the book that introduces the island, the shop and Max.
Design for Murder (1988)
Annie agrees to stage a pretend murder as part of the spring house tour. Then a real body turns up in the middle of the fun.
Something Wicked (1988)
Halloween pranks on Broward’s Rock hide a genuine plot of deceit and revenge. The playful scares make a good cover for something much darker.
Honeymoon with Murder (1988)
Newlyweds Annie and Max find their honeymoon swamped by danger and a crowd of suspects. Their wedding trip becomes their first full case as a couple.
A Little Class on Murder (1989)
Annie’s course on classic women crime writers is thrown into chaos by a suicide, two killings and campus politics. The classroom setting gives the puzzle a bookish edge.
Deadly Valentine (1990)
A Valentine’s ball at the Cahill estate ends with Sydney Cahill dead and Laurel caught in the fallout. Annie works through the family’s tangled secrets to find who benefited.
The Christie Caper (1991)
An Agatha Christie-style puzzle staged on Broward’s Rock turns genuinely deadly. It is a fun read for fans of the golden age of detective fiction.
Southern Ghost (1992)
Annie investigates a case tied to an old Southern house, a local ghost story and a missing heiress. The legend and the facts keep tangling together.
Mint Julep Murder (1995)
At a book festival, Annie is looking after visiting authors when a publisher known for tell-all books is found dead. Nearly everyone at the event had a reason to want him silenced.
Yankee Doodle Dead (1998)
Fourth of July festivities turn deadly when a bullying retired general is shot. Annie and Max sort through the island’s many grudges.
White Elephant Dead (1999)
A volunteer dies during a storm, and Annie’s friend Henny becomes a suspect. In clearing her, Annie uncovers blackmail.
Sugarplum Dead (2000)
A Christmas-season case reveals family bitterness and old betrayals. The holiday cheer on the island is a thin cover for what lies underneath.
April Fool Dead (2001)
A teacher’s death at Rachel’s school turns harmless pranks into a murder investigation. Annie must work out which joke was really a threat.
Engaged to Die (2003)
A society woman’s engagement is derailed when her younger artist fiancé is found dead. Annie looks at who stood to lose most from the match.
Murder Walks the Plank (2004)
A costume cruise held as a fundraiser ends with a guest overboard. The case grows into a larger plot involving kidnapping and robbery.
Death of the Party (2005)
A celebration on Broward’s Rock turns grim when it emerges that several guests had reasons to hate the host. Annie has to untangle who acted on that hatred.
Dead Days of Summer (2006)
A desperate plea for help pulls Max into a personal and dangerous case. Annie joins in as the summer heat hides darker motives.
Death Walked In (2008)
A dying woman hints at something hidden in the Franklin house, and a stolen coin collection leads to murder. Annie follows the clues from the dying words to the culprit.
Dare to Die (2009)
A mysterious young woman returns to Broward’s Rock, and Annie’s effort to help her ends in murder. The question is who wanted her back, or wanted her gone.
Laughed ’Til He Died (2010)
Three linked deaths at a youth recreation center expose money troubles and missing teens. Annie and Max follow the money to find the connection.
Dead by Midnight (2011)
Annie doubts a police ruling of suicide and finds that more killings follow. Her instincts about the first death prove right in a frightening way.
Death Comes Silently (2012)
Urgent messages from a charity-shop volunteer lead Annie to the woman’s body. Her death opens a web of gossip and secrets across the island.
Dead, White, and Blue (2013)
Disappearances during Broward’s Rock’s Fourth of July celebrations reveal blackmail and betrayal. Annie has to find the missing before the fireworks end.
Death at the Door (2014)
Annie suspects an apparent suicide is really murder, especially once a second killing follows. The two cases turn out to be linked.
Don’t Go Home (2015)
A missing man, an abandoned car and a murdered woman form a case built to mislead. Annie has to work out which pieces were placed to deceive her.
From the Queen (2015)
Thrift-shop owner Ellen Gallagher loses a rare signed Poirot first edition to a thief, and Annie steps in to help. It is a shorter, lighter entry for fans of book-collecting mysteries.
Walking on My Grave (2017)
Ves Roundtree warns that someone plans to kill her and make it look like an accident, and Annie is drawn into the danger. It is the last Death on Demand mystery.
Henrie O Series in Order (7 Books, 1993 to 2007)
Henrie O is a retired journalist, once a war correspondent, who travels the world and keeps landing in the middle of murder cases. Her sharp observation and her reporter’s instincts make her a first-rate amateur sleuth.
Dead Man’s Island (1993)
Henrie O visits a private island at an old friend’s request and joins a wealthy family gathering shadowed by suspicion. When someone dies, her journalist’s eye picks out what the others miss.
Scandal in Fair Haven (1994)
Henrie O returns to a town that seems settled and peaceful, but an old scandal resurfaces after a murder. She has to separate local gossip from the truth.
Death in Lovers’ Lane (1997)
A case entangled with romance, memory and old grudges puts personal histories at the centre of the clues. Henrie O’s own past plays a part too.
Death in Paradise (1998)
A vacation getaway turns uncertain and tests Henrie O’s nerve as the beautiful scenery grows menacing. She has to work out who in the resort is hiding something.
Death on the River Walk (1999)
Henrie O faces another murder and a web of polished lies in the bright, touristy setting of the San Antonio River Walk. Everyone has a story prepared, and she has to find the weak spot.
Resort to Murder (2001)
A restful resort trip pulls Henrie O into the orbit of wealthy guests with secrets. Their polite surface cracks when someone is killed.
Set Sail for Murder (2007)
A relaxing voyage becomes a dangerous investigation driven by old grievances and sharp observation. It is the final book in the Henrie O series.
Bailey Ruth Ghost Series in Order (10 Books, 2008 to 2021)
Bailey Ruth Raeburn is a lively, red-haired ghost working for Heaven’s Department of Good Intentions. She is sent back to Earth to help people in trouble, though she often bends the rules of her assignments.
Ghost at Work (2008)
Bailey Ruth goes back to her hometown to help a minister’s wife who finds a dead body on her porch. It is a fun introduction to the rules and the risks of being a helpful spirit.
Merry, Merry Ghost (2009)
During the Christmas season, Bailey Ruth protects a newly discovered grandson after a wealthy woman is poisoned before she can change her will. The holiday setting gives the story a warm, festive feel.
Ghost in Trouble (2010)
Posing as an assistant at a grand family home, Bailey Ruth prevents a near-fatal accident and investigates a suspicious death. Her ghostly powers prove handy and sometimes embarrassing.
Ghost Gone Wild (2013)
Bailey Ruth reaches Adelaide in time to stop a shooting aimed at Nick Magruder, but some of her powers have gone astray. She has to solve the murder by ordinary means.
Ghost Wanted (2014)
Bailey Ruth is sent to protect the reputation of a spirit haunting a college library. A stolen rare book, a shooting and a framed student complicate the case.
Ghost to the Rescue (2015)
Bailey Ruth helps struggling writer Deidre Davenport, whose fingerprints are on the weapon used to kill a predatory professor. She has to prove the young woman is innocent.
Ghost Times Two (2016)
Bailey Ruth is meant to guide Jimmy Taylor to the afterlife, but he refuses to leave the woman he loves. She must clear Megan, the prime suspect in her boss’s murder.
Ghost on the Case (2017)
Susan Gilbert is pushed toward her boss’s safe by a ransom demand and risks being framed for murder. Bailey Ruth races to untangle the kidnapping plot.
Ghost Ups Her Game (2020)
Bailey Ruth finds Professor Iris Gallagher standing over a corpse with the weapon in hand. She has to work through blackmail, college politics and murder to clear her.
Ghost Blows a Kiss (2021)
After rescuing Fran Loring from drowning, Bailey Ruth learns that Fran fled a killing at the Chandler mansion. She must prove Fran’s innocence while dealing with a police chief she does not trust.
Standalone Novels and Other Works
Escape from Paris (1982)
Two American sisters risk their lives helping Allied soldiers escape from occupied France during the Second World War. It is a tense, fast-moving standalone from before the Death on Demand series.
Brave Hearts (1987)
A diplomat’s wife finds both love and danger in the Philippines during the Second World War. The standalone mixes wartime peril with romantic suspense.
Skulduggery (2000)
An anthropologist is drawn into a chase in San Francisco after ancient bones surface and people begin dying. The book combines romance, history and a search for the truth.
Letter from Home (2003)
A young woman in Oklahoma writes letters to the man she loves overseas during the Second World War. The quieter mystery centres on memory, loss and a long-buried truth.
Hart also wrote the short story collections Crime on Her Mind (1999) and Secrets and Other Stories of Suspense (2002), and the non-fiction Cooks’ Books (2005).
Where to Start With Carolyn Hart
- For classic cozy mysteries: Death on Demand.
- For travel and adventure: Dead Man’s Island.
- For a lighter, supernatural mystery: Ghost at Work.
Frequently Asked Questions About Carolyn Hart’s Books
What is Carolyn Hart’s first series?
Her early work includes standalone novels and the Death on Demand series, which began in 1987.
Which Carolyn Hart book should I read first?
Death on Demand is the natural start for her best-known series.
Do I need to read her series in order?
Reading each series in order helps, but each mystery stands on its own.
How many Death on Demand books are there?
Twenty-six novels, from 1987 to 2017.
Is the name Carolyn Hart or Carolyn G. Hart?
She is credited as both, and the middle initial helps separate her from other authors with the same name.
What should I read if I like Carolyn Hart?
Readers often try Agatha Christie, Joan Hess, Charlaine Harris, Diane Mott Davidson and Sharyn McCrumb.
About Carolyn Hart
Carolyn G. Hart is a mystery author known for the Death on Demand, Henrie O and Bailey Ruth series. She won the Agatha, Anthony and Macavity Awards and co-founded Sisters in Crime. She lived in Oklahoma City.
My Take as a Reader
If you like bookish cozy mysteries, start with Death on Demand and take the other series as a break.
Final Note
Carolyn Hart’s mysteries are gentle puzzles with plenty of charm. Start with Death on Demand, follow the order above and bookmark this page.
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