Below is the complete list of Faith Martin’s Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries books in order. For this series, the chronological reading order is the same as the order of publication.
Publication Order of Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries Books
- The Proof Is In The Pudding (2022)
The Proof Is In The Pudding is a 2022 release and appears as book #8 in the Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries series.
About Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries
Jenny Starling is a travelling cook with a passion for traditional English food and an extraordinary talent for finding herself at the centre of murder investigations. Intelligent, independent, and remarkably observant, she moves between country estates, historic buildings, hotels, and special events, taking temporary cooking assignments that rarely remain peaceful. Faith Martin’s Jenny Starling / Travelling Cook Mysteries combine classic British detective fiction with culinary settings, eccentric characters, and carefully constructed puzzles.
Unlike many amateur sleuths who investigate crimes within a single village, Jenny has no permanent professional base. She travels across England in her distinctive red van, accepting catering assignments and temporary positions that allow her to exercise her considerable culinary skills. Her preference for fresh ingredients and properly prepared meals reflects her determination to preserve traditional standards of cooking.
Jenny is in her late twenties, confident in her abilities, and unwilling to be intimidated by wealthy employers or demanding guests. Her father is a celebrated chef, but she has deliberately chosen a more independent career rather than following his established professional path.
The series begins with The Birthday Mystery (2010), in which Jenny is hired to cater a lavish twenty-first birthday celebration for wealthy twins Alicia and Justin. Her assignment becomes complicated when a young woman is discovered drowned in the swimming pool.
Despite the tragedy, the celebration continues, only for another guest to die after apparently consuming poisoned food. With suspicion threatening her professional reputation, Jenny begins examining the guests’ relationships and possible motives.
The novel establishes her investigative approach. Rather than depending upon forensic expertise or official authority, Jenny observes people’s behaviour, notices inconsistencies, and recognises the importance of details others dismiss.
In The Winter Mystery (2011), Jenny accepts a cooking assignment during the Christmas season. The festive atmosphere becomes distinctly less cheerful when a member of the household is found dead and suspicion falls upon her. Clearing her name requires her to examine tensions concealed beneath the family’s outward respectability.
The Riverboat Mystery (2012) moves the action aboard a luxury paddle steamer. When a passenger dies under suspicious circumstances, Jenny finds herself investigating within a confined setting where the possible suspects are closely connected through their shared journey.
The unusual location allows Martin to develop a traditional closed-circle mystery, with limited opportunities for escape and numerous misleading clues.
In The Castle Mystery (2012), Jenny enjoys an assignment preparing meals for Lord and Lady Avonsleigh at their impressive castle. Her enthusiasm for the historic surroundings is interrupted when a member of the staff is murdered.
The investigation explores the complicated hierarchy of a country household, where employers and servants possess different responsibilities but may share equally dangerous secrets.
The Oxford Mystery (2014) brings Jenny into an academic setting when she accepts a summer cooking position at an Oxford college. The murder of Maurice Rains, the womanising president of a taxidermy society, exposes strained relationships and provides several plausible suspects.
The familiar Oxford surroundings connect the novel with the geographical settings frequently used in Martin’s other mysteries, although Jenny remains a distinctly independent investigator.
In The Teatime Mystery (2016), Jenny is catering a cricket match when talented player Tristan Jones is murdered. His reputation for pursuing married women complicates the investigation, creating a network of jealous partners and concealed romantic relationships.
The Country Inn Mystery (2019) places Jenny in a picturesque rural inn where a prominent actress is found dead. What initially appears to be a welcoming establishment gradually reveals a complicated collection of secrets, rivalries, and hidden attachments.
The series also includes the shorter story The Proof Is in the Pudding (2022), offering an additional Jenny Starling mystery beyond the seven principal novels.
The books have a complicated publication history. Several originally appeared under Martin’s Joyce Cato pseudonym with different titles. The Birthday Mystery, for example, was previously published as Birthdays Can Be Murder, while The Winter Mystery appeared as A Fatal Fall of Snow. These alternative titles represent the same stories rather than separate instalments.
Throughout the series, Jenny’s changing workplaces provide opportunities to examine different aspects of English society. Wealthy families, academic communities, country-house servants, and holidaymakers all become subjects of her perceptive observations.
The mysteries are distinguished by their emphasis on motives, relationships, and logical deduction rather than graphic violence. Jenny’s professional independence also allows her to challenge assumptions without becoming permanently entangled in the communities she investigates.
Through her confident travelling cook, Martin offers an affectionate interpretation of Golden Age detective fiction, combining intriguing murders with traditional English settings and a protagonist whose understanding of human nature proves just as valuable as her considerable talent in the kitchen.