Shades of Magic Books in Order

Shades of Magic is V.E. Schwab's four-London universe: Grey London without magic, Red London where magic and monarchy thrive, White London where magic is fought over like water in a drought, and Black London - burned, sealed, spoken of as a warning. Kell, one of the last Antari magicians who can walk between worlds, smuggles relics between the Londons; Delilah Bard, a Grey London cutthroat, forces her way into his errands. The trilogy (2015-2017) closed as a complete story - and then, six years later, the universe reopened: The Fragile Threads of Power (September 2023) launched the Threads of Power sequel series, set seven years on with the same cast. This page sequences both series and the graphic novels between them (2015–present).

Where to start

A Darker Shade of Magic (2015), book one - Kell and Lila meet in chapter one of it, and the four-London logic is built there.

Does the reading order matter?

Trilogy first, strict: A Darker Shade of Magic (2015), A Gathering of Shadows (2016) - the tournament book, a deliberate slow build - and A Conjuring of Light (2017), the finale. The Steel Prince graphic novels (2019-2020, three volumes) prequel Prince Maxim's youth and can be read after the trilogy; Schwab positions them as a bridge. The sequel series: The Fragile Threads of Power (September 26, 2023) assumes the whole trilogy and jumps seven years - Kell, Lila, Rhy and Alucard all return - so it is strictly a post-trilogy read; Threads of Power #2 has no publication date yet. Reader flag: book two ends on the Essen Tasch tournament, whose payoff only lands in book three - do not stop at two

Which one is the best?

A Darker Shade of Magic (2015), the worldbuilding showcase; A Conjuring of Light (2017), the payoff; The Fragile Threads of Power (2023), the sequel that earned its return.

Related guides

Readers finishing this shelf usually want the map next door: V.E. Schwab books in order, Brandon Sanderson books in order, Diana Wynne Jones books in order. Every guide follows the same format — the shelf, the entry point, the honest answer about order.

Make it a project

Pick a session size and let the days accumulate — at the pace our reading speed test measures, most shelves above clear in a few weeks of half-hours. Every guide on the books in order shelf follows this same format, and when a book lands, its 8-question quiz is waiting on the original book quiz.