The Recommended Reading Order for the Highland Gazette Series
Written by Scottish author A.D. Scott (the pen name of Ann Deborah Nolan), this highly atmospheric series is set in the rugged, misty landscape of the 1950s Scottish Highlands. Rather than focusing solely on police procedurals, the books center on the staff of a local newspaper, the Highland Gazette, and particularly the personal and professional journey of Joanne Ross. To fully appreciate the character growth, shifting domestic dynamics, and evolving relationships, the series should be read in its original publication order.
Because the chronological timeline of the novels aligns perfectly with their publication dates, there is no need to jump around. Here is the recommended reading path:
- A Small Death in the Great Glen (2010)
- A Double Death on the Black Isle (2011)
- Beneath the Abbey Wall (2012)
- North Sea Requiem (2013)
- The Low Road (2014)
- A Kind of Grief (2015)
Chronological Timeline and Order Caveats
Fortunately for readers, there are no confusing timeline jumps, prequels, or companion novellas to navigate in this series. The narrative arc moves forward linearly from the mid-to-late 1950s. The major caveat for new readers is that these books function as much as a historical slice-of-life drama and character study as they do traditional whodunits. If you read them purely for the puzzles, you might miss the rich social history of post-war Scotland that gives the series its distinct weight.
The Core Novels: A Closer Look
1. A Small Death in the Great Glen (2010)
The series opens in a small, insular Highland town still grappling with the trauma and economic shifts of the post-WWII era. When a young boy, Jamie Fraser, is found dead in a canal basin, the insular community is quick to blame a Polish sailor who recently jumped ship. John McAllister, the newly arrived editor-in-chief of the Highland Gazette and a Glaswegian outsider, pushes his team to look deeper. Here we are introduced to Joanne Ross, a part-time typist trying to survive an abusive marriage to her husband Hector, who finds an unexpected calling in reporting.
2. A Double Death on the Black Isle (2011)
Set in the spring of 1957, the second book sees Joanne Ross taking on more journalistic responsibilities as she strives for independence after leaving her husband. The mystery begins when a local fishing boat is destroyed by a homemade bomb. Soon after, two deaths shake the community on the same day: the skipper of the bombed boat, who married into a local laird's family, and the son of a tenant farmer. Joanne finds her loyalties tested when the laird’s daughter—a close friend—becomes central to the investigation, exposing class divides and the decay of the old feudal order.
3. Beneath the Abbey Wall (2012)
The stakes hit close to home in the third installment when Mrs. Joyce Smart, the formidable and highly efficient office manager of the Highland Gazette, is found murdered on a damp Sunday evening. Don McLeod, the deputy editor, becomes a prime suspect when he is named in her will. The investigation forces reporters Joanne Ross and Rob McLean to delve into the town's history, revealing buried secrets and highlighting the historical marginalization of the Scottish Traveller community, who also play a key role in the mystery.
4. North Sea Requiem (2013)
In the fourth novel, the staff of the newspaper is drawn into a bizarre and threatening case that starts when a severed leg is found in the laundry of a local shinty team. When the nurse who made the discovery begins receiving anonymous threats, Joanne Ross steps in. Simultaneously, Joanne is profiling Mae Bell, a glamorous American visitor seeking information about her pilot husband who crashed in the area during the war. The tension escalates as more local women receive threatening letters, eventually leading to a kidnapping.
5. The Low Road (2014)
The fifth book focuses heavily on the personal lives of the Gazette staff. Editor John McAllister is dealing with major personal dilemmas, including his engagement to Joanne Ross and the heavy anxieties surrounding their upcoming marriage. Moving between the atmospheric Highlands and the grim, post-war streets of Glasgow, the plot follows a mysterious stranger whose arrival is linked to a murder connected to old Highland history, prompting Joanne to take substantial risks for the truth.
6. A Kind of Grief (2015)
In the final installment of the series, Joanne Ross is now married and pursuing a career as a writer. Seeking inspiration for a book, she becomes fascinated by Alice Ramsay, a local herbalist accused of witchcraft by superstitious locals. When Alice is found dead in her barn in what the police quickly rule a suicide, Joanne is convinced of foul play. Her investigation leads her into conflict with shadowy government elements, a ruthless art critic, and the lingering scars of the war on the local men who returned.
Practical Reader Advice
Where to Start: You should absolutely start with the first book, A Small Death in the Great Glen. Because the core cast of characters changes, grows, and suffers major life events across the books, starting later in the series will spoil key personal developments, particularly regarding Joanne's marital struggles and her changing relationships at the newspaper.
Can they be read as standalones? While the individual murder mysteries in each book are resolved by the end, the overarching character growth is highly serialized. Read them in order to get the full impact of Joanne's transformation from a trapped housewife to an independent writer.
What to know before starting: The tone of these books is often described as a cozy mystery, but they touch on dark, realistic historical themes. Readers should expect frank depictions of 1950s domestic violence, classism, prejudice against minority groups (especially the Traveller community), and post-war trauma. The pacing is deliberate and slow-burning, prioritizing atmosphere and character relationships over high-speed action.