Every time a season of Slow Horses wraps up, there’s a stretch where you want more Jackson Lamb, and there’s nothing left to watch. The books are the obvious fix, and there are plenty of them: nine novels and five novellas, with more on the way.
Getting them in the right order takes a little work. The novellas are mixed in between the novels, one of them has two different titles, and the whole series is sold under Slough House rather than Slow Horses.
Below are the Slow Horses books in order, with a quick note on each one, where to jump in if you’ve seen the show, and what’s coming next.
TL;DR: Mick Herron’s Slough House series has nine novels, starting with Slow Horses (2010), plus five shorter novellas. Read them in publication order. The show has covered the first seven novels through season 6, and season 7 moves on to Bad Actors.
The novellas are listed where they fall in publication order. They’re shorter, and skipping them won’t leave you lost, but a couple of characters show up there first.
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The Slough House Series (Reading Order)
1. Slow Horses (2010)
Where it all starts. River Cartwright lands at Slough House after a training exercise goes wrong. When a young man is kidnapped and threatened with a beheading online, the slow horses see a chance to matter.
2. Dead Lions (2013)
An old Cold War spy dies on a bus, and Lamb is convinced it was murder. Meanwhile, two of his agents get loaned out to babysit a visiting Russian. This one won the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger.
Novella: The List (2015)
A retired agent dies, and a second bank account raises the question of whether he was working for the other side. It’s also the first appearance of J.K. Coe.
3. Real Tigers (2016)
Catherine Standish is kidnapped by someone from her past, and River is ordered to steal a file from Regent’s Park to get her back.
4. Spook Street (2017)
A bombing at a London shopping centre, and River’s grandfather, a retired spymaster, starts losing his memory.
5. London Rules (2018)
Someone keeps trying to kill Roddy Ho, while a string of terror attacks has the country on edge.
Novella: The Drop (2018)
Sold in some editions as The Marylebone Drop. Cold War veteran Solomon Dortmund spots a handoff in a Marylebone café and reports it to MI5 handler John Bachelor.
6. Joe Country (2019)
Winter in the Welsh hills, a missing teenager connected to a former colleague, and Lech Wicinski chasing whoever wrecked his career.
Novella: The Catch (2020)
John Bachelor, broke and living in a dead man’s flat, gets blackmailed into a dangerous errand.
Novella: The Last Dead Letter (2020)
A short Slough House story, now included in the collected novellas.
7. Slough House (2021)
Slough House’s records vanish from MI5’s systems, and someone appears to be targeting the slow horses.
8. Bad Actors (2022)
A government forecaster goes missing, a political fixer uses it to squeeze MI5, and Diana Taverner ends up needing Lamb’s help.
Novella: Standing by the Wall (2022)
A Christmas story. Lamb gives Roddy Ho an odd photo-editing job that digs up old memories. This one was never sold on its own. It first came out as part of the collected novellas, so buying this book gets you the other four novellas as well.
9. Clown Town (2025)
A missing book leads Slough House back to a secret from the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Where to Start If You Watched the Show
Start with Slow Horses anyway. The show has followed the books in order, one or two per season, so the early novels will feel familiar, but you’ll also get the novellas and everything that didn’t fit on screen.
If you’d rather go straight to new material, Bad Actors is the first novel the show hasn’t adapted yet.
Slow Horses Season 7 and Beyond
Apple is already working on season 7, which adapts Bad Actors. New cast members were announced in October 2026, but there’s no release date yet.
Season 8 has also been ordered and will adapt Clown Town. With a tenth novel tentatively listed for 2027, the show still has books to work with.
Getting the Books
Fourteen books sounds like a lot to track down, but you don’t need to buy fourteen. Herron’s publisher gathered all five novellas into one paperback called Standing by the Wall: The Collected Slough House Novellas. The newest novella, also called Standing by the Wall, was published for the first time in that book, which is why the collection carries its name.
That means the whole series comes down to ten books: the nine novels, plus Standing by the Wall. It’s a lot easier on the shelf, and on the wallet.
If you’re not ready to commit to all ten, check your local library first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are the Slow Horses books and the Slough House books the same thing?
Yes. Slough House is the official series name. Slow Horses is the first book and the name of the TV show.
Do I have to read the Slough House books in order?
It helps. The novels follow the same group over time, and later books build on what happened earlier.
How many Slough House books are there?
Nine novels and five novellas, with Clown Town (2025) the most recent novel.
Are The Drop and The Marylebone Drop different books?
No. They’re the same novella under two titles.
Which books is Slow Horses season 6 based on?
Joe Country and Slough House, the sixth and seventh novels.
Is there a new Slough House book coming?
A tenth novel is tentatively expected in 2027. No title has been announced.
If you’re after another series to work through, my James Patterson reading order and authors like Patterson are good next stops. The Jack Reacher reading order covers a very different kind of thriller.
Did you find the books through the show, or were you reading Herron before Apple got to him? Tell me in the comments.
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