Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Company | 2008 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 2 | The Folding Knife | 2010 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 3 | The Hammer | 2011 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 4 | Sharps | 2012 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 5 | Savages | 2015 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 6 | The Big Score | 2021 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 7 | The Long Game | 2022 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
| 8 | Pulling the Wings Off Angels | 2022 | K.J. Parker | Buy |
K.J. Parker’s standalone novels are where he experiments most freely. Without the commitment of a trilogy, each book gets to set up its own world, tell its story, and leave. The Company follows a group of war veterans who start a colony, The Folding Knife tracks a politician’s career through years of shrewd dealing, and Sharps uses competitive fencing as the backdrop for a story about international diplomacy on the edge of war.
Later standalones like The Hammer, Savages, and Pulling the Wings Off Angels continue in the same vein, each built around a specific trade or skill set that Parker researches in meticulous detail. The Big Score and The Long Game are more recent entries that show Parker still finding new angles on his core interests. These books can be read in any order. Each one is its own self-contained world with its own cast, connected only by Parker’s consistent themes and voice.