The Rose and the Thorn
core novel 2013 Riyria / Legends of the First Empire
Record
| First published | 2013 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 4.40 (31,737 ratings, collected 2026-09-13) |
| Page count | 347 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780356502281 |
| Internal chronology | 2 |
Synopsis
The Rose and the Thorn is the second book of the Riyria Chronicles, set more than a year after Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater were saved from certain death by a woman named Gwen DeLancy. When the two thieves return to the city of Medford to see her again, they find Gwen refusing to see them, having decided on her own to protect them from the danger surrounding her situation. Determined to learn what has changed and to help her regardless, Royce and Hadrian begin investigating the threat Gwen is trying to shield them from, drawing them into the political and criminal undercurrents of Medford as they search for a way to reach her.
Where it sits
- Universe: Riyria / Legends of the First Empire
- Series: The Riyria Chronicles core; position 2 of 5 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Michael J. Sullivan
Notes
- From the series record (The Riyria Chronicles): Prequel novels/novellas, set ~9-10 years before the Riyria Revelations; internal chronology matches publication order. A 6th volume, Blythin Castle, was still being drafted by the author as of the most recent public update found and is not yet published, not registered here per Article 2.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within the series The Riyria Chronicles: position 2 of 5: previous The Crown Tower (2013) · next The Death of Dulgath (2015)
- Internal chronology, within Riyria / Legends of the First Empire: position 3 of 20: previous Age of Myth (2016) · next Age of Swords (2017)
Sources
- Michael J. Sullivan official site
- https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/michael-j-sullivan/the-rose-and-the-thorn/9780316243728/
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