Mimi Matthews Books in Order: All 22 Titles
Mimi Matthews is an American author of Victorian-era historical romance and of nineteenth-century non-fiction, and a practising attorney in California. She published her first two books in 2017 - the novel The Lost Letter and the history The Pug Who Bit Napoleon - and has written steadily since, both self-publishing through Perfectly Proper Press and publishing with Berkley. She is a USA Today bestseller with starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Booklist, Kirkus and BookPage. The Work of Art won the 2020 HOLT Medallion, The Siren of Sussex made the 2023 RUSA Reading List, and Rules for Ruin was named a best book of 2025 by NPR, Kirkus, Library Journal, BookPage and Marie Claire. Her non-fiction work on Victorian fashion, animals, law and etiquette has appeared in the Victorian Web and the Journal of Victorian Culture.
Do you have to read Mimi Matthews in order?
Each Mimi Matthews novel is a complete romance and can be read alone, so you can pick up any series at book one without having read anything else. Within a series, order does matter more than usual for two of them: Somerset Stories is a two-generation family saga in which later couples are the children of earlier ones, and Daughters of Somerset continues that same world, so read Somerset Stories first if you care about family connections. Belles of London and Parish Orphans of Devon are best read in sequence for the recurring friendship groups, but nothing in them is spoiled by starting late. John Eyre is unconnected to everything else and is gothic fiction rather than romance.
Genres and eras: Historical romance, overwhelmingly Victorian-set (roughly the 1840s to the 1870s) - this is what distinguishes her from the Regency-dominated end of the genre. Her own site labels the Crinoline Academy and Victorian Romantics series 'Victorian romance', and the Belles of London and Parish Orphans of Devon series are mid-Victorian. The earliest Somerset Stories are Regency-set and the series then moves forward in time. John Eyre (2021) is gothic historical fiction rather than romance - a Jane Eyre retelling with supernatural elements. She also writes nineteenth-century non-fiction history, which is not romance at all.
Parish Orphans of Devon in order (2018-2020)
Four men raised together in a Victorian Devon orphanage. Her first series, and the one most often recommended as a starting point.
More on the Parish Orphans of Devon series →
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Matrimonial Advertisement | 2018 |
| 2 | A Modest Independence | 2019 |
| 3 | A Convenient Fiction | 2019 |
| 4 | The Winter Companion | 2020 |
Somerset Stories in order (2019-2025)
A loosely linked family saga that begins in the Regency and moves into the Victorian era across two generations. Each book has a new couple, but later entries follow the children of earlier ones, so order helps.
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Work of Art | 2019 |
| 2 | Gentleman Jim | 2020 |
| 3 | Return to Satterthwaite Court | 2023 |
| 4 | Appointment in Bath | 2023 |
| 5 | A Lady of Conscience | 2024 |
| 6 | The Governess and the Rogue | 2025 |
Victorian Romantics in order (2020-)
Announced by the author as a three-novella series, each title taken from a line of Romantic-era poetry. Only the first novella has been published as of September 2026.
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fair as a Star novella | 2020 |
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Belles of London in order (2022-2024)
Four young women who ride together in Rotten Row in 1860s London. Her first series for Berkley and the books that took her mainstream. Complete at four books.
More on the Belles of London series →
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Siren of Sussex | 2022 |
| 2 | The Belle of Belgrave Square | 2022 |
| 3 | The Lily of Ludgate Hill | 2024 |
| 4 | The Muse of Maiden Lane | 2024 |
The Crinoline Academy in order (2025-)
Her current Berkley series, about a secret Victorian finishing school. Rules for Ruin was named a best book of 2025 by several outlets.
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rules for Ruin | 2025 |
| 2 | The Marriage Method | 2025 |
Daughters of Somerset in order (2026-)
A new series set in the same world as Somerset Stories. One book published as of September 2026.
| Book | Title | First published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miss Beresford and the Beast | 2026 |
Mimi Matthews: books outside the series
These sit outside the numbered series and can be read in any order.
| Title | First published | |
|---|---|---|
| — | The Lost Letter | 2017 |
| — | The Viscount and the Vicar's Daughter | 2018 |
| — | A Holiday By Gaslight novella | 2018 |
| — | John Eyre | 2021 |
Where to start with Mimi Matthews
The Matrimonial Advertisement
Opens Parish Orphans of Devon, her first series and the most common recommendation for new readers.
The Siren of Sussex
The first Belles of London book and her mainstream breakout, with the widest reviewer support.
Rules for Ruin
Starts her current Crinoline Academy series and was named a best book of 2025 by several outlets, so it is the best sample of her present-day writing.
Fair as a Star
A short Victorian novella - the quickest way to test whether her quieter, gentler tone suits you.
Frequently asked questions
Do Mimi Matthews's books need to be read in order?
No. Every novel is a complete romance with its own couple. Reading a series in order gives you the recurring friendships, and Somerset Stories in particular is a family saga where later books follow the children of earlier couples.
What order should I read the Belles of London series?
The Siren of Sussex (2022), The Belle of Belgrave Square (2022), The Lily of Ludgate Hill (2024) and The Muse of Maiden Lane (2024). The series is complete at four books, one for each of the four friends.
How many books has Mimi Matthews written?
As of September 2026 she has published 22 works of fiction - 19 novels and 3 novellas - plus two non-fiction histories of the nineteenth century, for 24 books in total.
Are Mimi Matthews's books Regency or Victorian?
Almost all Victorian. Her Parish Orphans of Devon, Belles of London and Crinoline Academy series are set in mid-Victorian England, and she also writes non-fiction about the period. The earliest Somerset Stories begin in the Regency before the series moves forward in time.
What is Mimi Matthews's newest book?
Miss Beresford and the Beast, published in 2026, which opens her Daughters of Somerset series. It is set in the same world as her Somerset Stories books.
Is Somerset Stories connected to Daughters of Somerset?
Yes. Daughters of Somerset is a new series set in the same world as the six Somerset Stories novels. Reading Somerset Stories first gives you the family background, though Miss Beresford and the Beast works as a standalone.
Are Mimi Matthews's books clean or steamy?
Her books are widely shelved as low-heat historical romance, with the emphasis on courtship, restraint and period detail rather than explicit content. Readers coming from steamier authors should expect a gentler register.
How this list was counted
This guide lists 22 titles — 18 across 6 series and 4 outside them. 22 works of fiction published on or before 7 September 2026: 19 novels and 3 novellas, across six series plus four standalone titles. Excludes her two non-fiction history books (The Pug Who Bit Napoleon, 2017, and A Victorian Lady's Guide to Fashion and Beauty, 2018), which are listed in the notes; excludes boxed sets and reissues. Adding the two non-fiction titles gives a career total of 24 books.
Points of uncertainty. (1) Return to Satterthwaite Court: aggregators and reviews agree on 11 April 2023 (Perfectly Proper Press) and that year is recorded, but a few listings imply a late-2022 first release; if the page is challenged, this is the year to re-check. (2) Novel-vs-novella typing is confident only where a source states it. A Holiday By Gaslight is explicitly subtitled 'A Victorian Christmas Novella' and Fair as a Star belongs to a series the author herself calls 'a three-novella series'. The Governess and the Rogue is 51,580 words - short, but recorded as a novel. The Lost Letter (2017) is a short book that some reviewers call a novella; its word count could not be verified, so it is typed as a novel. Appointment in Bath's length was not verified either. (3) Era-by-era settings were not verified book by book. The overall Victorian framing is taken from the author's own site, which labels the Crinoline Academy and Victorian Romantics series 'Victorian romance', and from her non-fiction specialism; the statement that the earliest Somerset Stories are Regency-set is the one part of genre_split that rests on secondary description rather than a primary source. (4) The Victorian Romantics series was announced as three novellas but only Fair as a Star has appeared in six years; the two unpublished titles are deliberately omitted rather than guessed at. (5) No third Crinoline Academy book had been announced as of this check. (6) The two non-fiction books, excluded from total_titles, are The Pug Who Bit Napoleon: Animal Tales of the 18th and 19th Centuries (2017) and A Victorian Lady's Guide to Fashion and Beauty (2018), both from Pen & Sword. (7) John Eyre (2021) is included in the fiction count but is a gothic Jane Eyre retelling with supernatural elements, not a romance, and should be labelled as such on any reading-order page. No titles were omitted for lack of verification.