Detective drama Grace is returning to ITV this week for a brand-new season, filled with shocking murders and intrigue on the shores of Brighton.
Once again John Simm will star as Roy Grace, while Richie Campbell and Rakie Ayola also return as Glenn Branson and Alison Vosper respectively.
The new season is once again taking inspiration for the hit book series on which the first episode last year was based, but which series of books is that and how many novels are there for ITV to adapt?
Read on for everything you need to know about the Grace books.
Which book series is Grace based on?
Grace is based on the best-selling Roy Grace series of novels from author Peter James (who filmed two cameo appearances for the new season).
Like the ITV show, the series focuses on Roy and his colleagues as they investigate a series of murders in and around Brighton, all while Roy struggles to solve the mystery of his own wife’s disappearance.
How many books are there in the Roy Grace series?
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There are currently 17 novels in the Roy Grace series, with another one the way later this year. There is also one novella in the series which was released last year, titled Wish You Were Dead. All the titles for both the novels and the novella feature the word dead and are a maximum of four words long.
Here’s a full list of the books featured in the series:
- Dead Simple (2005)
- Looking Good Dead (2006)
- Not Dead Enough (2007)
- Dead Man’s Footsteps (2008)
- Dead Tomorrow (2009)
- Dead Like You (2010)
- Dead Man’s Grip (2011)
- Not Dead Yet (2012)
- Dead Man’s Time (2013)
- Want You Dead (2014)
- You Are Dead (2015)
- Love You Dead (2016)
- Need You Dead (2017)
- Dead If You Don’t (2018)
- Dead at First Sight (2019)
- Find Them Dead (2020)
- Left You Dead (2021)
- Wish You Were Dead (Novella, 2021)
- Picture You Dead (Coming in September 2022)
Which books are being adapted in season 2 of the ITV series?
After last year’s first episode adapted the first book in the series, Dead Simple, this year’s season is made up of four feature-length episodes, adapting the next four novels – Looking Good Dead, Not Dead Enough, Dead Man’s Footsteps and Dead Tomorrow.
Looking Good Dead was originally filmed alongside Dead Simple and has already aired in the US, but its UK release was pushed back and it now acts as the first episode in season 2.
Will the ITV series adapt more of the books?
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Nothing’s been confirmed yet, but it certainly sounds as though the cast would be up for it if the opportunity arose.
Speaking at a press event ahead of Dead Simple airing last year, John Simm said: “We all hope, all of us, that we get to do more and we get to do all these 17 books, because there’s plenty source material and it’s all really, really high quality so, fingers crossed.”
With Peter James still currently releasing a new book in the series each year, Simm and the rest of the cast might have a long way to go until they catch up.
Grace season 2 will premiere on ITV and ITV Hub on Sunday 24th April at 8pm. If you’re looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide.
If you want to start reading Peter James’ Roy Grace series, you can purchase the first three novels on Amazon.
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