8 Best-Selling Continuous Delivery Books Millions Love

Explore best-selling Continuous Delivery books authored by leading experts with proven impact and practical guidance.

Updated on June 29, 2025
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There's something special about books that both critics and crowds love, especially in a field as dynamic as Continuous Delivery. Accelerating software releases while reducing risk has become a necessity, not an option, for modern development teams striving to keep up with market demands and technological innovation.

The books highlighted here come from authors with deep hands-on experience and recognized expertise, including Jez Humble, David Farley, and Eberhard Wolff. These works have shaped how organizations approach automation, testing, security, and deployment pipelines, offering readers frameworks that have stood the test of time.

While these popular books provide proven frameworks, readers seeking content tailored to their specific Continuous Delivery needs might consider creating a personalized Continuous Delivery book that combines these validated approaches into a focused learning path just for them.

Best for foundational deployment frameworks
Jez Humble is a recognized expert in software engineering with a sharp focus on continuous delivery and DevOps practices. His extensive experience and influential work promoting agile methodologies led to this influential book, which lays out proven techniques to help you and your team deliver software faster and more reliably by automating processes and improving collaboration across departments.
CONTINUOUS DELIVERY book cover

by Jez & Farley Humble David··You?

What happens when seasoned software engineers Jez Humble and David Farley combine decades of experience with a deep commitment to improving software delivery? They crafted a detailed guide that demystifies the complex process of releasing software rapidly and reliably. You'll learn how to automate build, deployment, and testing workflows, implement deployment pipelines, and foster collaboration across developers, testers, and operations. The book also delves into managing infrastructure, data, and configuration with practical techniques like virtualization and automated infrastructure management. If you're involved in any stage of software delivery, this book offers concrete frameworks to reduce risk and accelerate value delivery.

Winner of the 2011 Jolt Excellence Award
Published by Addison-Wesley
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Best for automation and pipeline experts
Jez Humble brings over 20 years of software development and infrastructure experience to this book, drawing from roles at Google, startups, and government projects. His work on continuous delivery earned the Jolt Excellence Award, reflecting his deep expertise. This book lays out specific automation techniques and collaborative practices that help teams speed up releases while reducing risk, making it a valuable resource for developers, testers, and operations professionals alike.

The research was clear: traditional software release methods weren't cutting it. Jez Humble, with two decades of hands-on experience across startups, government, and Google, developed this book to tackle the slow, risky nature of deploying code. You learn specific practices like automating build, test, and deployment steps, implementing deployment pipelines, and managing infrastructure and configurations to accelerate release cycles. Chapters cover everything from continuous integration basics to zero-downtime releases, making it a practical guide for anyone involved in software delivery. If you're part of a development, testing, or operations team aiming to improve release speed and reliability, this book speaks directly to that challenge.

Jolt Excellence Award Winner
Published by Addison-Wesley Professional
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Best for custom automation plans
This AI-created book on Continuous Delivery is tailored to your specific challenges and goals in automating software delivery. You share your experience level, areas of interest, and key objectives, and the book is designed to focus exactly on those aspects. This personalized approach ensures you get relevant and practical knowledge without wading through unrelated content. It's like having a guide that matches your background and helps you master Continuous Delivery automation efficiently.
2025·50-300 pages·Continuous Delivery, Deployment Pipelines, Build Automation, Release Management, Testing Automation

This tailored book explores proven Continuous Delivery automation techniques that directly address your unique challenges and objectives. By focusing on your specific interests and background, it combines widely validated practices with your personalized goals, creating a learning experience that’s both relevant and practical. The book reveals how to streamline deployment pipelines, enhance automation workflows, and maintain reliable software releases, all tailored to fit your context. It examines essential topics like build automation, release management, testing integration, and infrastructure coordination, ensuring you gain actionable knowledge that resonates with your environment. This personalized approach transforms general Continuous Delivery principles into a focused guide crafted just for you, accelerating your mastery of software delivery.

Tailored Guide
Pipeline Optimization
3,000+ Books Generated
Best for hands-on pipeline implementation
A Practical Guide to Continuous Delivery offers a detailed exploration of building and managing Continuous Delivery pipelines, presenting a technology stack that includes Docker, Chef, Jenkins, and ELK. This book’s practical orientation makes it a solid choice for software professionals aiming to accelerate production releases with more reliability and less risk. It addresses the needs of developers, managers, and architects alike by covering core processes and technical implementations, helping organizations transition smoothly into Continuous Delivery practices.
2017·288 pages·Continuous Delivery, Continuous Deployment, Build Automation, Continuous Integration, Acceptance Testing

After analyzing numerous case studies and tools, Eberhard Wolff developed a hands-on approach to implementing Continuous Delivery pipelines. This book walks you through using technologies such as Docker, Jenkins, and the ELK stack to automate software rollouts, increase deployment reliability, and reduce risks. You learn how to integrate continuous integration, acceptance testing, and monitoring into your development workflow, with practical examples that serve as templates for your own projects. Whether you're a developer, manager, or architect, this guide clarifies the processes and technical foundations needed to embed Continuous Delivery effectively in your organization.

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Best for automating CI/CD processes
Sander Rossel is a Microsoft certified professional developer with deep experience in .NET, Azure, and DevOps technologies. His background in software development and cloud infrastructure uniquely positions him to guide you through automating continuous integration and deployment. Writing extensively for MSDN and CodeProject, Rossel brings practical insights to help you master faster, more reliable software releases using tools like Azure DevOps and Cisco ACI.
2017·458 pages·Continuous Delivery, Continuous Integration, Deployment, Automation, Azure DevOps

Sander Rossel draws on his extensive expertise as a Microsoft certified professional developer to unravel the complexities of automating software delivery pipelines. This book equips you with over 90 practical recipes addressing continuous integration, delivery, and deployment, focusing on automating builds, tests, and deployments with tools like Azure DevOps and Cisco ACI. You’ll gain hands-on skills in configuring infrastructure, managing policies, and integrating with virtualization platforms, which are essential for streamlining application releases. Ideal for developers, system administrators, and engineers seeking to enhance deployment reliability and speed, this work offers concrete examples such as setting up network programming with REST and Python, and troubleshooting automation workflows.

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Best for Visual Studio testing integration
Testing for Continuous Delivery with Visual Studio 2012 offers a targeted approach to overcoming testing challenges in fast-paced software delivery cycles. This guide emphasizes how Visual Studio 2012's testing features and automation capabilities can help you accelerate retesting and maintain quality in agile environments. By walking you through setting up tools like Team Foundation Server and virtual lab environments, it equips you with practical methods to keep testing aligned with continuous delivery demands. Ideal for developers and testers working within Microsoft's ecosystem, this book addresses a key bottleneck in modern software projects by improving the efficiency and reliability of testing processes.
Testing for Continuous Delivery with Visual Studio 2012 (Microsoft patterns & practices) book cover

by Larry Brader, Howie Hilliker, Alan Cameron Wills·You?

2013·248 pages·Continuous Delivery, Visual Studio, Testing Automation, Agile Development, Unit Testing

The research was clear: traditional manual testing couldn't keep pace with continuous delivery demands, which drove Larry Brader, Howie Hilliker, and Alan Cameron Wills to craft this focused guide. You learn how to leverage Visual Studio 2012's testing and automation tools—from recording manual tests to creating unit and performance tests—helping you streamline retesting and integrate testing tightly into agile workflows. Chapters build from basics to advanced setups, covering tools like Team Foundation Server and virtual lab environments, so you gain practical skills to reduce testing bottlenecks. If you're hands-on with Visual Studio and aiming to improve your continuous delivery pipeline, this book offers concrete techniques tailored for that context, though it assumes some familiarity with Microsoft development environments.

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Best for rapid pipeline acceleration
This AI-created book on continuous delivery pipelines is written based on your background, skill level, and specific goals. You share which pipeline aspects matter most to you, and the book focuses exactly on accelerating those areas over 30 days. Unlike general books, this tailored approach narrows down content to your interests and experience, making learning efficient and directly applicable. It’s crafted to help you speed up your delivery pipelines with clear, actionable steps that suit your unique context.
2025·50-300 pages·Continuous Delivery, Pipeline Optimization, Build Automation, Test Automation, Deployment Efficiency

This tailored book explores a personalized roadmap to accelerate your continuous delivery pipelines within 30 days. It covers essential concepts such as pipeline optimization, automation, and deployment efficiency, all focused on your unique background and goals. By examining proven techniques combined with your specific interests, it reveals how to streamline build, test, and deploy processes effectively. This tailored approach matches your experience level and desired outcomes, helping you focus on what matters most to speed up software delivery. With a clear, step-by-step progression, the book offers a practical learning journey designed to sharpen your pipelines and reduce release bottlenecks.

Tailored Guide
Pipeline Optimization
1,000+ Happy Readers
Best for mobile app delivery automation
Doron Katz, originally from Sydney, Australia, brings a unique blend of internet science and management expertise to this book. With hands-on experience from startups to large firms in San Francisco, he has crafted a resource that addresses the complexities of mobile continuous delivery. His background as both a software engineer and project manager, along with contributions to respected technical publications and coauthoring Developing an iOS Edge, gives him a well-rounded perspective perfect for tackling automation challenges in mobile app deployment.
2018·346 pages·Continuous Delivery, DevOps, Mobile Development, Automation, Fastlane

What started as Doron Katz's challenge in streamlining mobile app releases turned into a focused guide on integrating Fastlane into continuous delivery workflows. You learn how to automate tedious deployment tasks, manage code signing, and implement testing pipelines specific to mobile platforms. Chapters dive into practical scripting for iOS and Android, demonstrating how to reduce errors and speed up delivery cycles. If you develop or manage mobile applications and want to improve your release process without getting lost in generic DevOps theory, this book offers precise, technical insights.

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Best for integrating security in delivery
Laura Bell, founder and lead consultant of SafeStack, brings over a decade of hands-on experience in software development and penetration testing to this book. Her work focuses on managing application security risks in agile and startup environments, making her uniquely qualified to address the challenges of securing continuous delivery pipelines. Bell's background informs the book's approach to empowering developers and security professionals alike to collaborate effectively and embed security into every stage of agile development.
Agile Application Security: Enabling Security in a Continuous Delivery Pipeline book cover

by Laura Bell, Michael Brunton-Spall, Rich Smith, Jim Bird··You?

2017·383 pages·Continuous Delivery, Agile Software Development, Application Security, Security Integration, DevOps Security

Drawing from her extensive experience as a software developer and penetration tester, Laura Bell crafted this book to bridge the gap between agile development and traditional security practices. You'll gain insight into integrating security into every phase of your development lifecycle—from planning and design to coding and testing—while fostering a collaborative culture that values transparency and empathy. The book also tackles regulatory compliance within agile and DevOps environments, offering concrete techniques to embed security seamlessly without slowing delivery. If you're involved in software development or security within agile teams, this book offers practical frameworks and real-world lessons to help you embed security without friction.

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Best for DevOps continuous delivery strategies
Sricharan Vadapalli is a software engineer and DevOps expert with extensive experience in implementing DevOps strategies for software development and operations. His expertise informs this book’s practical approach to continuous integration, delivery, and deployment, providing you with actionable knowledge on tools like Jenkins, Git, Chef, and Ansible. Vadapalli’s background ensures the book aligns with real-world challenges faced by engineers and architects seeking to adopt or enhance DevOps practices.
2018·134 pages·Devops, Continuous Delivery, Continuous Deployment, Deployment, Continuous Integration

What happens when a seasoned software engineer deeply involved in DevOps shares his insights? Sricharan Vadapalli draws from extensive hands-on experience to demystify the core strategies and tools behind continuous integration, delivery, and deployment. You’ll learn practical skills like setting up Jenkins with Git, automating infrastructure using Chef and Ansible, and leveraging monitoring tools such as Splunk to improve code quality. The book breaks down DevOps maturity models and agile methodologies, making it ideal for engineers and architects eager to implement or refine DevOps pipelines within their organizations.

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Proven Continuous Delivery Methods, Personalized

Get tailored Continuous Delivery strategies that fit your unique challenges and goals.

Accelerate software releases
Customize delivery pipelines
Integrate security smoothly

Trusted by thousands mastering Continuous Delivery worldwide

Delivery Mastery Blueprint
30-Day Pipeline Accelerator
Strategic Delivery Foundations
Continuous Delivery Success Code

Conclusion

The collection of Continuous Delivery books here reveals a few clear themes: automation is essential, collaboration between development and operations teams accelerates value, and security must be integrated early. These works offer frameworks that many readers have validated through practical adoption.

If you prefer proven methods, start with Jez Humble and David Farley's foundational guide for a thorough understanding of deployment pipelines. For validated approaches in specific areas like testing or mobile delivery, try books focused on Visual Studio testing or Fastlane automation.

Alternatively, you can create a personalized Continuous Delivery book to combine proven methods with your unique needs. These widely-adopted approaches have helped many readers succeed in making software delivery faster and more reliable.

Frequently Asked Questions

I'm overwhelmed by choice – which book should I start with?

Start with "CONTINUOUS DELIVERY" by Jez Humble and David Farley. It lays the foundational principles and practices that underpin the entire discipline, giving you a solid base before diving into more specialized topics.

Are these books too advanced for someone new to Continuous Delivery?

Not at all. While some are technical, many explain concepts clearly and build from basics to advanced topics. For beginners, starting with the foundational books and then exploring practical guides is a good approach.

What's the best order to read these books?

Begin with the foundational works by Jez Humble and David Farley, then explore practical guides like Eberhard Wolff’s book. Follow with specialized topics such as testing or mobile delivery to deepen your expertise.

Do I really need to read all of these, or can I just pick one?

You can pick one that matches your immediate needs. However, combining foundational knowledge with practical or specialized books enriches your understanding and application of Continuous Delivery principles.

Are any of these books outdated given how fast Continuous Delivery changes?

While some books were published a few years ago, their core principles remain relevant. Techniques like automation, pipeline management, and security integration have enduring value even as tools evolve.

Can I get a Continuous Delivery book tailored to my specific needs and experience level?

Yes! These expert books offer great insights, but a personalized Continuous Delivery book can combine popular methods with your unique goals and background. Learn more here.

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