Sarah J. Maas is officially back.
On Monday, Maas announced the titles of her two coming “A Court of Thorns and Roses” novels. “A Court of Splintered Harmony” will be released on October 27, 2026, and “A Court of Forgotten Melody” comes out January 12, 2027.
The two books will form a single “ACOTAR” story arc, along with a third, unnamed book, which will be released sometime soon, as the bestselling author revealed on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast in March 2026.
“It’s meant to be read ideally as one massive, massive story as opposed to in a trilogy,” Maas told host Alex Cooper of the books. “It’s not a trilogy. Like, arcs aren’t wrapped up.”
Bloomsbury
Maas’ romantasy novels, which include 16 published books across her “ACOTAR,” “Throne of Glass,” and “Crescent City” series, are typically split into parts. Maas is splitting the “parts” of her sixth “ACOTAR” story into different volumes of “The Valkyrie Cycle,” as the covers of the books reveal.
“A Court of Splintered Harmony” contains “Movement I,” and “A Court of Forgotten Melody” tells the story of “Movements II and III.” The third book will conclude the arc with “Movement IV.”
The new “ACOTAR” stories will take readers back to Prythian and the Night Court, as blurbs about the books on sellers’ websites reveal, but they will be affected by the events of Maas’ third “Crescent City” book as well. “House of Flame and Shadow,” released in January 2024, created an interconnected literary universe between Maas’ series, referred to by fans as the Maasiverse.
Without revealing any spoilers, the events of “HOFAS” created a drastic change in Prythian, so, at the very least, readers should be familiar with all of Maas’ “ACOTAR” and “Crescent City” novels before reading the newest book. That said, the spider on the cover of “A Court of Forgotten Melody” could be an Easter egg for “Throne of Glass,” meaning it’s probably worth studying up on that series as well.
Because Maas’ massive catalog overlaps at different points, it can be confusing to know where to start. Whether you’re just getting started reading Maas’ books or want to revisit her novels, here’s the best reading order to follow.
Start with the first three ‘A Court of Thorns and Roses’ books
If you want to make sure you’re ready for the sixth and seventh “A Court of Thorns and Roses” books, it makes sense to read the earliest installments in the series first as you dive into Maas’ work.
“ACOTAR” follows Feyre Archeron, a human huntress who gets pulled into the faerie world after killing a fae. As the novels progress, Feyre dives deeper into the magical world of Prythian, discovering unexpected power and love as Maas flexes her world-building skills.
“A Court of Thorns and Roses” offers the best introduction to Maas’ work for those who haven’t read any of her writing before, even though she published “Throne of Glass” first. The otherworldly elements of the series are built slowly, the books offer a comprehensive view of Maas’ writing style, and the romance is steamy and compelling.
Bloomsbury
Read the first three books in the series first, in the order they were released:
- “A Court of Thorns and Roses”
- “A Court of Mist and Fury”
- “A Court of Wings and Ruin”
Then, take a break from “ACOTAR.” Books one through three wrap up Feyre’s story, while books four and five are arguably more closely tied, plotwise, to “Crescent City” and the coming “ACOTAR” books. More on that in a bit.
The ‘Throne of Glass’ series was released first, but it works best as the second Maas series
When readers enter the expansive and epic world of “Throne of Glass,” they meet Celaena Sardothien, an 18-year-old assassin imprisoned in Adarlan, a kingdom where magic disappeared years ago.
The crown prince of Adarlan offers Celaena a chance at freedom, proposing she compete as his contestant to become the king’s champion by defeating 23 other criminals. When other competitors start dying mysteriously around her, she will have to confront the pain of her past to face the battles ahead.
The world of “Throne of Glass” becomes enormous as the books progress, and the rich, developed fantasy world is so complex that it’s easier to read once you’re already familiar with Maas’ style.
Bloomsbury
However, reading the “Throne of Glass” books in the order they were published doesn’t offer the best narrative experience.
Maas originally wrote one of the novels in the series, “The Assassin’s Blade,” as four novellas that she published as e-books between January and July 2012. Bloomsbury released “Throne of Glass” in August 2012 and later released the novellas, including one additional story, as “The Assassin’s Blade” in March 2013.
Chronologically, the events of “The Assassin’s Blade” take place before the rest of the series, but reading it first reveals details Maas intentionally leaves out of “Throne of Glass,” “Crown of Midnight,” and “Heir of Fire” that quickly become relevant in “Queen of Shadows.” The mystery surrounding Celaena’s past is part of what makes the first three books in the novel so captivating, so you shouldn’t read “The Assassin’s Blade” first.
In addition, the events of “Empire of Storms” and “Tower of Dawn” take place at the same time in different parts of the “Throne of Glass” world, so there’s debate among the fandom on how they should be read. They were released in 2016 and 2017, respectively, and although “Empire of Storms” came out first, it ends on a cliffhanger, while “Tower of Dawn” does not. I am a fan of reading them in tandem, but for your first read through, I’d read them as they were published.
To maintain the series’ suspense without revealing spoilers, the best “Throne of Glass” reading order is:
- “Throne of Glass”
- “Crown of Midnight”
- “Heir of Fire”
- “The Assassin’s Blade”
- “Queen of Shadows”
- “Empire of Storms”
- “Tower of Dawn”
- “Kingdom of Ash”
Maas recommends “The Assassin’s Blade” as the third book in the series on her website, but I think you experience more drama from “Heir of Fire” if you leave it for before “Queen of Shadows.” Either way works, though.
Maas readers will be ready for ‘Crescent City’ after finishing books four and five of ‘ACOTAR’
Half-fae Bryce Quinlan is at a crossroads when the “Crescent City” series begins, grieving the murders of her best friends by a demon.
She believes the killer was apprehended, but when similar murders start taking place in Crescent City, Bryce agrees to investigate the deaths with Hunt Athalar, a Fallen Angel who has been enslaved for hundreds of years by the all-powerful Archangels after an attempted coup.
The series has three installments to date, and the most recent book, “House of Flame and Shadow,” was published in January 2024.
Bloomsbury
“Crescent City” doesn’t work as an introduction to Maas’ novels for a few reasons.
First, the fantasy is more complex than in her other two series. It combines technology and magic and includes a wider variety of fantastical creatures from the get-go, such as werewolves and mermaids. Elements from the other series are also key to understanding the climax of the second installment in the “Crescent City” series, and Maas herself recommends reading “ACOTAR” before starting “Crescent City.”
The events of the fifth “ACOTAR” book, “A Court of Silver Flames,” are particularly pertinent to “Crescent City.” The novel focuses on Feyre’s sister, Nesta Archeron, creating a different story arc than the first three “ACOTAR” books, a shift that the novella “A Court of Frost and Starlight” helps bridge. It seems Maas is going to continue the story she began for Nesta and those close to her in “Splintered Harmony” and “Forgotten Melody,” as the Valkyrie are directly tied to Nesta, not Feyre.
Bloomsbury
So, after you finish the “Throne of Glass” series, return to “ACOTAR” to reacquaint yourself with Prythian from Nesta’s point of view. Read them as follows:
- “A Court of Frost and Starlight”
- “A Court of Silver Flames”
It’s ideal to go into “Crescent City” with the events of “ACOSF” fresh on your mind. Then, you can read the “Crescent City” series as it was released:
- “House of Earth and Blood”
- “House of Sky and Breath”
- “House of Flame and Shadow”
“HOFAS” lays the groundwork for the state of Prythian when “Splintered Harmony” begins, so make sure you finish the “Crescent City” series in its entirety before diving back into “ACOTAR.”
Happy reading!
