All the Birds in the Sky
#8203.59 adjusted 3.60 for sample size in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Complete 2016 Reading commitment Low Charlie Jane Anders Last reviewed 2026-09-05
Overview
A standalone novel following Patricia, a witch, and Laurence, a technologist building a wormhole generator, who reconnect as adults after being separated in childhood, against the backdrop of a gathering environmental catastrophe the characters call "the Unraveling." The two ultimately have to combine magic and advanced technology to avert disaster despite their opposing philosophies about how the world should be saved. Charlie Jane Anders's 2016 novel won the Nebula Award for Best Novel, the Crawford Award, and the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, and was a finalist for the Hugo Award for Best Novel; a major news magazine later included it among its 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time.
Urban fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
All the Birds in the Sky (2016) core · 3.59 (49,353 ratings); Standalone novel following a witch and a technologist who reconnect as adults amid environmental catastrophe, combining magic and speculative technology to avert it. A separate universe from Anders' Lessons in Magic and Disaster (already in the canon); the two share no characters or setting.
Quick answers
- How many books are in All the Birds in the Sky? All the Birds in the Sky's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is All the Birds in the Sky finished? Complete (2016).
- How much reading does All the Birds in the Sky take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book · ~316 pages).
- How is All the Birds in the Sky ranked? #820 in this site's official ranking, based on 49,353 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #820?
Ranked #820 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 3.59 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (49,353 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #819, The Ayesha Series (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
- A single standalone novel: ranked on that one book alone.
Why explore this universe?
Modestly rated · 1 book · Complete · 49k ratings · Ranks #820 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment urban fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
A single Core Canon work: no sequencing question to resolve.
Awards (verified)
- Nebula Award (Best Novel), 2016: won: All the Birds in the Sky
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 2017: won: All the Birds in the Sky
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Suggestions computed from what All the Birds in the Sky and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- Wizard of the Pigeons Urban fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.72
- The Lighthouse at the Edge of the World Urban fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.66
- Magic for Liars Urban fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.61
- David Mogo, Godhunter Urban fantasy / Mythic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.60
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.59 across 49,353 ratings on 1 Core Canon book. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: All the Birds in the Sky admitted as a standalone Core Canon novel accepted 2026-09-05
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-09-05
Rule: Core Canon is the single 2016 novel. A separate, unrelated universe from Charlie Jane Anders' Lessons in Magic and Disaster, already in the canon.