SeriesStack

The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency Books in Order

by Alexander McCall SmithLiterature & Fiction

26 books and 1 novella from The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (1997) to The Big Cats Dance Party (2026). Rated 4.5 across 36,780 listener reviews.

Reading order

  1. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

    Book 1 1997 4.2 (6k)

    This remarkably fresh and charming best seller took the world by storm upon its publication. It has since earned two Booker Judges' Special Recommendations and was voted one of the "International Books of the Year and the Millennium" by…

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  2. Tears of the Giraffe

    Book 2 2003 4.6 (2.7k)

    In this thoroughly entertaining book, the best-selling, critically acclaimed author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency continues the story of Mma "Precious" Ramotswe, the clever proprietor of the only detective agency in all of…

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  3. Morality For Beautiful Girls

    Book 3 2001 4.6 (1.8k)

    The quick-witted, good-natured detective Mma "Precious" Ramotswe shines in this irresistible best seller. It continues the charming series that began with The No.

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  4. The Kalahari Typing School for Men

    Book 4 2002 4.6 (1.6k)

    International best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith delivers another delightful tale from his critically acclaimed No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.

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  5. The Full Cupboard of Life

    Book 5 2003 4.5 (1.4k)

    New York Times best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith's critically acclaimed No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series continues in this engaging book that won the first ever Saga Award for Wit, given to the wittiest British book of the…

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  6. In the Company of Cheerful Ladies

    Book 6 2005 4.0 (2.6k)

    Readers everywhere have become entranced by the New York Times best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, from acclaimed author and award-winning wit Alexander McCall Smith.

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  7. Blue Shoes and Happiness

    Book 7 2006 4.5 (1.4k)

    From internationally best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith comes the seventh novel in the phenomenally popular and endlessly charming series that began with The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

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  8. The Good Husband of Zebra Drive

    Book 8 2007 4.6 (1.3k)

    In the life of Precious Ramotswe, a woman duly proud of her fine traditional build, there is rarely a dull moment, and in the latest installment in the universally beloved No.

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  9. The Miracle at Speedy Motors

    Book 9 2008 4.6 (1.3k)

    In the latest installment of this infinitely enjoyable and best-selling series, Precious Ramotswe is doing what she does best--helping people with their problems and enjoying the simple pleasures of life.

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  10. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

    Book 10 2009 4.5 (1.5k)

    The 10th entry in the internationally best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series finds Precious Ramotswe investigating a mystery that hits close to home. When she asks her dependable husband, Mr. J.L.B.

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  11. The Double Comfort Safari Club

    Book 11 1960 4.6 (1.4k)

    Listeners will agree that this touching and dramatic new installment in Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved and best-selling series is the finest yet.

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  12. The Cleverness of Ladies

    Novella 12.6 2012 4.1 (11)

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  13. The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection

    Book 13 2012 4.6 (1.6k)

    Alexander McCall Smith’s No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series has become a worldwide phenomenon thanks to the appeal of endearing protagonist Precious Ramotswe and the author’s charmingly quirky prose.

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  14. The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon

    Book 14 2013 4.6 (1.5k)

    Precious Ramotswe has taken on two puzzling cases. First, she is approached by the lawyer Mma Sheba, who is the executor of a deceased farmer’s estate.

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  15. The Handsome Man's Deluxe Café

    Book 15 2014 4.6 (1.2k)

    In this delightful 15th installment, Mma Ramotswe has her hands full both at home and in the office. To add to her current challenges, her devoted partner, Grace Makutsi, has decided to branch out on her own and open The Handsome Man's…

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  16. The Woman Who Walked In Sunshine

    Book 16 2015 4.6 (1.4k)

    In this latest installment of the beloved and best-selling series, Mma Ramotswe must contend with her greatest challenge yet - a vacation! Business is slow at the No.

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  17. Precious and Grace

    Book 17 2016 4.6 (1.3k)

    The delightful 17th installment of the ever-popular, perennially best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. Precious Ramotswe, Botswana's premier lady detective, is a little short on help.

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  18. The House of Unexpected Sisters

    Book 18 2017 4.6 (1.4k)

    Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are approached by their part-time colleague, Mr. Polopetsi, with a troubling story: A woman, accused of being rude to a valued customer, has been wrongly dismissed from her job at an office furniture store.

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  19. The Colors of All the Cattle

    Book 19 2018 4.6 (1.2k)

    Precious Ramotswe dips her toe into the world of politics in the newest addition to the beloved and best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.

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  20. To the Land of Long Lost Friends

    Book 20 2019 4.5 (941)

    In the latest book in the widely beloved No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, Precious Ramotswe takes on a case for a childhood acquaintance and finds that family relationships are always a tricky proposition - even for Botswana's…

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  21. How to Raise an Elephant

    Book 21 2020 3.7 (807)

    The next book in the perennially adored No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series sees Precious Ramotswe calling upon all her maternal instincts when she's faced with a two-ton case. They say it takes a village to raise a child, but can Mma.

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  22. The Joy and Light Bus Company

    Book 22 2021 4.7 (846)

    In this latest installment in the beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe is tempted to put the brakes on a business venture before it even gets rolling.

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  23. A Song of Comfortable Chairs

    Book 23 2022 4.8 (719)

    In this latest installment in the beloved No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, Grace Makutsi encounters a pair of quandaries that will require all of her and Mma Ramotswe's cleverness and generosity to resolve Grace Makutsi's husband,…

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  24. From a Far and Lovely Country

    Book 24 2023 4.7 (311)

    The latest installment in Alexander McCall Smith's delightfully diverting No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, in which all of Mma Ramotswe's tact, affability, and good sense will be required to disentangle a delicate dispute "An escape…

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  25. The Great Hippopotamus Hotel

    Book 25 2024 4.7 (278)

    In this latest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi take on an intriguing new case and uncover surprising truths.

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  26. In the Time of Five Pumpkins

    Book 26 2025 4.8 (221)

    In this newest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe takes on a number of perplexing situations, and while she tries to maintain her usual impartiality, it’s difficult when one…

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  27. The Big Cats Dance Party

    Book 27 2026 4.8 (38)

    In this latest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Series, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi volunteer for an important case up north involving an elephant sanctuary, leaving assistant detective…

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About this reading order

Books are listed in the series' own numbering, which for The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency is also the best order to read them in. Novellas and short stories sit between the novels they follow, numbered the way the publisher numbers them (12.6 comes after book 12). They are optional — you can skip them without missing the main story. Years are first publication where we could confirm it, and otherwise the first audiobook release.

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