However, the Evie Woods books may be read in publication order, by following this sequence:⁠[10-15]

Order Cover Title First published Notes
1 Book cover of The Heirloom. The Heirloom 2015⁠[10] A Galway bookseller’s inherited medal connects her to a sixteenth-century love story.
2 Book cover of Betwixt. Betwixt 2015⁠[11] A widow encounters a mysterious soldier at an Irish cottage.
3 Book cover of The Lost Bookshop. The Lost Bookshop 2023⁠[12] A housekeeper and a rare-book scholar search for a vanished bookshop.
4 Book cover of The Story Collector. The Story Collector 2024⁠[13] A woman discovers a diary linked to folklore, loss, and an unfinished love story.
5 Book cover of The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris 2025⁠[14] A woman takes a job at a bakery and discovers a ghostly wartime history.
6 Book cover of The Violin Maker’s Secret. The Violin Maker’s Secret 2026⁠[15] An antique violin passes into the hands of unlikely guardians while its history comes to light.
Publication reading order of the Evie Woods books.
Publication reading order of the Evie Woods books.

Works in sequence

For most readers, The Heirloom is the best starting point because it is the first book in the publication sequence and clearly presents the kind of structure that recurs throughout the collection: a contemporary protagonist, a historical mystery, an emotionally charged object, and a supernatural link between past and present.⁠[4]

Readers drawn to literary mysteries may prefer to begin with The Lost Bookshop,⁠[6] which places books, manuscripts, and a vanished shop at the center of the story. Readers looking for a shorter, more focused ghost story may start with Betwixt.⁠[5]

Those interested in folklore may choose The Story Collector,⁠[7] while readers who prefer a French setting and a wartime secret may begin with The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris.⁠[8] For readers most interested in music, provenance, and an object passing through history, The Violin Maker’s Secret is the best entry point.⁠[9]

1. The Heirloom

Self-contained
Book cover of The Heirloom.
Book cover of The Heirloom.

The Heirloom, originally published in 2015⁠[2]⁠[10] and to be republished on March 25, 2027,⁠[16] begins with Amanda Morrison in Galway, where an inherited Cross of Santiago draws her into questions about her biological family and a possible past life. This novel pairs her present-day search for identity with Xavier de la Cruz’s interest in the history of the Spanish Armada.⁠[4]

It establishes a pattern found elsewhere in Woods’s work: contemporary characters confronting grief, inheritance, and historical memory through a supernatural connection.⁠[4]

2. Betwixt

Self-contained
Book cover of Betwixt.
Book cover of Betwixt.

Betwixt (2015)⁠[17] is a self-contained ghost story centered on Catherine Ryan, a widow returning to an Irish cottage associated with memories of her late husband. Her encounter with Sergeant Andrew Montague links personal mourning with an older, unresolved story.⁠[5]

This book stands apart from the other novels in plot and cast, but it fits the bibliography through its treatment of grief, haunting, and emotional closure.⁠[5]

3. The Lost Bookshop

Self-contained
Book cover of The Lost Bookshop.
Book cover of The Lost Bookshop.

The Lost Bookshop (2023)⁠[12]⁠[18-20] expands the author’s interest in hidden histories through a Dublin setting, a vanished bookshop, and intertwined present and past narratives. Martha’s escape from an abusive marriage and Henry’s rare-book investigation connect with Opaline’s earlier life among books, manuscripts, and displacement.⁠[6]

It is one of the clearest examples of Woods’s dual-time structure, combining literary mystery, family discovery, and a magical place.⁠[6]

4. The Story Collector

Self-contained
Book cover of The Story Collector.
Book cover of The Story Collector.

The Story Collector (2024)⁠[13]⁠[21-23] follows Sarah Harper from New York to rural Ireland after the collapse of her marriage. Her discovery of Anna Butler’s diary draws her into an early twentieth-century story shaped by folklore, storytelling, and local belief.⁠[7]

This novel may be read on its own, while also continuing the bibliography’s broader interest in women using inherited or discovered narratives to understand loss and begin again.⁠[7]

5. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris

Self-contained
Book cover of The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris.
Book cover of The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris.

The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris (2025),⁠[14]⁠[24-26] moves the setting to Compiègne, where Edie Lane accepts a job at a bakery she mistakenly believes is in Paris. A recipe notebook, a ghostly baker, and wartime secrets connect the bakery’s present crisis to its past.⁠[8]

This book offers another standalone variation on Woods’s recurring pattern of a lost young woman finding purpose through place, memory, and an uncovered history.⁠[8]

6. The Violin Maker’s Secret

Self-contained
Book cover of The Violin Maker’s Secret.
Book cover of The Violin Maker’s Secret.

The Violin Maker’s Secret (2026)⁠[15]⁠[27-29] centers on an antique violin found through Heathrow Airport’s Lost and Found department. Devlin, Walter, and Gabrielle become involved in tracing the instrument’s provenance, while the violin’s own history reaches back through several centuries.⁠[9]

This novel broadens the bibliography’s use of magical objects by turning the artifact itself into a vessel for memory, trauma, music, and release.⁠[9]

References

  1. Books. Evie Woods.
  2. Books. Evie Gaughan.
  3. The Most Amazing Cover Reveal!!! Evie Gaughan.
  4. The Heirloom. Evie Gaughan. ISBN: 9781537122687.
  5. Betwixt. Evie Gaughan. ASIN: B014HLE4CM.
  6. The Lost Bookshop. One More Chapter. ISBN: 9780008609214.
  7. The Story Collector. One More Chapter. ISBN: 9780008707460.
  8. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris. One More Chapter. ISBN: 9780008706708.
  9. The Violin Maker’s Secret. HarperCollins. ISBN: 9780008777678.
  10. The Heirloom. Little Bird Press. ISBN: 9781537122687.
  11. Betwixt. Evie Gaughan. Copyright page.
  12. The Lost Bookshop. HarperCollins Publishers.
  13. The Story Collector. HarperCollins Publishers.
  14. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris. HarperCollins Publishers.
  15. The Violin Maker’s Secret. HarperCollins Publishers.
  16. The Heirloom. HarperCollins Publishers.
  17. Betwixt. Evie Gaughan. Copyright page. ASIN: B014HLE4CM.
  18. The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods. HarperCollins Publishers UK.
  19. The Lost Bookshop – Evie Woods – eBook. HarperCollins Publishers Canada.
  20. The Lost Bookshop. HarperCollins Publishers Australia.
  21. The Story Collector by Evie Woods. HarperCollins Publishers UK.
  22. The Story Collector – Evie Woods – eBook. HarperCollins Publishers Canada.
  23. The Story Collector. HarperCollins Publishers Australia.
  24. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris by Evie Woods. HarperCollins Publishers UK.
  25. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris – Evie Woods – eBook. HarperCollins Publishers Canada.
  26. The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris. HarperCollins Publishers Australia.
  27. The Violin Maker’s Secret by Evie Woods. HarperCollins Publishers UK.
  28. The Violin Maker’s Secret. HarperCollins Publishers Canada.
  29. The Violin Maker’s Secret. HarperCollins Publishers Australia.