Department Q reading order

A plan for the whole series

9 volumes, 4,479 pages, about 80 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 4 months.

• The series is still running; the last volume came out in 2010. You will wait for the next one anyway, so no need to rush.

Stages

5 stages, with 4 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around March 3, 2027, 16 days later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 116 h21 daysby November 19, 2026

   • 1. The Keeper of Lost Causes2007 · 417 pages · 8 h
   • 2. The Absent One2008 · 434 pages · 8 h
2. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by November 23, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 29 h13 daysby December 5, 2026

   • 3. A Conspiracy of Faith · 512 pages · 9 h
4. Short breakThe Emperor's Soul · Brandon Sanderson · 96 pp. · score 8.82 h, by December 9, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 319 habout 4 weeksby January 2, 2027

   • 4. The Purity of Vengeance2010 · 482 pages · 9 h
   • 5. The Marco Effect · 535 pages · 10 h
6. Short breakOn Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century · Timothy Snyder · 128 pp. · score 8.42 h, by January 7, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 419 habout 4 weeksby February 1, 2027

   • 6. The Hanging Girl · 514 pages · 9 h
   • 7. The Scarred Woman · 544 pages · 10 h
8. Short breakAnimal Farm · George Orwell · 128 pp. · score 8.32 h, by February 6, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
9. 5
   Stage 519 habout 4 weeksby March 3, 2027

   • 8. Victim 2117 · 592 pages · 11 h
   • 9. The Shadow Murders · 449 pages · 8 h
10. The end of the series

    March 3, 2027

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: even. Volume scores differ by at most 0.1 points. You get the same level from the first page to the last.

Best volume: The Purity of Vengeance (7.8, 55 ratings). Weakest: The Absent One (7.7). The series is not finished; the last volume came out in 2010. The last volume (7.8) scores close to the series average or above it.