MobLand, the Paramount+ series from Ronan Bennett and Guy Ritchie, follows the Harrigan crime family in London, with Tom Hardy as fixer Harry Da Souza and Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren at the top of the family. Season 2 started on 18 September 2026 and ends on 20 November, and a third season has already been confirmed. That leaves a long wait.
The good news is that books got there first. Here are ten crime family thrillers with the same fixers, feuds and family dinners where nobody is safe, to get you through until season 3.
| # | Book | Author | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Long Firm | Jake Arnott | 1999 |
| 2 | Layer Cake | J. J. Connolly | 2000 |
| 3 | The Godfather | Mario Puzo | 1969 |
| 4 | The Feud | Kimberley Chambers | 2010 |
| 5 | Dangerous Lady | Martina Cole | 1992 |
| 6 | The Take | Martina Cole | 2005 |
| 7 | Dangerous Games | Gillian Godden | Lambrianu series, book one |
| 8 | Brighton Rock | Graham Greene | 1938 |
| 9 | Faithful | Roberta Kray | 12 November 2026 |
| 10 | The Enforcer | Carol Hellier | September 2026 |
What makes MobLand so addictive?
It is the family. The violence is stylish, but what keeps you watching is who is loyal to whom, and who is lying about it. The fixer in the middle has the worst job in London.
Every book below has at least one of those three things: a family at war, a man or woman caught in the middle, and London as the battlefield.
10 books like MobLand to read next
Each one says why MobLand fans will love it, with no spoilers for the books or the show.
The Long Firm
Jake Arnott · 1999
Harry Starks runs a West End racket in 1960s London, and his story is told by five people who crossed his path. None of them came out the same. Funny, frightening and full of real London.
Side effects: a long argument about whether Harry is charming or terrifying. He is both.
Read it if: you want 1960s London at its most stylish and its most dangerous.
Find The Long Firm on AmazonLayer Cake
J. J. Connolly · 2000
A London cocaine dealer with no name and a sensible plan to retire early gets handed one last job by his boss. Naturally, it goes wrong in every direction at once. Later a film with Daniel Craig.
Side effects: a deep distrust of anyone who says one last job.
Read it if: you love the fixer side of MobLand, the man in the middle keeping everything from exploding.
Find Layer Cake on AmazonThe Godfather
Mario Puzo · 1969
The Corleone family, a wedding, a favour that cannot be refused, and a youngest son who wanted nothing to do with any of it. If MobLand made you wonder where the crime family drama came from, it came from here.
Side effects: speaking very quietly and expecting people to listen.
Read it if: you want the book every crime family story is secretly trying to be.
Find The Godfather on AmazonThe Feud
Kimberley Chambers · 2010
Two families have been at war for over a decade: the Mitchells of Canning Town and the O’Haras, a travelling family from Stratford. Caught in the middle are two children who grow up to love the wrong people. It is the first of a trilogy, so you will not run out any time soon.
Side effects: taking sides in an argument that has nothing to do with you.
Read it if: you love a big, sprawling family saga you can live inside for weeks.
Find The Feud on AmazonDangerous Lady
Martina Cole · 1992
Maura Ryan grows up surrounded by brothers who are always on the make, and ends up running her own corner of gangland London. If Helen Mirren’s matriarch was your favourite part of MobLand, start here.
Side effects: a sudden urge to reread every Martina Cole in order.
Read it if: you want a woman at the head of the family.
Find Dangerous Lady on Amazon
An opening line to keep you up tonight
“Secrets are for when you’ve done something wrong. This is for when somebody else does.”
The Take
Martina Cole · 2005
Not quite a cheat, since some Cole fans somehow skipped it. Freddie Jackson walks out of prison convinced the underworld belongs to him. His wife Jackie wants him home, and his cousin Jimmy has plans of his own. It was later made into a Sky drama starring Tom Hardy.
Side effects: remembering exactly why you started reading her in the first place.
Read it if: you have read the newer Coles but never gone back to this one.
Find The Take on AmazonDangerous Games
Gillian Godden · Lambrianu series, book one
The origin story of gangster Tony Lambrianu, taken from the family vineyard in Italy by his mother in the middle of the night and raised on the hard streets of London.
Side effects: looking at a glass of red wine with deep suspicion.
Read it if: you like watching a gangster being made, one bad decision at a time.
Find Dangerous Games on AmazonBrighton Rock
Graham Greene · 1938
Pinkie Brown is seventeen and runs a razor gang in Brighton. He is also one of the most frightening characters in English fiction. One of the first great British gangland novels, and still sharp.
Side effects: never quite looking at a stick of rock the same way.
Read it if: you want the British gangster story at its rawest.
Find Brighton Rock on AmazonFaithful
Roberta Kray · 12 November 2026
In Kellston, East London, crime boss Terry Street has just been buried. With his heir dead and his son unwilling, the borough is up for grabs. Marianne Day has waited eleven years for this moment, and she wants her child back.
Side effects: a sudden interest in who really runs your high street.
Read it if: you want the newest book from one of the queens of the genre.
Find Faithful on AmazonThe Enforcer
Carol Hellier · September 2026
Patrick O’Leary flees post-war Ireland for England with his wife and daughter, and is drawn into the brutal world of enforcing. As he rises, his family pays the price. It is book one of a new series, with the next one due in January 2027.
Side effects: a sudden urge to rewatch Peaky Blinders.
Read it if: you want a family saga that spans decades and something brand new to get stuck into.
Find The Enforcer on Amazon
A quick detour
Which gangland family would you marry into?
Not sure where to start? Take the 60-second quiz.
Where to start after MobLand season 2
Go for The Long Firm if you loved the London style, Layer Cake if Harry Da Souza was your favourite, and The Godfather if you want the family saga that every crime drama owes something to.
For twenty more, see books like Martina Cole.
Your questions answered
What should I read after watching MobLand?
The Long Firm by Jake Arnott, Layer Cake by J. J. Connolly, The Godfather by Mario Puzo and The Feud by Kimberley Chambers.
When does MobLand season 2 end?
The season 2 finale is on 20 November 2026 on Paramount+, after weekly episodes that began on 18 September.
Is there going to be a MobLand season 3?
Yes. A third season of MobLand has been confirmed.
Is MobLand based on a book?
No. MobLand is an original Paramount+ series created by Ronan Bennett, with Guy Ritchie among the directors.
Who is in MobLand?
Tom Hardy plays fixer Harry Da Souza, with Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren as the heads of the Harrigan family.
Which books are about London crime families?
Dangerous Lady and The Take by Martina Cole, The Feud by Kimberley Chambers, Faithful by Roberta Kray and The Long Firm by Jake Arnott.
How do I choose which one to read first?
Take the three question quiz on this page, or the 60-second quiz.
Are there any books like Peaky Blinders?
The Enforcer by Carol Hellier is a gangland family saga spanning post-war Ireland and 1960s London, and The Long Firm by Jake Arnott is set in 1960s London.
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