Recommendations For Alexander McCall Smith

Recommended by Pam D

Alexander McCall Smith has several series.The #1 Ladies Detective Agency, 44 Scotland Street, Isabel

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Recommended by Beth Peters

Highly recommend two series by Alexander McCall Smith: The Number One Lady Detective series for some

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Books By Alexander McCall Smith

The Winds From Further West
Looking for You
How to Raise an Elephant
The Joy and Light Bus Company
A Song of Comfortable Chairs
From a Far and Lovely Country
The Handsome Man's de Luxe Café
The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
Precious and Grace
Tears of the Giraffe
The House of Unexpected Sisters
Morality for Beautiful Girls
The Colors of All the Cattle
The Kalahari Typing School for Men
To the Land of Long Lost Friends
The Full Cupboard of Life
In the Company of Cheerful Ladies
Blue Shoes and Happiness
The Good Husband of Zebra Drive
The Miracle at Speedy Motors
Tea Time for the Traditionally Built
The Double Comfort Safari Club
The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party
The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon
The People's City
The Great Hippopotamus Hotel
The Conditions of Unconditional Love
Dream Angus: The Celtic God of Dreams
The Girl who Married a Lion
The Perfect Passion Company
Precious and the Monkeys
Mystery of Meerkat Hill
The Mystery of the Missing Lion
Precious and the Zebra Necklace
Young Precious: the Collected Adventures
The Great Cake Mystery: Precious Ramotswe's Very First Case
Precious Ramotswe: A Mysterious Profile
The Sands of Shark Island
The Race to Kangaroo Cliff
The Secret of the Dark Waterfall
The Case of the Vanishing Granny
The Great Clown Conundrum
The Akimbo Adventures
School Ship Tobermory
Akimbo and the Elephants
Akimbo and the Crocodile Man
Akimbo and the Lions
Akimbo and the Snakes
Akimbo and the Baboons
My Italian Bulldozer: A Paul Stuart Novel
The Second-Worst Restaurant in France: A Paul Stuart Novel
Chance Developments: Unexpected Love Stories
Pianos and Flowers: Brief Encounters of the Romantic Kind
Tiny Tales
In a Time of Distance
I Think of You
Emma: A Modern Retelling
What W. H. Auden Can Do for You
La's Orchestra Saves the World
Trains and Lovers
The Forever Girl
Fatty O'Leary's Dinner Party
The Strange Case of the Moderate Extremists
The Good Pilot Peter Woodhouse
Cook for Me
The Pavilion in the Clouds
A Laborer in the Vineyard of Love
The Private Life of Spies and The Exquisite Art of Getting Even
Heavenly Date and Other Flirtations
Portuguese Irregular Verbs
The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs
At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances
Unusual Uses for Olive Oil
Your Inner Hedgehog
Corduroy Mansions
The Dog Who Came in from the Cold
A Conspiracy of Friends
Love Over Scotland
The Department of Sensitive Crimes
The World According to Bertie
The Talented Mr. Varg
The Unbearable Lightness of Scones
The Man with the Silver Saab
The Importance of Being Seven
The Discreet Charm of the Big Bad Wolf
Bertie Plays the Blues
Sunshine on Scotland Street
Bertie's Guide to Life and Mothers
The Revolving Door of Life
The Bertie Project
A Time of Love and Tartan
The Peppermint Tea Chronicles
A Promise of Ankles
Love in the Time of Bertie
The Enigma of Garlic
The Stellar Debut of Galactica Macfee
The 44 Scotland Street Cookbook
The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday
The Lost Art of Gratitude
The Charming Quirks of Others
The Forgotten Affairs of Youth
The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds
The Novel Habits of Happiness
A Distant View of Everything
The Quiet Side of Passion
The Geometry of Holding Hands
The Sweet Remnants of Summer
The Perils of Morning Coffee
The Sunday Philosophy Club
At the Reunion Buffet: An Isabel Dalhousie Story
Friends
Sweet
The Right Attitude to Rain
44 Scotland Street
The Careful Use of Compliments
Espresso Tales

Tips and Resources From Your Alexander McCall Smith Book Club Friends:

For over 20 years, the humour, compassion, and occasional cup of tea that Precious Ramotswe brings to the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency have delighted millions of people. Do you count yourself among the fans of Botswana’s premier lady detective? Or are you more a fan of the residents and neighbours of 44 Scotland Street? Perhaps you prefer the mysteries the philosopher and amateur sleuth Isabel Dalhousie solves? There are so many stories – long and short – from Alexander McCall Smith to discuss, let’s get to it!

the order of the Books and all Related Books Available
All Alexander McCall Smith’s Book Series in Order of Publication

Find the right order of the books in the series.

No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Books In Order
Isabel Dalhousie Books In Order
44 Scotland Street Books In Order
Detective Varg Books In Order
Perfect Passion Company Books In Order
Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainment Books In Order
Corduroy Mansions Books In Order
Precious Ramotswe Books In Order
Akimbo Books In Order
School Ship Tobermory Books In Order
Recommendations From Alexander’s Fans

Elizabeth Peters

Recommended by Dorothy Beams

I have read the whole Amelia Peabody series at least four times! Like the Inspector Gamache series,

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Sara Nisha Adams

Recommended by Marie Maples

The Reading List is Sara Nisha Adams’ first book. It’s a lovely book that will stay with me for a wh

Read More Sara Nisha Adams

Janet Evanovich

Recommended by Gianna Ramirez

I’m a huge fan of mysteries with humour and a dash of romance Janet Evanovich’s books are on the top

Read More Janet Evanovich

Shelby Van Pelt

Recommended by Ava Davis

I really loved Shelby Van Pelt’s Remarkably Bright Creatures and have recommended it to everyone. I

Read More Shelby Van Pelt

Peter Lovesey

Recommended by Maya Torres

I first learned about Peter Lovesey books featuring detective Peter Diamond from Louise Penny who ha

Read More Peter Lovesey

Martha Grimes

Recommended by Eleanor Jackson

Martha Grimes’ mysteries with Richard Jury and Melrose Plant are well written and entertaining. I en

Read More Martha Grimes

Rhys Bowen

Recommended by Beth Peters

Rhys Bowen’s Molly Murphy series is great. Good stories with a sense of humor. This is one of my fav

Read More Rhys Bowen

Nell Goddin

Recommended by Victoria Baker

I am really enjoying Nell Goddin’s Molly Sutton mysteries. I like the setting in a small village of

Read More Nell Goddin

Ian Rankin

Recommended by Savannah Cooper

Ian Rankin is a fantastic storyteller and writes well on so many levels. Has a great ear for dialogu

Read More Ian Rankin

Alan Bradley

Recommended by Amanda Scrip

Alan Bradley’s series about Flavia de Luce are wonderfully written delights. Wish there were more of

Read More Alan Bradley

Rhys Bowen

Recommended by Susan Walker

I love Rhys Bowen’s Royal Spyness series. Such fun! They’re light, but clever and amusing. I started

Read More Rhys Bowen

Annie Barrows

Recommended by Hannah Carter

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is an excellent, enjoyable and informative epistol

Read More Annie Barrows
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Recommended Books From Alexander McCall Smith Fans

Devil's Claw
Letters to a Soldier
The Redeemer
A Bird in the Hand
The Outcast Dead
Devil's Food
Miss Kopp Investigates
Death of a Gossip
The Teacher
The Spectacular
The Drowning Man
The Shadow Killer
One Across
Killer: An Alex Delaware Novel
Snowblind
One Was a Soldier
Scarpetta
Slaves of Obsession: A William Monk Novel
The Old Success: A Richard Jury Mystery
Catch Me
After That Night: A Will Trent Thriller
The Mill on the Shore
Death in the Devil's Acre
The Dove of Death
The Brimstone Wedding
Journey to Munich
Dissolution
Ruddy Gore
The Doomsday Decree
Free Fire
Death in Daylesford
The Lying Game
The Black Cabinet
A Guilty Thing Surprised
Top Secret Twenty-One
Certain Prey
Death of a Maid
Mrs. Pollifax Pursued
The Black Loch
Battle Mountain
The Chalk Pit
Fortune and Glory
The Survivors Club
The Torment of Others
Just One Look
Death of a Laird: A Hamish Macbeth Short Story
Cop to Corpse
Pros and Cons: A Short Story
The Dark Wives
Falling in Love
Out of the Black Land
The Haunted Abbot
The Convenience Boy: A Short Story
In Farleigh Field: A Novel of World War II
Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man)
Abracadaver
The Fallen Angel
Missing You
A Spot of Folly
The Girl with Braided Hair
Better to Rest
Wicked Prey
Dark Fire
A Prayer for the Damned
Dead on Target: An Agatha Raisin Mystery
A Heart Full of Headstones
Wait for Signs: Twelve Longmire Stories
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
Pay Dirt: A V.I. Warshawski Novel
Upon a Dark Night
Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter?
Death of a Macho Man
Remains of Innocence
Doctored Evidence
The Inheritance
Dreaming Spies
The Man Who Fell from the Sky
No Graves As Yet: A Novel
Portrait of a Spy
The Obsidian Chamber
Corridors of the Night: A William Monk Novel
The Charming Quirks of Others
Three-Day Town
An Inside Job
Murder on Brittany Shores: A Mystery
Death of a Green-Eyed Monster
The Buzzard Table
The English Girl
A Shilling For Candles
A Beautiful Blue Death
The Imposter: A Mike Bowditch Short Mystery
Dance Hall of the Dead
Last Breath
The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag
Marble Hall Murders
Speaking in Bones
A Christmas Homecoming
Seeds of Deception: A Kate Burkholder Short Story
Turbo Twenty-Three
The Wife Upstairs
Mrs. Pollifax on Safari
Spirit Crossing
The Last Mrs. Summers
Mrs Pollifax and the Golden Triangle
H is for Homicide
The Cliff's Edge
Bones of the Lost
What's Past Is Prologue
A Great Deliverance
The House at Sea's End
Hold Tight
The Rembrandt Affair
Nine Perfect Strangers
Sacred Clowns: A Leaphorn and Chee Novel
Give Unto Others
Beau Death
Four to Score
Outlaw Mountain
The Investigator
Smoke and Mirrors
The Alphabet House
Jupiter's Bones
The Confession
Weighed in the Balance: A William Monk Novel
The Mary Russell Companion
Pit Stop: Sean Reilly vs. Glen Garber
To Fear a Painted Devil
Absolute Power
So Shall You Reap
Agatha Raisin and The Day the Floods Came
Under the Streets of Nice: The Bank Heist of the Century
Agatha Raisin and The Case of the Curious Curate
Sea of Troubles
The Betrayal of Trust
12 Rose Street
The Chalice of Blood
Cleanskin
The Gimlet Slip
The Jealous Kind
I Shall Not Want
The Black Book
The Secret Hangman
Dance of Death
Hard Time: A V.I. Warshawski Novel
Crimson Shore
Transient Desires
State of Terror
The Hunter
The Great Deceiver
Butchers Hill
Postmortem
The Man with No Face
Other Worlds
A Darker Reality
The Dancing Floor
The Black Box
The Grownup
Darkest Before the Dawn
A Judgement in Stone
Silent Bones
The Camel Club
Talking God
I
The Defector
Easy Prey
Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
Day of Atonement
Safe Before Dawn
Winter of the World
Set in Darkness
The Genius
Bad Actors
Death in a Darkening Mist
The Murders of Richard III
Live to Tell
Echoes of Sherlock Holmes
Rebus' Scotland
Twilight
The Final Detail
The Ambitious City
The Dry
A Study in Sherlock
The Long Call
Run Away
Deadlock: A V. I. Warshawski Novel
Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell
Street Dreams
Knife Creek
A Song for the Dark Times
Catch Me When I Fall
A Forgotten Place
The Anodyne Necklace
The Night She Disappeared
In the Woods
The Hollows
The River We Remember
Designated Daughters
Death in the Cards
Pandora's Boy
The Most Dangerous Thing
Messenger of Truth
Voices of Rome
Asta's Book
The Whitechapel Conspiracy
The Case Has Altered: A Richard Jury Mystery
The Widows of Malabar Hill
A Finer End
The Cold Dish: A Longmire Mystery
Deep Freeze
The Runner
Down Among the Dead Men
Death with a Double Edge
The Address
Lightning Strikes the Silence
The Redbreast
House of Stone
The Birthday Present
The Black Ice
Skin and Bones: A Mike Bowditch Short Mystery
The Knowledge: A Richard Jury Mystery
The Typhoon Lover
One Last Lie
Unnatural Exposure
Fever Dream
The Man from St. Petersburg
Eyes of Prey
Toxic Prey
Cockroaches
Apostle's Cove
Medea
Slow Dollar
Exiles
A Divided Loyalty
Blind Justice: A William Monk Novel
A Truth to Lie For
Flash and Bones
Dead Med
The Mermaids Singing
Bullseye: An Original Will Robie / Camel Club Short Story
Hell and Back: A Longmire Mystery
Live Flesh
Blood Ties
Trick of the Dark
How the Light Gets In
The New Girl
Master of Souls
Still See You Everywhere
3 Truths and a Lie
A Fatal Inversion
Hero: A Simon Serrailler Short Story
Death in Blue Folders
The Careful Use of Compliments
Buckingham Palace Gardens
Moscow Rules
Bruno's Challenge and Other Stories of the French Countryside
Full Wolf Moon
Watching the Dark: An Inspector Banks Novel
Past Reason Hated: An Inspector Banks Novel
By Its Cover
The Heist
The Private Patient
Believing the Lie
The Last Days of Kira Mullen
Birds of a Feather
The Way of All Fish
The Lions of Fifth Avenue
The Postscript Murders
The Last Voice You Hear
Dead Water
Pronghorns of the Third Reich
A More Perfect Union
The Clockmaker's Daughter
Master and God
The Return of Raffles
End of the Pier
Agatha Raisin and The Fairies of Fryfam
Still Life: A Karen Pirie Novel
Christmas Crumble: An Agatha Raisin Short Story
The Housemaid Is Watching
Persons of Interest: A DC Smith Investigation
Killing Tide: A Brittany Mystery
This Dark Road to Mercy
Kindness Goes Unpunished: A Longmire Mystery
The Woman in Cabin 10
Two Bagger
The Face in the Mirror
The Hangman
Gideon's Corpse
Blood Trail
Breach of Duty
Angel of Vengeance
Another Kind of Eden
First Frost: A Longmire Mystery
Means of Evil and Other Stories
An Enemy in the Village
In a House of Lies
The Heavens May Fall
The Spotted Dog
Agatha Raisin and Tthe Haunted House
The Late Lord Thorpe

“You can go through life and make new friends every year – every month practically – but there was never any substitute for those friendships of childhood that survive into adult years. Those are the ones in which we are bound to one another with hoops of steel.”

Alexander McCall Smith, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
RJ Martin
“If you’ve never read a book in the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series you are in for a treat. I love the gentle humour and wisdom of detective Precious Ramotswe. The series is one of my favourites and every outing is a delight. I also love Isabel Dalhousie. In fact, I pretty much love anything and everything Alexander McCall Smith writes.”

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