Jess Kidd
Jess Kidd has published 7 books across 3 series. The recommended reading order starts with Himself (2017).
Jess Kidd writes literary fiction, historical mystery, fantasy, and children's books, moving between forms with the same vivid imagination. Raised in London by a large Irish family from County Mayo, she returned to college as a mature learner on a bursary and went on to lecture and teach creative writing to readers of all ages.
Her debut novel, Himself, arrived in 2016 and earned shortlistings for the Irish Book Awards, the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award, and a longlisting for the John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger. Her second novel, The Hoarder, was shortlisted for Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year in 2019. Both books were selected for the BBC Radio 2 Book Club. Things in Jars, her third novel, appeared to critical praise, followed by The Night Ship, an epic shipwreck saga. She won the Costa Short Story Award in 2016 with Dirty Little Fishes and has contributed ghostly winter tales to The Haunting Season. Her first book for children, Everyday Magic, is a teacher's pick. Kidd is currently developing original television and film projects in the United Kingdom and internationally alongside her short fiction and fifth novel.
Shelf & Shadows
Order of Alfie Blackstack Books
- TagsfantasyDescriptionThere's a particular kind of enchantment that lives in the margins of ordinary life. Jess Kidd knows how to find it. In "Everyday Magic," she weaves a tale where the mundane and the mystical collide, where the world we think we know reveals its hidden seams. This is a story about Alfie Blackstack, a character who exists at the intersection of the real and the impossible. Kidd has built a world where magic isn't flashy or distant—it's threaded through the fabric of daily existence, waiting to be noticed by those willing to look. The prose does what Kidd does best: it unsettles and comforts in equal measure. Her voice is darkly whimsical, her observations sharp enough to draw blood. She writes characters who feel lived-in, flawed, and deeply human even when the supernatural presses close. The stakes are personal. The magic is intimate. What matters here isn't spectacle but transformation. Kidd asks what it means to believe in something beyond the visible, to trust in forces we can't control. "Everyday Magic" is a book that lingers. It changes the way you see the world after you close it. That's the real magic—not what happens on the page, but what happens to you while reading it.Publication dateApril 1, 2021Amazon rating4.4/5Print length295LanguageEnglishPublisherCanongate Books
Order of Nora Breen Investigates Books
- TagsmysterycrimehorrorthrillerDescriptionThis is the kind of mystery that wraps you in fog and doesn't let go. Jess Kidd brings her signature blend of dark humor and Gothic atmosphere to the coastal setting of Gulls Nest, where something sinister lurks beneath the surface of a seemingly quiet seaside community. Nora Breen, investigator extraordinaire, arrives to untangle a murder that's as twisted as the shoreline itself. What sets this apart is Kidd's ability to make the setting feel like a character—Gulls Nest isn't just a backdrop, it's a breathing, menacing presence. The cliffs, the gulls, the salt-stung air—they all conspire to keep secrets buried. Nora herself is no ordinary detective; she's sharp-tongued, unflinching, and carries her own shadows. Watching her navigate the lies and half-truths of the locals is like watching a master class in persistence. Kidd's prose has teeth. She doesn't waste words, but every sentence lands with weight, whether it's a moment of levity or a revelation that shifts everything. If you're drawn to mysteries that feel atmospheric and lived-in, where the investigation is as much about the people as the crime, this is your book. Murder at Gulls Nest is moody, compelling, and impossible to put down once Nora starts digging.Publication dateMarch 25, 2025Amazon rating4.2/5Print length336LanguageEnglishPublisherFaber & Faber
- TagsmysterycrimethrillerDescriptionThe séance room goes dark, and when the lights come up, there's a body. This is how Nora Breen's latest case begins—not with a whisper, but with a scream. Jess Kidd brings her signature blend of Gothic atmosphere and razor-sharp wit to this mystery series. Nora Breen is no ordinary investigator. She navigates a world where the living and the dead blur at the edges, where spiritualists peddle hope and charlatans peddle lies. The Spirit Lounge is the kind of place where secrets accumulate like dust, and someone has decided murder is the ultimate revelation. Kidd's prose crackles with dark humor and vivid detail. She populates her world with characters who feel lived-in and complicated—mediums who may or may not believe their own visions, patrons desperate for connection, and Nora herself, sharp-eyed and unshakeable. The setting pulses with period texture and menace, every shadow hiding something worth discovering. This is mystery fiction that refuses to play it safe. Kidd understands that the best crime novels are about more than whodunit—they're about why we lie, what we mourn, and how far we'll go to protect our illusions. Murder at the Spirit Lounge delivers both chills and substance, wrapped in prose that demands to be savored. Nora Breen is a detective worth following into the dark.Publication dateJune 16, 2026Print length368LanguageEnglishPublisherAtria Books
Order of Standalone Novels
- Tagsliterary-fictionmysterycrimegraphic-novelshorrorDescription1976. Mahony returns to the Irish village where he was abandoned as a baby, left in the woods for dead. He's come back to find out who his mother was and why someone wanted him gone. The village isn't talking. But the dead are. Mahony sees ghosts. They follow him everywhere, a chorus of the departed with their own agendas and unfinished business. As he digs into the past, he uncovers a web of secrets the living would rather keep buried—secrets about his mother, about the village's dark history, about what really happened all those years ago. Jess Kidd's debut is a Gothic mystery wrapped in Irish folklore, equal parts tender and unsettling. The prose crackles with dark humor and the kind of vivid characterization that makes even the dead feel alive. This is a book about belonging and exile, about the stories we tell to survive, and about a man caught between two worlds trying to claim his place in both.Publication dateOctober 10, 2017Amazon rating4.2/5Print length384LanguageEnglishPublisherAtria Books
- Tagsliterary-fictionmysteryhorrorDescriptionWhat do we owe to the people who refuse to be saved, who cling to their chaos like treasure? Maud Drennan is a care worker assigned to Cathal Flood, an aging hoarder barricaded inside his crumbling London mansion alongside decades of accumulated junk and a house full of secrets. He's cantankerous, manipulative, and determined to die on his own terms, but Maud—haunted by her own losses and drawn to the broken things of the world—refuses to give up on him. As she navigates the labyrinth of his hoarded past, she uncovers mysteries that reach back to a long-ago tragedy involving a missing child, and the line between caretaker and detective begins to blur. Jess Kidd weaves a darkly comic, deeply tender story about the things we keep and the things that keep us, about grief that calcifies into walls of newspapers and tin cans, and the strange, stubborn forms that love can take. Her prose is lush and unsettling, alive with ghosts both literal and metaphorical, and she finds unexpected beauty in the wreckage of Mr. Flood's life. This is a novel that asks you to sit with discomfort, to find humanity in the hoarder's maze, and to believe that even the most cluttered heart might still have room for connection. It's strange, it's moving, and it lingers long after the last page.Publication dateMay 1, 2018Amazon rating4.1/5Print length352LanguageEnglishPublisherAtria Books
- Tagshistorical-fictionliterary-fictionfantasymysterychildrenhorrorDescriptionBridie Devine is broke. Her reputation is in ruins. And now someone wants her to find a child who shouldn't exist. London, 1863. The case lands on her desk like a curse: Christabel Berwick has been stolen, and Christabel is no ordinary girl. She's an impossibility. A secret kept in jars and whispers. The hunt pulls Bridie into the city's darkest corners. Anatomists with scalpels and obsessions. Showmen trading in human oddities for profit. Surgeons who've forgotten their oaths. This is a London drunk on spectacle, where curiosities are currency and the public pays good money to gawk at what shouldn't be. Christabel is the prize everyone wants. And Bridie is running out of time. This is Victorian noir soaked in gaslight and dread. Jess Kidd gives us a detective novel that's equal parts gothic and tender, where the real mystery isn't just who took the girl—it's what it means to be human when the world treats people like specimens. Bridie is sharp, damaged, and utterly compelling. The prose is lush and strange, the atmosphere thick enough to choke on. If you love your historical fiction with teeth, your mysteries with heart, and your heroines scarred but unbroken, this one's for you. It's dark. It's weird. It's wonderful.Publication dateFebruary 4, 2020Amazon rating4.2/5Print length384LanguageEnglishPublisherAtria Books
- Tagsliterary-fictionhistorical-fictionfantasyDescriptionJess Kidd proves once again that historical fiction can be both ferociously intelligent and utterly transporting. *The Night Ship* weaves two timelines—1629 and 1989—into a single haunting narrative that refuses to let go. In the seventeenth century, a young girl named Mayken sails aboard the Batavia, bound for the Dutch East Indies, unaware that her voyage will end in one of maritime history's most notorious disasters. Centuries later, a boy named Gil arrives on a remote Australian island to live with his grandfather, carrying secrets of his own. What connects them is more than geography. Kidd's prose moves like water—fluid, dark, and deceptively deep. She captures the claustrophobia of life at sea and the eerie isolation of an island where the past never quite stays buried. Mayken is no passive observer; she's sharp-eyed and resilient, a child navigating a world of adult cruelty with startling grace. Gil, meanwhile, is tender and watchful, piecing together fragments of a story that might explain his own. This is historical fiction that trusts its readers, that understands atmosphere is as crucial as plot. Kidd doesn't sensationalize tragedy—she excavates it, revealing the human cost beneath the legend. *The Night Ship* is a novel about survival, memory, and the stories we tell to make sense of the unthinkable.Publication dateOctober 4, 2022Amazon rating4/5Print length400LanguageEnglishPublisherAtria Books
Frequently Asked Questions about Jess Kidd
Jess Kidd's books are best read in publication order to fully appreciate the evolution of her writing and recurring themes. However, if you prefer to start with a series, the Nora Breen Investigates books can be read in order. For standalone novels, each can be enjoyed independently. The Alfie Blackstack series is also a distinct narrative. Reading them chronologically ensures you encounter each story as it was released, offering a consistent experience across her varied works.
A good starting point for Jess Kidd is her standalone novel Things in Jars, published in 2020. This novel showcases her distinctive blend of dark humor, historical settings, and fantastical elements. It received considerable attention and is often recommended for new readers. Alternatively, the first book in the Nora Breen Investigates series, Murder at Gulls Nest, offers a strong entry into her detective fiction, providing a solid introduction to her style.
You do not have to read Jess Kidd's books in order, as many of her works are standalones. Her series, like the Nora Breen Investigates and Alfie Blackstack books, have their own internal order that is recommended for the best experience within those specific narratives. However, each series and each standalone novel can be read independently of the others. Readers can choose to begin with any of her books without needing prior knowledge of her other works.
Jess Kidd writes both standalone novels and series. Her standalone novels include works such as Himself, Mr. Flood's Last Resort, Things in Jars, and The Night Ship. She has also written two distinct series: the Order of Alfie Blackstack Books, with Everyday Magic as its entry, and the Order of Nora Breen Investigates Books, which includes Murder at Gulls Nest and Murder at the Spirit Lounge. This variety allows readers to choose between self-contained stories or ongoing narratives.
Jess Kidd has written at least seven books. This includes her standalone novels: Himself (2017), Mr. Flood's Last Resort (2018), Things in Jars (2020), and The Night Ship (2022). She has also written entries for her series, such as Everyday Magic (2021) in the Order of Alfie Blackstack Books, and Murder at Gulls Nest (2025) and Murder at the Spirit Lounge (2026) in the Order of Nora Breen Investigates Books. This count may not include all potential future publications.
The first book Jess Kidd wrote was Himself, published in 2017. This novel marked her debut and introduced readers to her unique narrative style, which often blends elements of magical realism, dark humor, and compelling character studies. It set the stage for her subsequent works, establishing her as a writer with a distinctive voice and a talent for creating memorable, often eccentric, characters and atmospheric settings.
Jess Kidd's most recent book is The Night Ship, published in 2022. This novel draws on historical events and folklore, telling the story of a group of nuns who sail from Ireland to the Caribbean in the 17th century. It exemplifies Kidd's characteristic style, weaving together historical detail with a touch of the uncanny and exploring themes of faith, survival, and the search for belonging. It stands as a singular narrative within her body of work.
Jess Kidd writes fiction that often incorporates elements of dark humor, magical realism, and historical settings. Her novels frequently feature eccentric characters, atmospheric locations, and plots that blend the ordinary with the extraordinary. While she explores various themes, her work often leans towards the uncanny and the surreal, presented with a distinctive, often witty, prose style. Her Nora Breen Investigates series also places her within the realm of mystery and detective fiction.
Gillian Flynn
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Donna White Glaser
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Rosie Genova
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Tara Laskowski
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We verified the reading order for Jess Kidd's books by cross-referencing official publication dates, ISBN databases, and publisher catalogs.
Last verified: April 2026
Shelf & Shadows. (…). “Jess Kidd Books in Order.” Retrieved …, from https://www.shelfandshadows.com/authors/jess-kidd