Cassandra Clare Essential Reading Guide (books in order)

Published Nov 4, 2026, 6:04 PM EST

Dani Kessel Odom (they/them) is an autistic lead writer and TV critic who covers sci-fi shows like Doctor Who and Pluribus, fantasy shows like The Magicians and Percy Jackson, and horror of all kinds. They also cover Marvel and DC TV shows and movies, with a robust knowledge of comic books. Their TV reviews can be found on Rotten Tomatoes.

Dani is also part of ScreenRant's books team, using their fiction writing and literature studies as the backbone for their book analyses.

They have covered events, such as the Denver Fan Expo. Professionals in the field, such as Damien Leone and Lucy Hale, have shared their articles. Their review of Ponies was quoted in the show's TV trailer.

In university, they majored in English Writing with a minor in psychology. They have always had a passion for analyzing TV and movies, even taking filmography and scriptwriting classes in university. They also studied and participated in onstage and onscreen acting extensively from the ages of 7 to 18.

Aside from working at Screen Rant, Dani has worked as a freelance editor and writer over the past decade, often in a ghostwriting capacity.

Sign in to your ScreenRant account

The Shadowhunter Chronicles has many possible reading orders, so here’s all the information you need to dive into the story. Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter books are one of the longest-running YA fantasy series of this century, with over 20 books split into five sub-series, and it’s approaching its conclusion. The Last King of Faerie, the first book in the final trilogy, The Wicked Powers, is out now, with the second expected in Fall 2027.

Perhaps you’re starting The Shadowhunter Chronicles books now because a friend recommended the series, or you’ve always been curious but never actually started. Maybe you were convinced to pick up the books because of The Last King of Faerie’s beautiful cover art and the increased interest in fantasy romance. Or maybe, you're finally catching up on or revisiting the world of the Shadowhunters.

No matter why you're reading the books now, the series is so expansive that the reading order can be confusing. There are four main ways to read The Shadowhunter Chronicles: Cassandra Clare's recommendation, grouped by series, publication order, and chronological order. Here are the books in each reading order, along with the pros and cons of each. By the end, you should feel more confident choosing the reading order that fits you best.

Limited-edition releases, such as Seasons of Shadowhunters and Classics Reimagined in the World of the Shadowhunters, that haven't received wide releases aren't included on the lists. Similarly, Shadowhunters and Downworlders, which wasn't written by Cassandra Clare, and graphic novels don't appear.

Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter Recommended Reading Order

Title	Series	Book Release Year
City of Bones	The Mortal Instruments	2007
City of Ashes	The Mortal Instruments	2008
City of Glass	The Mortal Instruments	2009
Clockwork Angel	The Infernal Devices	2010
Clockwork Prince	The Infernal Devices	2011
Clockwork Princess	The Infernal Devices	2013
City of Fallen Angels	The Mortal Instruments	2011
City of Lost Souls	The Mortal Instruments	2013
City of Heavenly Fire	The Mortal Instruments	2014
The Bane Chronicles	Standalone	2014
The Shadowhunter’s Codex*	Companion guide manual	2013
Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy	Standalone	2016
The Red Scrolls of Magic	The Eldest Curse	2019
The Lost Book Of The White	The Eldest Curse	2020
Lady Midnight	The Dark Artifices	2016
Lord of Shadows	The Dark Artifices	2017
Queen of the Air and Darkness	The Dark Artifices	2018
Ghosts of the Shadow Market*	Standalone	2019
Chain of Gold	The Last Hours	2020
Chain of Iron	The Last Hours	2021
Chain of Thorns	The Last Hours	2023
Secrets Of Blackthorn Hall*	Standalone	2021
Better In Black*	Standalone	2025
The Last King of Faerie	The Wicked Powers	2026
*No explicit recommended location from Cassandra Clare

• Ideal for: Readers who need breaks from characters to prevent burnout, readers who enjoy variation in settings and characters
• Not ideal for: Readers who want to finish one story before starting the next, readers who want consistent writing quality

Because Cassandra Clare is the brilliant mind behind the Shadowhunters books, readers value her opinions highly. Luckily, they can experience the books the way Cassandra Clare recommends. On her 2019 website (accessed via The Wayback Machine), she outlined the ideal order, and her current website suggests when to read newer books.

She explicitly recommends waiting for Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy, The Eldest Curses, and The Bane Chronicles after finishing The Mortal Instruments. She also suggests reading The Infernal Devices ahead of Ghosts of the Shadow Market, though she doesn’t specify whether to read it immediately after or wait. I’ve taken a little liberty by placing it after The Dark Artifices since reading it sooner would include spoilers. A few other Shadowhunter books don’t have an explicit recommendation, so I’ve placed them in the best narrative spot.

Question 1 of 3

Clare’s suggested order does a good job of breaking each story into consumable bits, preventing burnout. What’s more, reading The Infernal Devices mid-The Mortal Instruments introduces audiences to characters and details that show up in the second half of the six-book series. The main downside is that it requires switching back and forth between groups of characters, time periods, and settings. This can feel impossible with so much forward momentum. The back-and-forth can also make it difficult to stay invested in a single story. The writing quality also varies in this order.

The Shadowhunter Release Date Reading Order

Custom Image by Simone Ashmoore

Title	Series	Book Release Year
City of Bones	The Mortal Instruments	2007
City of Ashes	The Mortal Instruments	2008
City of Glass	The Mortal Instruments	2009
Clockwork Angel	The Infernal Devices	2010
City of Fallen Angels	The Mortal Instruments	2011
Clockwork Prince	The Infernal Devices	2011
City Of Lost Souls	The Mortal Instruments	2012
Clockwork Princess	The Infernal Devices	2013
The Shadowhunter's Codex	Companion guide manual	2013
City of Heavenly Fire	The Mortal Instruments	2014
The Bane Chronicles	Standalone	2014
Lady Midnight	The Dark Artifices	2016
Tales From the Shadowhunter Academy	Standalone	2016
Lord of Shadows	The Dark Artifices	2017
Queen of Air and Darkness	The Dark Artifices	2018
The Red Scrolls of Magic	The Eldest Curse	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market	Standalone	2019
Chain of Gold	The Last Hours	2020
The Lost Book of the White	The Eldest Curse	2020
Chain of Iron	The Last Hours	2021
Chain of Thorns	The Last Hours	2023
Better in Black	Standalone	2025
Secrets of Blackthorn Hall	Standalone	2026
The Last King of Faerie	The Wicked Powers	2026

• Ideal for: Readers who don't want any spoilers, readers who want consistently improving writing quality, readers who want the original reading experience, readers who like Malec
• Not ideal for: Readers who forget plot/character details easily, readers who can't bounce back and forth repeatedly between two stories

While Cassandra Clare proposes a different order, I personally recommend reading The Shadowhunter Chronicles in release order for folks entering the Shadowhunter world for the first time. It’s virtually the only way to prevent spoilers for future stories. Plus, it means getting to revisit Magnus Bane and Alec, a fan-favorite ship, later on. While both characters show up periodically in later series, the couple primarily appears together in The Mortal Instruments and The Eldest Curse.

However, this order isn't without its drawbacks. The back-and-forth between 21st-century New York and 19th-century Victorian London can be jarring. It disrupts the momentum of The Mortal Instruments series multiple times, not just once like in Cassandra Clare's recommended order. On top of that, readers either have to read all the short stories in their book collections, which were published months to years after they debuted online, or track down a plethora of links.

Shadowhunter Series Reading Order

Title	Series	Book Release Year
City of Bones	​The Mortal Instruments​	2007
City of Ashes	The Mortal Instruments	2008
City of Glass	The Mortal Instruments	2009
City of Fallen Angels	The Mortal Instruments	2011
City of Lost Souls	The Mortal Instruments	2012
City of Heavenly Fire	The Mortal Instruments	2014
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	Standalone	2016
The Red Scrolls of Magic	The Eldest Curse	2019
The Lost Book Of The White	The Eldest Curse	2020
Clockwork Angel	The Infernal Devices	2010
Clockwork Prince	The Infernal Devices	2011
Clockwork Princess	The Infernal Devices	2013
Lady Midnight	The Dark Artifices	2016
Lord of Shadows	The Dark Artifices	2017
Queen of Air and Darkness	The Dark Artifices	2018
Chain of Gold	The Last Hours	2020
Chain of Iron	The Last Hours	2021
Chain of Thorns	The Last Hours	2023
The Shadowhunters Codex	Companion guide manual	2013
The Bane Chronicles	Standalone	2014
Ghosts Of The Shadow Market	Standalone	2019
Secrets Of Blackthorn Hall	Standalone	2021
Better In Black	Standalone	2025
The Last King of Faerie	The Wicked Powers	2026

• Ideal for: Readers who want to complete a story before moving on, readers who need consistent characters and settings to stay invested
• Not ideal for: Readers who don't want any spoilers at all, readers who don't want to revisit the characters and stories at the very end

Anyone who wants to complete a full story before moving on to the next will struggle with both Cassandra Clare’s recommended reading order and the release order. The former’s a little less jarring about it, but both weave The Infernal Devices into The Mortal Instruments. Luckily, you can also read The Shadowhunter Chronicles in series order.

Technically, any first book in a series can be a starting point, but this reading order recommendation starts with The Mortal Instruments, as it was the first one published and does the best job of introducing the rules and dynamics of the Shadowhunters world. Then, it follows publication order, for the most part.

Because The Eldest Curse centers on Alec and Magnus, central characters in The Mortal Instruments series, it’s better to read it after the first series but earlier in the publication order. Similarly, it’s a good idea to read Tales From the Shadowhunter Academy after The Mortal Instruments because it’s essentially the unofficial seventh book, and it includes foundational information for The Dark Artifices.

Unfortunately, the series reading order includes some spoilers for The Infernal Devices because The Mortal Instruments part 2 and The Infernal Devices were published in an alternating order. Additionally, it can be hard to place the standalones and short story collections because almost all of them feature characters from multiple series and/or take place in different timelines. The only logical conclusion is to read them at the end so they won’t feel out of place in one series or another. However, that means revisiting old storylines and characters later on.

Shadowhunters Series Chronological Reading Order

Note: This list will be significantly longer than the others because it breaks down the major short story and novella collections in the Shadowhunters timeline.

Title	Series Or Story Collection	Book Release Year
The Bane Chronicles: What Really Happened In Peru	The Bane Chronicles	2014
The Bane Chronicles: The Runaway Queen	The Bane Chronicles	2014
The Bane Chronicles: Vampires, Scones, and Edmund Harondale	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Clockwork Angel	The Infernal Devices	2010
Clockwork Prince	The Infernal Devices	2011
Clockwork Princess	The Infernal Devices	2013
Better in Black: The Good Storm	Better in Black	2025
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Whitechapel Fiend	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Nothing But Shadows	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Cast Long Shadows	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Every Exquisite Thing	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
The Bane Chronicles: The Midnight Heir	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Chain of Gold	The Last Hours	2020
Chain of Iron	The Last Hours	2021
Chain of Thorns	The Last Hours	2023
Better in Black: A Surfeit of Annas	Better in Black	2025
Better in Black: Zachary's Day Out	Better in Black	2025
Better in Black: The Beautiful Ajatara	Better in Black	2025
The Bane Chronicles: The Rise of the Hotel Dumort	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Learn About Loss	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: A Deeper Love	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
The Bane Chronicles: Saving Raphael Santiago	The Bane Chronicles	2014
The Bane Chronicles: The Fall of the Hotel Dumort	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Evil We Love	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
The Bane Chronicles: The Last Stand of the New York Institute	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: The Wicked Ones	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Son of the Dawn	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
City of Bones	The Mortal Instruments	2007
The Bane Chronicles: The Course of True Love (And First Date)	The Bane Chronicles	2014
Better in Black: Who The Wolf Loves	Better in Black	2025
The Bane Chronicles: What to Buy the Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (And Who You’re Not Officially Dating Anyway)	The Bane Chronicles	2014
City of Ashes	The Mortal Instruments	2008
City of Glass	The Mortal Instruments	2009
The Red Scrolls of Magic	The Eldest Curse	2019
City of Fallen Angels	The Mortal Instruments	2011
City of Lost Souls	The Mortal Instruments	2012
Better in Black: Too Wise to Love	Better in Black	2025
The Bane Chronicles: The Voicemail of Magnus Bane	The Bane Chronicles	2014
City Of Heavenly Fire	The Mortal Instruments	2014
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Welcome to Shadowhunter Academy	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Lost Herondale	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Whitechapel Fiend	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Nothing but Shadows	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Evil We Love	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Pale Kings and Princes	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Bitter of Tongue	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: The Fiery Trial	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Born to Endless Night	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy: Angel Twice Descending	Tales From The Shadowhunter Academy	2016
The Lost Book of the White	The Eldest Curse	2020
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: The Land I Lost	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Through Blood, Through Fire	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Better in Black: City of Broken Hearts	Better in Black	2025
Lady Midnight	The Dark Artifices	2016
Lord of Shadows	The Dark Artifices	2017
Queen of Air and Darkness	​The Dark Artifices​	2018
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: The Lost World	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Ghosts of the Shadow Market: Forever Fallen	Ghosts of the Shadowhunter Market	2019
Secrets of Blackthorn Hall	Standalone	2025
Better in Black: Judgment of King Kieran	Better in Black	2025
Better in Black: The Time of Two	Better in Black	2025
Better in Black: Bred in the Bone	Better in Black	2025
The Lost King of Faerie	The Wicked Powers	2026

• Ideal for: Readers who know the Shadowhunters lore and story, readers who prefer a linear storyline
• Not ideal for: Readers new to the series, readers who don't want to continually revisit the short story collections, readers without access to all the books

Chronological order is an appealing way to read book series for many. The linear direction means the time periods pass in a familiar way, and folks don’t have to worry about tracking different timelines. However, I only recommend the books and short stories in this order for those who have already read the series and know the Shadowhunters lore.

For starters, this order requires folks to have access to all the books so they can jump in and out of the short story and novella collections. Additionally, The Bane Chronicles won’t be as enjoyable of a starting point for those who don’t already know the dashing High Warlock. That’s half of the appeal of the short story collection. On top of that, you need to do a lot more legwork to understand the world and story without the foundation of The Mortal Instruments.

The Infernal Devices might be more polished and, arguably, engaging than The Mortal Instruments, but it has a weaker world-building introduction, and readers may take longer to grasp what’s going on. That said, the chronological approach is an interesting way to engage with the franchise for those who have read The Shadowhunters Chronicles. I know I plan to revisit the stories in this order while waiting for The Last Prince of Hell, expected in Fall 2027.