Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Those We Left Behind | 2015 | Stuart Neville | Buy |
| 2 | So Say the Fallen | 2016 | Stuart Neville | Buy |
Stuart Neville’s DCI Serena Flanagan series consists of two crime novels set in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The first book, Those We Left Behind (2015), introduces Detective Chief Inspector Serena Flanagan as she deals with the release of a convicted killer and the consequences that follow. So Say the Fallen (2016) continues with Flanagan investigating a suspicious death that police initially ruled a suicide.
Neville is well known for his Northern Irish crime fiction, and the Flanagan books carry the same sense of place and tension found in his other work. The series is set against the backdrop of post-Troubles Belfast, where old grudges and secrets still shape everyday life. Flanagan is a strong, practical protagonist who balances the demands of her career with her personal life, and both novels stand well on their own while sharing the same lead character.