Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Girl on the Beach | 2010 | Charles Todd | N/A |
| 2 | A Duty to the Dead | 2009 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 3 | An Impartial Witness | 2010 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 4 | A Bitter Truth | 2011 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 5 | The Walnut Tree: A Holiday Tale | 2012 | Charles Todd | N/A |
| 6 | An Unmarked Grave | 2012 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 7 | A Question of Honor | 2013 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 8 | An Unwilling Accomplice | 2014 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 9 | The Maharani’s Pearls | 2014 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 10 | A Pattern of Lies | 2015 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 11 | The Shattered Tree | 2016 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 12 | A Casualty of War | 2017 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 13 | A Forgotten Place | 2018 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 14 | A Cruel Deception | 2019 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 15 | A Hanging at Dawn | 2020 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 16 | An Irish Hostage | 2021 | Charles Todd | Buy |
| 17 | The Cliff’s Edge | 2023 | Charles Todd | Buy |
The Bess Crawford series follows a British battlefield nurse during World War I who repeatedly finds herself investigating crimes alongside her medical duties. Beginning with A Duty to the Dead (2009), the series has expanded to 17 books set against the backdrop of the Great War and its aftermath.
Charles Todd places Bess in situations where her nursing work intersects with espionage, murder, and military secrets. Her father’s career in the military gives her access to information and contacts that help her investigations. The series offers a different perspective on the same historical period as the Ian Rutledge books, seen through the eyes of a woman working in the thick of the conflict.