A few suggestions about books on London

A great book about the overall history of London, by Peter Ackroyd.

A story of what goes on underground, by Peter Ackroyd.

Peter Ackroyd delves into the hidden byways of history, describing the river’s endless allure in a journey overflowing with characters, incidents, and wry observations. 

In its long history, the River Thames has frozen solid forty times. These are the stories of that frozen river. By Helen Humphries.

A general short history of the city, by AN Wilson.

Step back in time and discover the sights, sounds and smells of London through the ages in this journey into the capital's rich, teeming and occasionally hazardous past. By Matthew Green.

By Judith Flanders. The nineteenth century was a time of unprecedented change, and nowhere was this more apparent than London.

By Donald Rumbelow. This book lays out all the known evidence in a summary of the facts and theories that have been written and spoken about the Ripper.

Tom Chivers follows hidden pathways, explores lost islands and uncovers the geological mysteries that burst up through the pavement and bubble to the surface of our streets. From Roman ruins to a submerged playhouse, from an abandoned Tube station to underground rivers, Chivers leads us on a journey into the depths of the city he loves.

Discovering the London of Sherlock Holmes gives the reader an insight into the London of the master detective, with guides to the locations which feature in the stories. From Scotland Yard to Paddington Station, from Victoria to the Embankment, from the Houses of Parliament to Holmes' own residence in 221B Baker Street, John Christopher brings Holmes into the modern day and makes it easy for the fan to guide themselves around the venues from the stories.

By Paul Talling. From the sources of the Fleet in Hampstead's ponds to the mouth of the Effra in Vauxhall, via the meander of the Westbourne through 'Knight's Bridge' and the Tyburn's curve along Marylebone Lane, London's Lost Rivers unearths the hidden waterways that flow beneath the streets of the capital.

By David Long. In this feast of peculiarities, author David Long guides you off the beaten path and allows you under the skin of the hidden city that is modern-day London, revealing a new side to the capital you thought you knew.

A comprehensive history of seventeenth-century London, told through the lives of those who experienced it. By Margarette Lincoln.

The unruly riverside parishes of London were home to everyday Londoners who helped to build a global trading metropolis and played essential roles in the effort that eventually enabled Britain to defeat Napoleon. This rich study immerses readers in a forgotten maritime world of which only traces remain.   

By Margarette Lincoln.

Everyday life in the teeming metropolis during William Shakespeare's time in the city. By Stephen Porter.

By Charles Dickens. From the tranquil roads of London, two men are drawn against their will to the vengeful, bloodstained streets of Paris at the height of the Reign of Terror, and they soon fall under the lethal shadow of La Guillotine.

Written by the acclaimed historical novelist Lee Jackson, this book recreates the sights and sounds of Dickens' London and provides a detailed itinerary for those keen to follow in the footsteps of 'The Inimitable Boz'. 

With Walking Pepys’s London, the reader will come to know life in London from the pavement up and see its streets from the perspective of this renowned diarist.