Going anywhere these days without hearing about a Sarah J Maas book is nearly impossible. Her books are consistently at the top of the New York Times Best Seller list, and she has been releasing Young Adult and New Adult novels since 2012.
She has released 16 books since, and the popularity of her series’ have seen a huge rise thanks to TikTok.
As a reader, it can be overwhelming to figure out which series to start with, which is why I made this Sarah J Maas book guide. As someone who has read all 16 of her books across 3 series, I’m excited to share the best way to dive into the SJM Universe!
The Ultimate Sarah J Maas Book Guide
1. Start with the ACOTAR Series
Starting with A Court of Thorns and Roses (also known as ACOTAR) is the easiest intro into the Sarah J Maas universe. There are currently (as of February 2024) 5 books in this series, with another one in the works.
ACOTAR is a story about a young human woman who finds herself taken north of a wall separating the human world from the Faerie realm. She is forced to live in the the Faerie realm and live in a place called the Spring Court. You can read my entire spoiler free ACOTAR guide here.
This series is a great introduction because it’s not super heavy on the fantasy and world building at the beginning. It’s great if you’re just getting into the fantasy book genre, and it’s also a great introduction into the writing, world building, and character development style of Sarah J Maas.
The first 3 ACOTAR books follow the main female character, Feyre and the story is from her point of view. Book 2 is A Court of Mist and Fury and book 3 is A Court of Wings and Ruin. These 3 books could be a series on their own. The ending of the 3rd book is a really great wrap-up to what’s considered the “main” ACOTAR storyline.
Book 4 (A Court of Frost and Starlight) is a shorter novella style book that sets up a sort of “phase 2” of the ACOTAR series. A Court of Silver Flames is the 5th book in the series and the official start of a new phase of ACOTAR that follows different main characters.
2. Read the Crescent City Series Next
After finishing the ACOTAR series, you have the option to read the Throne of Glass series, or the Crescent City series. My personal recommendation is to read Crescent City.
The first book in the Crescent City series is called House of Earth and Blood and is a much more futuristic take on fantasy. It takes place in a universe that has cell phones, electricity, cars, etc. It’s much more akin to a “normal” society than other fantasy series (think dinner by candlelight and nights spent at the inn).
Crescent City can be a little bit confusing at the beginning, which is why I made a spoiler free guide that you can check out here. Avoid googling anything about ANY of these series because you could easily come across spoilers.
Crescent city is a series that people are often intimidated by because of how long each book is. Each book is close to 800 pages, but I do think it is a great story to go to after finishing ACOTAR.
The second book in the Crescent City series is House of Sky and Breath, and the third book in the Crescent City series is House of Flame and Shadow. As of February 2024, these are the only three books that are published, but SJM is planning to release more books in this series.
3. Finish with Throne of Glass
The reason I recommend finishing your Sarah J Mass journey with Throne of Glass is because it is currently the only fully complete series.
This series has eight books, so it is the longest of all of the series that are currently released, and I do think it is nice to finish the Sarah J Mass reading journey on a series that has a full conclusion. I also created a spoiler free Throne of Glass guide that you can find here.
The Throne of Glass reading order is the number one thing that can challenge some readers because there is a prequel in the story. There are a couple of different ways you can read the series, and I’m going to go through each option for you.
Throne of Glass Publication Order (Author Recommendation)
The author actually has recommended reading the prequel as the third book in the series which is the order the books were published in. If you choose this reading order it would look like this:
- Throne of Glass
- Crown of Midnight
- The Assassin’s Blade (prequel)
- Heir of Fire
- Queen of Shadows
- Empire of Storms
- Tower of Dawn
- Kingdom of Ash
Throne of Glass Chronological Order
However some readers choose to start with The Assassin’s Blade and continue reading the story in a chronological order (the events of The Assassin’s Blade take place before the events in the Throne of Glass book).
If you choose to read the series this way, it would look like this:
- The Assassin’s Blade (prequel)
- Throne of Glass
- Crown of Midnight
- Heir of Fire
- Queen of Shadows
- Empire of Storms
- Tower of Dawn
- Kingdom of Ash
Throne of Glass Tandem Read
Another part of the throne of glass reading journey that can be difficult for some readers is when you reach Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn. These books take place at the same exact time but follow different main characters. Because of this, some readers choose to do a tandem read, meaning they read these two books at the same time. Doing the tandem read would look like this:
- Throne of Glass
- Crown of Midnight
- The Assassin’s Blade (prequel)
- Heir of Fire
- Queen of Shadows
- Empire of Storms & Tower of Dawn
- Kingdom of Ash
If you do choose to do a tandem read, below is a chapter by chapter guide that you can follow along while you’re reading. I personally did not do the tandem read and I loved both Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn.
And that’s the Sarah J Maas book guide!
I hope this gave you all the information you need to get started on this INCREDIBLE journey. You won’t be disappointed. Happy reading!
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[…] This guide is going to be most useful if you start the series with Throne of Glass (not the prequel, The Assassin’s Blade) If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you should check out my Sarah J Mass book series guide here. […]